Strolling into their game on Friday night against the New Orleans Pelicans, the Cleveland Cavaliers were aiming for their fifth straight win. Now, a few of Cleveland’s opponents had some key players out in that run, and New Orleans was still without Zion Williamson, objectively.
But it still has been encouraging that the group is starting to gel at the right time, and Cleveland was sharp on the national stage on ESPN. The Cavs held a 73-56 halftime advantage, and wouldn’t let things get too close really at any point from there, realistically.
Donovan Mitchell was sharp and got the Cavs on the right track after his last absence, en route to him pacing the club with 30 points, and Jarrett Allen had a terrific all-around game. He finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two blocks, and generally, it was a group effort, with Cleveland continually getting open shots.
The Cavaliers tightened the screws defensively also in the second half, and often forced Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum into tough situations.
The Wine and Gold would eventually cruise to a 118-107 victory on Friday, and most notably, finally win in New Orleans. Cleveland hadn’t done so since 2010. So the first leg of Cleveland’s latest back-to-back was a big success, in the process.
Cavs news
Evan Mobley had another very productive game on Friday night, as he was making plays on both ends throughout the first half. In the game, he finished with 28 points and 12 rebounds, to go with three steals and two blocks.
In Cleveland’s five-game winning streak, he’s had 19.4 points per game, and for a considerable chunk of outings, Mobley’s assertiveness on offense has paid dividends for him and the team overall. It’s been a pleasure to watch him get more and more comfortable on offense to pair with his elite defense.
In this recent stretch, Cleveland’s ball movement has been on-point, and despite some opponents being banged up at times, the Wine and Gold look to be humming and creating good looks.
That was on display again at New Orleans, as they tallied 28 assists, and in the Cavs’ winning streak, they’d averaged 30.0 assists per game. In the Cavaliers’ last 12 games, they’ve averaged 29.9 assists, and it’s factored heavily into them going 8-4 in that span.
Looking onward, hopefully this quality man and ball movement keeps paying off.
NBA news
With the NBA Trade Deadline passing on Thursday, there’s been plenty of conversations and discussion involving which teams got better and positioned themselves for a deep postseason run. The same goes for some teams that many believe scaled back and/or seemingly shifted to asset accumulation.
With that talk coming to the forefront recently, Ricky O’Donnell recently highlighted six teams that got better at the deadline and three teams that got worse. Did the Cavaliers, a club that stood pat, make either of those lists? You can find out here, in O’Donnell’s piece.
Next Up: The Cavs have the second leg of their latest back-to-back on Saturday against the Chicago Bulls at home.