Player Grades: Cavaliers vs Bulls

The Cavaliers recover to best Bulls in closing minutes

After an explosive 49-point first quarter, the Cleveland Cavaliers struggled to withstand the Chicago Bulls' comeback. After a decisive last five minutes, the Cavs separated from Chicago and delivered the 144-126 win.

Grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.

Donovan Mitchell

37 points (12-23 shooting), 7 rebounds, 4 assists,

Mitchell started this game with a vengeance. He was aggressive early firing from three and scoring a quick 10 points within minutes of the opening tip. Starts like this help to create the gravity to get the other Cavs going as we saw in that first quarter.

Mitchell was also the closer in this game. He has had a knack this season of picking his spots and tonight was no different. It is not hyperbolic to say that Mitchell started and ended this game for the Cavaliers.

Grade: A+

Darius Garland

29 points (9-18 shooting), 9 assists, 3 rebounds,

Garland was instrumental in the massive first quarter for the Cavaliers. He is firing on all cylinders and was truly the most consistent offensive presence on the team against Chicago.

During the stretches where Mitchell isn’t commanding the ball and shooting at will, Garland feels like the offensive ignitor for this team. He has also been going back to his pass-first mentality as well as finding others by creating gravity and manipulating the defense.

Grade: A+

Jarrett Allen

24 points (11-15 shooting), 10 rebounds, 3 assists

Allen came into this game on a little bit of a cold stretch. Something about Allen has seemed off. Tonight was a good get-right game for Allen. He was able to get going off the roll offensively, often finding himself with free real estate around the rim. Without Mobley, a lot of the defensive pressure is placed on his shoulders.

Despite leading the team in minutes, it didn’t appear that Allen was showing signs of fatigue and was rock solid.

Grade: A

Georges Niang

14 points (5-8 shooting), 8 rebounds

Niang got the starting nod for an absent Mobley and performed admirably in his stead. Niang was giving consistent effort on the defensive end. While he is no defensive stalwart, one has to give him credit for being engaged on that end and not being a net negative.

Offensively, Niang was great. He finished shooting 4-7 from three and frankly, there is nothing more I would ask of him on that front. As good of a performance as I would have hoped from Niang.

Grade: B+

Isaac Okoro

4 points (2-4 shooting), 3 assists, 1 rebound

This was one of Okoro’s more forgettable games. Okoro was not really a factor offensively and would often feel like the odd man out in rotations. While there have been flashes from Okoro in games as of late, tonight was simply not one of those. In a game where the team was flourishing offensively, you would have hoped that Okoro would have gotten to join in on the fun.

Grade: C-

Dean Wade

5 points (1-5 shooting), 3 rebounds, 1 assists

Wade’s box score will not tell the full story of his game against the Bulls. Wade was truly instrumental in shutting off the Bulls’ water late in the fourth quarter. He had timely steals, and contests to completely rattle the opposing Bulls.

While offensively there was a lot to be desired, he really showed his value in the closing minutes of this game. I left very impressed with Dean and I think he was as much of a factor in this game as Mitchell was in the closing minutes.

Grade: B+

Caris LeVert

22 points (7-10 shooting), 3 rebounds, 8 assists

LeVert was not shy about getting his when the Cavaliers went on their two biggest runs at the beginning and end of the game. LeVert’s hyper-efficiency is becoming hilarious at this point because it just feels like the guy cannot miss it right now.

LeVert currently leads the league in +/- and a +18 in tonight's game will certainly help him maintain that lead. Overall, it was a very fun game for LeVert who continues to keep riding this high.

Grade: A+

Ty Jerome

7 points (3-8 shooting), 4 assists, 4 rebound

Are the expectations too high for Ty Jerome at this point? Probably. We as Cavs fans have grown accustomed to Jerome making his presence felt on a night-to-night basis. While this game was not bad for Jerome, it was far from one of his best. I hate to be nitpicky, but Jerome has offered more in many other games this season.

Grade: B-