Plenty of people are not quite sold on the viability of the Evan Mobley-Jarrett Allen partnership. This apparently includes the Cleveland Cavaliers themselves.
Speaking on a recent episode of The Zach Lowe Show, Zach Lowe semi-casually dropped a not-so-casual bombshell that pretty much confirms the team doesn’t trust its current frontcourt duo.
“[The Cavs had dreams of ‘Could we get into the Giannis derby?’’ Lowe says, at around the 11:58 mark of the podcast. “‘Could we chase a big man like [Domantas] Sabonis, like a JJJ?’”
Allen and Mobley shouldn’t take much offense to Cleveland’s interest in Giannis Antetokounmpo. He’s Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Sabonis and Jaren Jackson Jr. intrigue is a different story.
The Cavs are right to have questions about Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley
Injuries are a major reason why the Cavs are circling the drain relative to expectations. That includes the awkward dynamic between Mobley and Allen. Mobley is currently out with a calf strain, and Allen has missed time with a finger injury.
It should also be noted that Cleveland is a plus-10.2 points per 100 possessions with both bigs on the court. As the team and its frontline gets healthier, there’s a chance we look back at this extended stretch as nothing more than a prolonged detour.
Still, the lack of synergy between Allen and Mobley is palpable. Neither is playing anything close to their best basketball, and the spacing with both on the court has been wonkier than usual. Allen is seeing his two-point efficiency skyrocket by 10 percentage points without Mobley. Mobley’s own clip inside the arc climbs by seven percentage points without Allen.
This says nothing about their collective dearth of physicality. The Cavs are only a so-so defensive rebounding team with both on the floor. And their offensive-rebounding presence is virtually nonexistence. Cleveland is boarding around 27.1 percent of its own two-point misses with its dual-big frontcourt. That is the equivalent of the league’s 29th-best mark.
The Cavs’ purported interest in Sabonis speaks to this latter concern more than anything. He is injured now, but bigs don’t get much more physical than a healthy Domas. Having the hots for Jackson, meanwhile, suggests Cleveland is more smitten with the idea of using Mobley at the 5 long term—a potential indictment of Allen at the very least.
Nothing is changing in Cleveland…for now
Mobley and Allen do not have to worry about the Cavs’ concerns manifesting into a big-time trade. Not yet, anyway.
Cleveland is the only team into the second apron, and can’t aggregate contracts as part of any deal (unless they’re shedding at least $22-plus million in salary). A one-for-one swap is off the table. Neither Mobley nor Allen make enough to be flipped for Jackson straight up, and the Cavs would be out of their minds to dangle Mobley in a flat swap for an injured Sabonis.
Still, catalyzing major change gets a lot easier over the offseason, second-apron hurdles and all. If this year’s roster continues to flame out, Darius Garland’s future won’t be the only one billowing in the wind. The Allen-Mobley frontcourt will be right there with him.
Judging from the Cavs’ interest in JJJ and Sabonis, they may already be reconsidering the partnership.