Cavs Top 3: Darius Garland scores big but defense can’t clear paint

Darius Garland was the leading man but the Cleveland Cavaliers defense fails against the Chicago Bulls.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are doing the best they can without Jarrett Allen, but it’s hard. He’s incredibly important to the defense and the team really does rely on their stoppages and transitions on defense to set up a lot of what they do in transition. So it’s no surprise that the Cavs fell to the Bulls 98-94, despite Darius Garland’s 28 points and the Bulls going cold from three-point.

The Cavs can’t clear the paint and that’s an issue. With Allen and Evan Mobley on the court, and Dean Wade providing some defensive physicality on the second unit, the Cavs have some really impressive bigs. So it’s not surprising that with Allen, Wade, and Rajon Rondo out, the Cavs are struggling defensively. After all, according to their RAPTOR scores, they’re three of the Cavs five best defensive players; the other two being Isaac Okoro and Mobley.

Kevin Love has also been a solid force defensively but without Allen and Wade to help clear out the low post, the Cavs defense as a whole is largely ineffective. This means that good shooting nights from Garland are going to be largely ignored, simply due to the more obvious issues with the team.

This is again why someone like Drew Timme, should he declare, makes sense in the NBA Draft. The Cavs need depth at the position and not just overrated shot blockers, but grinders like Wade and Lamar Stevens. Guys who will bump and fight to clear the paint.

After falling to the Bulls, the Cavs are now 41-33, and firmly in seventh place in the East. If the season ends today, the Cavs have to face the Brooklyn Nets in the first of the play-in tournament games. They’re 4-6 in their last 10 and have lost three straight.

Currently, they’re one game behind the Raptors for sixth and two games behind the Bulls for fifth.  Thankfully, the Cavs have the Magic twice, the Hawks, the Knicks, and The Mavericks coming up. All winnable games, and an opportunity for the Cavaliers to get out of the play-in.

Darius Garland leads the way for the Cleveland Cavaliers

1. Lamar Stevens
2. Lauri Markkanen
3. Darius Garland

Lamar Stevens got a lot of minutes against the Bulls, putting up 13 points on good shooting with four rebounds. He’s also just one of three players with a BPM in the positives and was second on the team with +7. Dylan Windler led the team with a +8, but only finished with two points, that’s why Stevens gets the one point.

The two-pointer goes to Lauri Markkanen. Markkanen had 14 points, nine rebounds, and a BPM of -4, which was about the middle of the pack for the Cavs on Saturday.

The three points go to Darius Garland, who had 28 points, five assists, and six rebounds on just 41% shooting.

Yearly Standing:

1. Darius Garland (83 points)
2. Jarrett Allen (68 points)
3. Kevin Love (62)
4. Lauri Markkanen (56 points)
5. Evan Mobley (51 points)
6. Cedi Osman ( 36 points)
7. Ricky Rubio (32 points)
8. Isaac Okoro (18 points)
9. Dean Wade (10 points)
10. Rajon Rondo (6 points)
11. Lamar Stevens (5 points)
12. Caris LeVert (4 points)
13. Brandon Goodwin (3 points)
14. Dylan Windler (1 point)