3 lineups for Cavs to juice offense: Five-out
Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Dean Wade, Evan Mobley, Kevin Love
One way to look at having an elite shooting big like Kevin Love is that it means you can get away with a non-shooter at another position. That helps to make up for his personal defensive deficiencies. Yet the other way to maximize him is to place him at center and have a five-out offensive lineup where all five players can shoot.
Especially after trading Ochai Agbaji and Lauri Markkanen, the Cavs don’t have enough elite shooters to make this a true sniper lineup, but all five of these players are at least a threat to pull the trigger from outside. Evan Mobley can be an effective screener or even run the offense himself from the elbow, with shooters moving all around.
Anytime one of the guards gets into the paint, helping will be a nightmare because there’s no one to leave. Run a pick-and-pop with Donovan Mitchell and Kevin Love, with Mobley and Wade in the corners and Garland in the slot — who do you help off of? Wade and Mobley are good enough shooters to be dangerous in the corners, and are excellent defenders to help shore things up on the other end.