Things got way to close as the Cavaliers gave up two fouls on three-point attempts late
The Cleveland Cavaliers held the Detroit Pistons at bay for much of the game. Late execution, or lack thereof, killed the momentum resulting in dumb fouls and decision making. Darius Garland showed why he should be the frontrunner for Clutch Player of the Year by sealing the Pistons’ fate on a half-court heave to win the game.
Grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.
Darius Garland
25 points (8-18 shooting), 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 5 turnovers
Garland is the savior of what could have been a sloppy loss by the Cavaliers. He was a consistent force in keeping the Pistons at bay down the stretch until two back-to-back suspect fouls by the Cavaliers.
Garland is mounting quite a case that he deserves the Clutch Player of the Year award this season. Garland was the offense late and the game-winner was just the icing on the cake.
Grade: A+
Evan Mobley
30 points (10-16 shooting), 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 blocks
Mobley quickly put the Boston game in his rearview by knocking down two early threes against the Pistons. Mobley was quietly elite in the Pistons game. He was aggressive on the boards and was getting the most out of lineups that left a lot to be desired. Mobley found himself being the offensive hub in rotations with LeVert, Niang, CPJ, and Merrill and honestly thrived.
A season ago, lineups like these would have submarined any evolution Mobley could have developed. Now, Mobley is making them work and going on runs almost by himself. It’s nice to see Mobley step up after arguably his worst outing.
Grade: A+
Jarrett Allen
6 points (2-4 shooting), 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 block, 1 ejection
Cleveland’s newest tough guy Jarrett Allen got ejected. Yes, you read that correctly. Allen late in the game found himself setting a pick on Ausur Thompson that had a lot more juice behind it than you would ever see from Allen.
Still to be determined on what transpired for Ausur Thompson to learn what the Hardwood tastes like, but Allen definitely was agitated by something.
Anyways, Allen otherwise put together a solid enough performance. While not scoring at the level we saw against Boston, Allen was still a major factor in this game. Grabbing second chance opportunities and feeding the cutters. Allen now has a rep to upkeep as a tough guy.
Grade: B+ (and a membership to the Salty Spitoon)
Caris LeVert
0 points (0-8 shooting), 0 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 turnovers
LeVert since coming back from injury has been rough. The shot selection has been rough, and the shots are not falling. Bad. Bad. BAD.
Grade: F
Max Strus
2 points (1-4 shooting), 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal
The Cavaliers don’t have much depth on the wing when Dean Wade is injured. This leaves Strus playing above his weight class. He fought harder than anyone tonight, managing to make an impact with his defense despite the poor matchup.
Still, Strus was unable to provide a punch from the three-point line. A barrage of Strus threes could have swayed this game. Instead, he only gets credit for his valiant effort on defense.
Grade: C+
Georges Niang
7 points (3-7 shooting), 5 rebounds, 1 awful foul on Cade Cunningham
I know this isn’t controversial at all. Niang is truly becoming unplayable. Defensively, it’s about as bad as it’s been in two seasons. The zone defense is not Niang’s friend, and his shot is not falling.
Niang also committed an unnecessary foul on Cade Cunningham when the Cavs were up 6 giving Cade three free throws. Unforgivable.
Grade: F
Sam Merrill
8 points (2-4 shooting), 2 rebounds,
Merrill has been steady for the Cavaliers as of late. Against the Pistons, Merrill showed out again on limited opportunity. While not lighting up the box score, he is operating efficiently and that’s all you can ask for from a shooter.
Grade: B-
Ty Jerome
13 points (5-7 shooting), 5 assists, 4 turnovers
Ty Jerome was truly an agent of chaos against the Pistons. He would score on his signature floaters on consecutive possessions, only to then sabotage the following possessions by committing sloppy turnovers. Overall, the good outweighed the bad, it was close though.
Grade: B-
Craig Porter Jr
16 points (6-7 shooting), 1 assist
For those of you who were still holding onto your CPJ Stock for dear life, brother tonight must have been a movie for you. CPJ was sensational against the Pistons. Knocking down threes, aggressive in transition, clean looks on the glass. Wow hats off to Tony Pesta the number one CPJ fan out there, this one is for you.
Grade: A+