Cavs’ Jarrett Allen looks to be among best two-way 5s from here

Allen’s offensive strides

Allen could feasibly be in the tier of players such as Nikola Vucevic, who is honestly an underrated defender at the rim, and one could put the likes of Deandre Ayton and when healthy, Brook Lopez, be up there, among two-way centers. That’s maybe below the top 4-5 overall in the league, to me at least.

Anyway, with Allen, while he’s not a stretch 5, I personally have been impressed with what he has shown as an interior finisher still, but also with the progression he has shown seemingly with more opportunities over his time with Cleveland.

Allen did a nice job with more looks in his near-first season with the Cavs in 2020-21, and in 2021-22, he made further strides as a post player, where his footwork looked very polished. And his ability to convert using both hands on hook shots and push shots, paired with his growth as a driver at times, led to plenty of quality offense.

Allen’s touch has improved over the years, and this past season, he showed more assertiveness as a creator for himself, and it paid dividends for himself and the team.

Along with that, it’s not going to be a bread and butter-type play for him yet, such as interior rolling looks lobs or from deep paint seals, but it was good to see Allen show more flashes at times in the mid-range on catch-and-shoots. That’s perhaps something that we could see more of situationally next season, too, and I did think there were promising signs as a secondary ball-mover from him.