Building the Cavs rotation means going two by two

Building the Cavs rotation 2×2: Splitting the stars

The Cavaliers’ starting lineup features four bona fide star players. Jarrett Allen is a defensive force inside, Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell can pass, shoot and score, and Evan Mobley is a defensive wunderkind and a budding offensive hub. The Cavs will start and close games with these four.

Yet in between, it doesn’t make sense for the Cavs to hold those four together and bring on a bench mob. Both Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland have overlapping skill sets — they can be complementary, but they also can carry an offense alone. It’s similar for Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, with both bringing elite rim protection to the court.

Who pairs with whom? For Mitchell, it’s all new, as his chemistry with these players began just a few weeks ago. His time in Utah suggests he would thrive with a rolling big like Allen, and that’s probably true, but Garland and Allen have formed a special bond and Garland is without question a better lob passer than Mitchell, if only because he is one of the top three or four such passers in the league. Garland and Allen should be paired together.

That puts Mitchell and Mobley together. Offensively they can run more diverse screening actions, or Mobley can handle at the post and Mitchell can operate off-ball. Defensively Mobley’s defensive versatility allows him to better cover for Mitchell’s deficiencies in that area, with more options available for scheming to cover his weaknesses.