Jarrett Allen and Cedi Osman battle it out for top spot in the Top 3 following Cavs loss to the Suns

Jarrett Allen and Cedi Osman couldn’t get the Cavs past the Suns on Wednesday.

The Cavs couldn’t get past the Suns on Wednesday, falling 120-115 in a game that Cleveland nearly rallied back to take for their own. Jarrett Allen and Cedi Osman nearly lead the team to victory on their own in the fourth quarter, but they fell short. Now 9-10 on the season and amidst a four-game losing streak, the Cavaliers look good.

Yes, they’re losing games but they’re not losing them as if they were a bad club or anything. They’re without two of their better players, Collin Sexton and Evan Mobley, and are facing some of the top teams in the league and going blow for blow with them.

The Cavs did just that with the Suns, looking good all game and even mounting a comeback down 10 in the fourth. It was a rough loss but one that shows growth and promise.

Now, onto the Top 3. As always, the bottom is in descending order with the lowest number being the worst and the top is in ascending order with three being the best.

The Top 3 from the near-miss loss against the Suns

The Bottom Three Performers

1. Isaac Okoro
2. Dean Wade
3. Denzel Valentine

Isaac Okoro is good enough defensively but for him to make an impact he has to score with or consistency. It’s clear the Cavs can’t rely on him for steady production on offense and he’s not that huge of a game-changer defensively to warrant those minutes. He’s among the few names that will lose minutes to Mobley when he’s cleared.

Another name losing minutes to Mobley will be Dean Wade. Wade looked awesome against the Nets but disappeared against the Suns. He played just 16 minutes and wasn’t nearly as active defensively on Wednesday as he was while guarding Kevin Durant earlier in the week.

Lastly, Denzel Valentine mostly just ate up six minutes of unremarkable basketball.

The Top Three Performers

1. Kevin Love
2. Jarrett Allen
3. Cedi Osman

The first point of the night goes to Kevin Love who had 14 points, eight rebounds on really good shooting splits. He also played solid defense as well, giving him a box +/- of +11. If Love continues to play this way off the bench, he’ll be in contention for Sixth Man of the Year.

The second point of the night goes to Jarrett Allen who dropped a double-double while shooting 9-10 from the floor for 25 points.

Lastly, Cedi Osman gets the three-point bump of his night, mostly for his clutch shooting. Osman’s three-point shooting was instrumental in getting the Cavs back into the game in the fourth quarter and without it, the team doesn’t win this game. He 71% from three-point land, while finishing with 23 points on the night.

Yearly Standing:

1. Ricky Rubio (22 points)
2. Jarrett Allen (20 points)
3. Darius Garland (18 points)
4. Cedi Osman(14 points)
5. Evan Mobley (12 points)
6. *TIE* Kevin Love/Lauri Markkanen (9 points)
7. Dean Wade (3 points)
8. *TIE* Isaac Okoro/Dylan Windler (1 point)