Player Grades: Cavs at Grizzlies
The Cavaliers extend their winning streak to 16 with another one-sided victory.
This was a game a normal NBA team loses. The Cleveland Cavaliers were without their best player, are in the midst of one of their busiest stretches of the year, and are taking on a tough Western Conference opponent. But this Cavs group isn’t normal.
The 133-124 victory wasn’t indicative of how thorough a beatdown this was. The Cavaliers were up 21 points against the Memphis Grizzlies before putting in their reserves midway through the fourth.
Grades are based on our expectations of each player.
Evan Mobley
22 points (9-16 shooting), 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal
Mobley laid out two individual goals for himself at media day back in September. He wanted to be an All-Star and the Defensive Player of the Year. He’s already checked the first thing off the list, and we saw once again how much he wants to accomplish the second when he matched up against one of his biggest rivals for the award in Jaren Jackson Jr.
There was no question as to who the best defensive player was on Friday.
Mobley set the tone early as he blocked Jackson on his first shot attempt of the game. This was a warning for what kind of game it would be for Jackson.
Somehow, Mobley was even better on the other end. He looked like the fully realized version of himself offensively as he nailed three triples and had his foot on the line for what would’ve been a fourth. Mobley is truly an unstoppable offensive force when he’s hitting his outside shots like he was in Memphis.
This was a nice reminder as to why he believes he can be the very best player in the league within five years.
Grade: A+
Darius Garland
20 points (7-17 shooting), 9 assists, 4 steals, 2 rebounds
This wasn’t Garland’s most efficient night, but he continues to get wherever he wants to on the court. He generated A+ looks once again but couldn’t get anything to fall from three (3-11). We know that won’t continue.
Garland’s defense has taken a step forward this season. Tonight was a good example of that as he did a great job of playing the passing lanes to generate four takeaways. It was his second game in a row with that many steals.
Grade: A
Jarrett Allen
16 points (6-7 shooting), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 1 steal
Memphis tried to match up with the Cavs' oversized frontcourt with Jackson and Zach Edey. Allen did a great job of setting screens that forced Edey to come out of the paint and then attacked his slower foot speed in the pick-and-roll from there.
The success Allen and his teammates had targeting Edey forced Memphis to play him just under two minutes in the second half. Allen then went to work on Memphis’s smaller front line by hunting out mismatches.
Allen’s usage isn’t going to be exceptionally high on a team with this much depth. That’s fine, but he needs to play aggressively with the opportunities he does get. This was a great example of doing that.
Grade: A
Max Strus
9 points (2-4 shooting), 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
The Cavs have had a difficult time starting games well during this 16-game winning streak. Strus made sure that wasn’t going to happen here. He poured in all nine of his points in the opening frame. That allowed them to get off to the hot start that they did that eventually led to the one-sided win.
Grade: B+
Isaac Okoro
7 points (3-4 shooting), 3 rebounds, 2 assists
Okoro wasn’t able to slow down Ja Morant too much (41 points on 17-22 shooting). He was, however, a positive contributor to the offense as he did a good job of attacking and creating for others as the screener in the pick-and-roll. That was good enough on a night when the offense was humming like it was.
Grade: B+
De’Andre Hunter
18 points (4-6 shooting), 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal
Hunter was once again the difference maker. The Cavs created separation when their reserves entered the game. Their depth was their biggest advantage. Hunter’s instant scoring and defensive versatility are a big reason for that.
Every day, it becomes crazier that Koby Altman pulled off the trade for Hunter without giving up a true first-round pick or Jaylon Tyson.
Grade: A
Ty Jerome
12 points (4-8 shooting), 5 assists, 2 rebounds
Jerome’s ability to attack off the dribble was much needed on a night they were without Donovan Mitchell. He did a good job of filling that void the best he could by getting into the paint and creating from there.
Impactful games like this have become commonplace for Jerome.
Grade: B+
Sam Merrill
14 points (5-7 shooting), 2 assists, 1 rebound
Merrill’s outside shot can break a game open. That happened on Friday as he took the Cavs’ offense to another level with his ability to find and connect on outside shots.
This has been a theme of late. Merril is now converting 45.1% of his 4.3 three-point attempts per outing in the 12 games he’s played since the All-Star break. That kind of shooting makes this bench unit feel invincible.
Grade: A+
Dean Wade
2 points (1-4 shooting), 4 rebounds
Unlike Merrill, Wade has not found his outside shot. He’s hitting just 30% of his attempts from deep since the break. That happened again in Memphis as he went 0-3 from three.
Wade remains one of the best defensive players at his position, but he needs to be better on offense than this if he’s going to make the impact he’s capable of in the playoffs.
Grade: C-
Javonte Green
10 points (3-10 shooting), 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Green played better than his shooting numbers would suggest. He was disruptive on defense and a force in the open court. That’s what you want to see from a buy-out pickup.
The three-point shot isn’t great, but not hesitating to take the open looks is a positive overall, even if some of his misses were really off.