Cavs Video Breakdown: Jarrett Allen overpowers Spurs

Allen was a tank last night.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a “next man up” mentality all season. This meant Jarrett Allen had big shoes to fill with Evan Mobley out against the San Antonio Spurs. A 29-point, 15-rebound performance from Allen is as good as it gets.

The Spurs didn’t know what hit them. Allen had 27 points in the second half, repeatedly going to the post and burying an undersized frontcourt. The Cavs got a good look at the rim every time down the floor as San Antonio eventually had no choice but to foul Allen to avoid surrendering any more layups.

Allen wasn’t the only Cavalier who stepped up. Donovan Mitchell put together an excellent 25 points and 14 assists in a career-high performance. Max Strus canned four three-pointers and finished the game with 18 points. Sam Merrill contributed a trio of three-pointers off the bench while De’Andre Hunter added 14 points.

Still, Allen’s dominance in the second half was the story of the game. His confident attacks against mismatched defenders are a recipe for long-term success in the playoffs. Let’s get to the tape.

Punishing slower bigs

The Spurs frontcourt was paper-thin last night. Bismack Biyombo was the only rotational player with any sort of size and that meant the Cavs had no resistance in the paint whenever Biyombo wasn’t on the floor.

Biyombo was impactful in the first half. He had six rebounds and two blocks in a throwback performance. But then, Allen started showcasing his footspeed to the rim and leaving Biyombo in the dust.

In the above play, Biyombo is attempting to occupy Mitchell in the pick-and-roll and then recover to stop Allen at the rim. However, Allen’s speed leaves him zero chance of getting back to him in time.

Looking at the clip below, we see the Cavs punish Biyombo in the pick-and-roll just moments later for another easy dunk. Credit to Mitchell for zipping this ball to Allen on both plays.

After a quick timeout and a few minutes of better focus — the Spurs are once again torched in the pick-and-roll by Allen. Darius Garland holds Biyombo just long enough for Allen to find the open space and crush the rim for his third time in the quarter.

Biyombo was subsequently taken out of the game and did not return. He finished the second half with zero boards and zero points. Allen simply played him off the floor and opened the door for an even more dominant run.

Allen was simply too big

Allen was rolling in the third quarter. As a result, the Cavs kept feeding him the ball.

One aspect of Kenny Atkinson’s coaching that has been a delight is his willingness to spam the same action until an opposing team stops it. This will bode well for the Cavs in the playoffs — and it put the Spurs in a torture chamber last night.

Here we see Allen catch the ball on the roll before planting his feet and spinning around Sandro Mamukelashvili for another bucket. The 6’9” forward didn’t have a chance.

On the next play, we see Allen expertly occupy the open space. First, he rolls to the rim but is correctly tagged by Harrison Barnes. So, Allen slides back to the opposite block once Hunter catches the ball on the left corner. Once Hunter penetrates the defense — Barnes again steps up to help — and this time, Allen is left lurking behind for a drop-off pass.

From here on out, Allen is just flexing his size. No one on the floor has the height to contest him. So Allen repeatedly goes to the basket and attacks them with the confidence you hope to see from a fringe All-Star center.

Allen has to devour mismatches

The Cavs need Allen to play with this level of authority whenever a smaller defender is on him. It leads to an easy win in March. But in the playoffs, it could mean the difference in an entire series.

Allen’s ability to score efficiently over mismatches is something we’ve only seen flashes of. But clearly, it’s something he can do. Fully embracing this and playing with aggression is going to make Allen one of the ultimate x-factors.

Right here, Allen soars over Stephon Castle for an offensive rebound, then explodes back up for a thunderous dunk. This is size, athleticism and confidence all on display.

Lastly, we see Allen block Castle on one end, then sprint the floor for an and-one finish. Allen’s quick spin-move on the catch is another example of his craft around the rim. This could be a difference maker if he plays like this against other wings.

This stretch included three separate times where the Spurs had to foul Allen off-ball because he buried them under the rim. Using his size and putting opponents in a tough position is something Allen has to embrace. The Cavs are already a difficult team to contain but they become so much more complicated when Allen is dominating the open space.