The end of the 2021-22 season for the Cleveland Cavaliers was suboptimal, as the team went just 9-15 in post-All-Star break play, as compared to 35-23 pre-All-Star break. That was tough to see, and the Cavaliers lost two play-in games to the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks, which eliminated them from postseason contention from there.
The team had its share of injury issues this season, though, and in post-All-Star break play, that assuredly caught up to them. The Wine and Gold was not nearly as effective on defense, and the absence of Jarrett Allen from March 6 up until that play-in loss to Atlanta because of a fractured finger proved costly.
I’m not disputing that with Allen, and Caris LeVert missing the first nine games post-All-Star due to a foot sprain didn’t help, particularly after he was recently acquired shortly before that via trade from the Indiana Pacers near the trade deadline.
But it’s not all on injuries, and even prior to the All-Star break, there were some inconsistencies for the Cavaliers. Even still, It was an encouraging season where the team turned a corner, and I’m pumped to see how the Cavs can build on this.
One of a number of positives from this now-past season for Cleveland was also the play of Dean Wade, who had his share of rotational play, and his share of starts in 2021-22, after a pretty strong first season in the regular rotation in 2020-21. This season, Wade made his presence felt a bunch, and the team should have plenty of confidence in him looking at 2022-23.
The Cavs should have plenty of confidence in Wade next season.
Wade’s season unfortunately ended early, as he had surgery in regards to a partially-torn meniscus, and he missed the last 15 games of the regular season, along with the two play-in games. That hurt the team clearly, and it was a rough way to end out what was a solid season from him.
I’m not overly concerned about his recovery, on the plus side, and over the course of the offseason, I’d imagine he’ll be just fine and hopefully he can get into further offseason/skill work from there.
As far as Wade’s 2021-22 season, he had 5.3 points and 2.9 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per contest, which was an identical amount as his 2020-21 minutes-share. But Wade did have nine more starts than then, with 28 in his third season with the Cavaliers.
During this now-recently concluded season, Wade demonstrated that he’s one of Cleveland’s most viable defenders, and that if needed due to injuries or absences, can fill in as a starter at the 3 or 4. That’s whether that’s for Lauri Markkanen or others. Wade did so on a number of occasions, and I thought did pretty competently, based on what the team can expect from him in those instances.
Now, at this juncture it’s evident that Wade is not going to be a player that’ll have a notable usage when he’s on the floor, and he’s not going to be the catch-and-shoot presence of Markkanen or Kevin Love. Wade can knock down catch-and-shoot looks when the opportunities present themselves off of ball-swings, though, as he showed in 2020-21, and last season, he hit 35.9 percent from three.
I’m not going to suggest that clip is great, per se, and Wade doesn’t garner the respect of those two other stretch bigs for Cleveland we just touched on, but with Wade, he can still cash in when the chances come off-ball, and he did find ways to mesh with other crucial scoring threats. I don’t gloss over that, and Wade did show some ability to hit off movement, and he’s an instinctive cutter, which is something that can be maximized in stretches playing off Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and others.
And as we alluded to, Wade is a quality defender, and in second season pretty regularly in the rotation, he did a solid job, by and large, in coverage of opposing wings, and still in play against opposing 4s.
With him being a capable forward that uses angles well, and him usually sound in his contests, Wade was effective as a defensive-minded starter, in my opinion. He is typically in the right spots as a helper as well, and that’s part of why he can be viable in a number of different lineups.
Wade was not nearly as efficient as a catch-and-shoot player when he came off the bench compared to when he started, as he shot 30.0 to 37.5 percent on his threes in those differing situations in 2021-22. Considering his minutes-share was 26.2 to 10.8 minutes per appearance as a starter versus as a bench contributor, I’m not overreacting to that disparity, however.
Anyway, the gist to me with Wade is, he’s a player that the Cavs should still be very confident in for next season, as I’m not overly concerned about his injury and his chemistry with other young Cavs has gotten better over time.
The 6-foot-9 forward I can’t say is necessarily a lock to be back next season, or through it, as his deal, like Lamar Stevens, is very team-friendly and Wade’s deal isn’t fully-guaranteed. But he’s steadily helped his case when the opportunities have come in the last two seasons, and he can play the 3 and 4, so while the Cavs will have decisions to make this offseason, I expect Wade to be back.