Player Grades: Cavs vs. Bulls

Grading every Cavalier in the team’s preseason 116-112 loss against the Bulls.

The goal of this first preseason game was to see if Kenny Atkinson’s points of emphasis have carried over to live competition. He has to be happy from what he saw from the Cleveland Cavaliers starters.

The grades are based on what our expectations are for each of them. Also, it’s preseason. The process is more important than the results at this point.

Evan Mobley

19 points, 9-14 shooting, 0-2 from three, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 1 assist, 19 minutes

It’s difficult to come away from this game and not be encouraged by what you saw. He didn’t hit a three and only took two. I think that’s going to be the pace we see him at for most of the season. It’s difficult for someone to go from taking 1.3 per game in his career to suddenly taking five or six. It’s why you should expect him to attack when he tries to attack the basket when he catches the ball in the corner instead of just shooting it. You hope that progression will eventually come.

However, you did want to see an empowered version of Mobley who was aggressively taking it to the basket. That is what we saw. Mobley was assertive in getting his own shot and putting pressure on the defense instead of just taking a backseat role in the proceedings.

Atkinson spent a lot of training camp and preseason talking about him taking it in transition. The Bulls weren’t exactly playing great defense, but this is exactly what Atkinson envisioned when he said he wanted Mobley to do this more.

The million-dollar question is whether he can keep this style of play up for an extended period.

Grade: A++

Donovan Mitchell

12 points, 4-8 shooting, 2-3 from three, 4 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 19 minutes

We know who Mitchell is. He once again looked like the All-NBA player we’ve grown accustomed to.

Grade: B+

Darius Garland

13 points, 5-11 shooting, 3-6 from three, 5 assists, 1 rebound, 19 minutes

Garland moved off the ball and took a few threes. This is what you want to see if you’re going to optimize his pairing with Mitchell and two bigs.

Grade: B+

Jarrett Allen

7 points, 3-5 shooting, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 19 minutes

Allen wasn’t bad, but there also wasn’t anything too inspiring about his performance. He mostly hung around the dunker’s spot, ran pick-and-rolls, and was a solid play-finisher. It wasn’t too dissimilar to how he’s been used in the past. Maybe that’s just his role under Atkinson as well.

Grade: B

Max Strus

0 points, 1 assist, 2 rebounds, 9 minutes

Strus didn’t take a three when he was out there which isn’t exactly ideal. But he did showcase all the different things he’s able to do on the basketball court. He was a solid rebounder and ball-mover in transition.

He left the game early with a right hip contusion.

Grade: Incomplete

Caris LeVert

11 points, 4-10 shooting, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 17 minutes

LeVert said at Media Day that he didn’t anticipate his role changing too much. He was correct for at least today. There wasn’t a whole lot that was different than what we’ve grown accustomed to seeing.

Grade: C

Dean Wade

5 points, 2-6 shooting, 1-5 from three, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 18 minutes

Wade wasn’t exactly making shots, but he was taking them. He was active off-ball and knocked down a jumper off of a pindown. He even took a step back three at the end of the first quarter.

The results weren’t there, but this is the process you want. Wade’s defense is so valuable. He just needs to apply the skills he has on the offensive end better. He did that here.

Grade: A

Isaac Okoro

1 point, 0-6 shooting, 1 block, 12 minutes

Okoro looked like the guy we’ve come to expect over the last few seasons with the Cavs which is a little disappointing. He was used as an on-ball screener, but it wasn’t super impactful. You were hoping for a slightly different role.

It didn’t help that he wasn’t hitting shots.

Grade: D-

Tristan Thompson

2 points, 1-2 shooting, 6 rebounds, 2 turnovers

We know who Thompson is at this point in his career. He got rebounds. He set good screens. He took two shots. This is what we expect.

Grade: C+

Sam Merrill

6 points, 1-6 shooting, 1-6 from three, 2 rebounds, 5 fouls

Merrill got an opportunity to run with the core four in the second quarter after Strus left with an injury. He committed three fouls and wasn’t super impactful offensively. That’s a combo you can’t live with.

Playing Merrill with the other four starters has always seemed better in theory than it has in practice. His movement doesn’t seem to translate over to a group with two bigs the same way it does in bench lineups. That needs to change if he’s going to be used in lineups like this.

Grade: D-

Georges Niang

8 points, 4-8 shooting, 0-4 from three, 5 rebounds

Niang looked like he was in better shape than last season. I’m not sure if that’s enough to get consistent minutes if Wade continues to look as good as he did today. Still, that’s encouraging.

This would’ve graded much higher if he hit some threes.

Grade: C+

Ty Jerome

5 points, 2-10 shooting, 0-6 from three, 3 assists, 3 rebounds

The MVP of September wasn’t the MVP this game. Jerome looked like someone who hadn’t been on an NBA court in nearly a year. This wasn’t a great showing from someone trying to crack the 10 or 11-man rotation. Still, it’s encouraging that he was on the court.

Grade: C-

Craig Porter Jr.

2 points, 0-4 shooting, 0-2 from three, 5 assists, 3 rebounds

We know Porter can run an offense and get downhill. The issue is he can’t always do that because defenses don’t respect his outside shot. That last possession three-point attempt wasn’t great.

Grade: D+

Jaylon Tyson

8 points, 2-6 shooting, 7 rebounds, 12 minutes

Tyson made an immediate impact on the offensive glass and he wasn’t hesitant to shoot catch-and-shoot threes. Both are things he needs to do if he’s going to compete for rotation minutes. There were flashes of the player his teammates were raving about in camp.

Grade: B

J.T. Thor

7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, 12 minutes

Thor drained his first three of the game which is what you want to see. This team is dying for someone you could possibly envision as a stretch five. Maybe Thor can be a little more than he showed during his time with the Charlotte Hornets.

Thor also had a few nice defensive play which included an impressive block late and a steal at the top of the key that almost led to a highlight dunk.

Grade: B+

Luke Travers

4 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 8 minutes

Travers showed some of his versatility. He came in and was the screener in the pick-and-roll. He forced the switch and then punished the mismatch in the post. This is the type of stuff you want to see him do.

Travers was consistently in the right place on both sides of the court and consistently made plays. Just an overall impressive performance minus that one bad turnover that kept this from being an A

Grade: A-

Jules Bernard

2 points, 0-2 shooting, 1 rebound, 7 minutes

Bernard wasn’t the most impactful player in the limited minutes he had. He did have a nice take to the basket at the end of the fourth that drew a foul. Although, nearly turning it over on a somewhat reckless take to the basket with the shot clock off in a one-possession game wasn’t ideal.

Grade: C