Regrading the Cavs’ sign and trade for Lauri Markkanen

Regrading the Cavs’ sign and trade for Lauri Markkanen: What happened since

The Cavs and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff had one of the true surprises of the NBA’s opening week, starting the seven-foot Markkanen at small forward, creating a towering combination of bigs manning all three frontcourt spots. What’s more: it worked! The Cavs’ most-used lineup, the “3 bigs” plus Darius Garland and Isaac Okoro, had a +10.2 net rating across 455 possessions. Overall that trio shared the court for 621 minutes this past season with a +7.9 net rating.

Markkanen’s biggest strength is his size-shooting combination. The size certainly came to play; he was a part of some of the Cavs’ best defensive lineups, and his defensive metrics accordingly came in as the best of his career. The shooting was somewhat less of an asset, as he hit just 35.8 percent of his 3-pointers. The threat of his shot still spaced the court, but he didn’t have the impact of a player like Seth Curry or Duncan Robinson from outside, which is his upside as a shooter.

Markkanen’s role was consistent across 61 games, all starts; when he was healthy he started at either the 3 or the 4, depending on who else was available. Cleaning the Glass estimates he spend 51 percent of his time at the 3, 40 percent at the 4 and around nine percent at center; interestingly those minutes with Markkanen at center blitzed opponents to the tune of 125.2 points per 100 possessions, in the 100th percentile leaguewide.

The proof is in that Markkanen at the 3 with Mobley and Allen can work. While it didn’t get tested in a full playoff series, those three played 24 minutes together in the play-in game against the Atlanta Hawks…and absolutely destroyed them to the tune of a +17.4 net rating. That bodes well for the future of this lineup if Cleveland keeps it intact.