There should rarely, if ever, be a minute spent on the court for the Cleveland Cavaliers without either one of Evan Mobley or Jarrett Allen. After the trade deadline makeover reaffirmed Nae'Qwan Tomlin and Thomas Bryant as the main reinforcements in the frontcourt, Kenny Atkinson has to make sure of that. There is just no reason to be playing without one of those two up front.
In the early stages of post-deadline life, the Cavs have experienced those needless moments. There have been stretches where neither were on the court. Brian Windhorst highlighted that during a recent episode of The Hoop Collective.
Windhorst said, "I don't think Kenny Atkinson has a good feel of how to deploy the team at all. ... He had one stretch of the game where he had Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, their two starting bigs, both off the floor at the same time."
The ESPN analyst was referencing the disappointing loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder for that statement. There was some added confusion as to why that rotation mixup happened, considering the Thunder had both Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein on the court during that same stretch 'for at least a possession or two.'
Windy is not always the best tactical mind among NBA analysts, but it still stood out just as questionable to him as it did to everyone else. Atkinson must find a way to effectively stagger the minutes in the frontcourt during the Cavaliers' final 23 games left on the regular season.
Cavaliers should always have one of Evan Mobley or Jarrett Allen on the floor
In defense of Atkinson trying to figure things out with his frontcourt in the short-term, Mobley is still clearly not at 100 percent. The former Defensive Player of the Year might be off the injury report, but the Cavaliers are still exercising reasonable caution after his calf injury.
Perhaps that is why Atkinson is still delivering minutes and combinations that are confusing to the watchers of Cavs basketball in that regard. Even so, with all the utility that Cleveland has off their bench, the personnel options should generally allow one of Mobley or Allen to be out there at all times.
There will be some overlap where both frontcourt starters are playing together. When they are not, the likes of Tomlin, Dean Wade, and even Jaylon Tyson (for some smaller looks) should reliably allow the Cavs to slide one of their two talented bigs in at center while having the four spot covered.
Considering the depth in the frontcourt is the weakest of any positional group the Cavaliers have, Atkinson has to maximize what is available to him. Mobley and Allen give him that opportunity. Figuring out the formula will be a vital component of any championship push.