Last season, we saw Darius Garland emerge as the engine of the Cleveland Cavaliers‘ offense in what was a true breakout season for him with 21.7 points and 8.6 assists per contest, and this coming season at least, I’d expect him to be the club’s top scoring option.
Garland’s combination of handle, change-of-pace, deep range, floater game and driving capabilities make him so difficult to guard. Garland is Cleveland’s most versatile offensive player, and looking onward, he’ll only become more well-rounded. This isn’t to diminish his playmaking chops, as a side note.
Now, objectively, when the Cavaliers were at their best last season, Garland had more help around him for stretches of games, and Garland dealing with a back injury in the second half of the season didn’t exactly alleviate pressure.
The issue was Collin Sexton was lost for most of the season (torn meniscus), then Ricky Rubio in late December (torn ACL), so it was tough for the team and Garland himself at times. And later in the season, trade acquisition Caris LeVert took time to get acclimated, understandly mid-season, and then he missed the first nine games of post-All-Star break play because of a foot sprain.
Ultimately, the Cavaliers would turn a corner noticeably last season, as did Garland himself, but this coming season, it’s still going to be key for Garland to have more help throughout games. The Cavaliers get that, too, even while he clearly stirs the drink offensively, and for this coming year feasibly, is the team’s top scoring option, with his range, versatility on-ball and playmaking threat.
That raises the question, though.
Who projects as the Cavs’ second option in 2022-23?
Let’s examine the candidates, with the three names coming to mind being feasibly Caris LeVert, Evan Mobley and at least to some extent, Collin Sexton, who could function as a de facto top scorer for stretches. That’s whether he could ultimately start or be bought-in as a bench bucket-getter, regardless of me personally thinking he should start next season at the 2, which doesn’t seem likely, per recent reports.
So we’ll start with the Sexton element first.
The Sexton dynamic
If Sexton is back, whether he is potentially signed to a new deal, or if he plays out next season on the $7.2 million qualifying offer, which is reportedly a very real possibility, he’s a guy that should have his share of looks. I’d understand Sexton/his camp’s rationale in doing so, too, if he can ball out in his role next season, and hit unrestricted free agency next offseason; we’ll have to see how he responds coming off injury.
Sexton was adjusting to more of an off-ball role last season prior to injury, so his output was down to only 16.0 points per outing, and his three-point shooting was abysmal at 24.4 percent, albeit in roughly a 10.5 game sample size.
Either way with the role change, his usage rate was still very high when he was out there. And while some of it was due to the teams’ limitations and Garland being banged up, he did still have 24.3 points per outing in 2020-21, so the capabilities are there, as can be the catch-and-shoot viability.
Sexton did lead the Cavaliers in scoring in 2019-20 with 20.8 points per outing also, and the dude, like Garland, is such a talented three-level scoring threat. So, to me, he’s in the conversation.
But he could potentially be moved via sign-and-trade it seems, and we’ll have to see what occurs involving the lineup after training camp, as LeVert is reportedly likely to be considered the starting 2 prior to camp.
Moving along, as for now, it seems as if LeVert and Mobley could be the others in the mix here, and likely are more so, currently. And of those two, I’d expect Mobley to emerge.
Mobley could emerge as that second option-type
Of the two we mentioned there, though LeVert is similar in skill set to Sexton, and he can self-create via mid-range pull-ups, is a shifty driver and can make plays when getting downhill, I’d more so bank on Mobley to eventually be regularly that #2 option this season.
I could be wrong, sure, and whether Sexton or LeVert are more involved, and we’ll have to see on a LeVert extension, as an aside, a Year 2 offensive leap for Mobley could definitely be in the cards.
Even with lofty expectations seemingly into last season, based on what he demonstrated in other levels and in his one year at USC, Mobley exceeded those as a rookie. He looks to be a borderline-generational defensive player, with his versatility, shot blocking and IQ there, but on offense, he could be primed for a larger role and the shot creation flashes he showed last year were very encouraging for what’s to come.
Mobley, who had 15.0 points per game in 2021-22, had great touch as a finisher last season, and had impressive mid-range creation as the season wore on. And with his spacial awareness, post-up feel and playmaking vision, he finds ways to make things happen in gaps and out of the elbows.
He does need to show growth from deep, given the lack of three-point shooting displayed last season, and hesitation in the back half. He shot 25.0 percent from range as a rookie, and shot only 1.3 per game.
But after what’s seemingly been a productive offseason, his catch-and-shoot play should take strides this season, and he’s been working on getting his looks and quicker, and hopefully after a full offseason, that can look more fluid.
Now, in fairness, this could end up just being semantics, ultimately, in terms of the pecking order, and perhaps that’s somewhat matchup-dependent, as far as the second, third and maybe even fourth options here, with Lauri Markkanen.
Taking all the factors into account, though, next season, after such an encouraging rookie year, and with his playmaking presence factored in as well to counter it, my gut feeling currently is that we’ll see a second-year leap from Mobley, and he’ll be that #2 option for Cleveland.
We’ll have to see after this coming season, and if LeBron James comes back once again, for example, based on recent rumors/reports, things could recalibrate. Rest assured, Mobley is primed to be one of Cleveland’s top guns for the foreseeable future, and I’d imagine in Year 2, the Cavs will run offense more through him for stretches.