Cavs Top 3: Caris LeVert’s hot start not enough as Cavaliers crumble in third

The Cleveland Cavaliers saw a fast start from Caris LeVert but it wasn’t enough against the Dallas Mavericks.

It’s hard to say that Caris LeVert didn’t do everything he can for the Cavs in their loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Sure, he’s arguably the most overrated player on the team, and hasn’t exactly been the player the team expected him to be but he did show up against the Mavericks.

The problem comes from the fact that the Cavs were without their two best defenders in Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, who both missed the game due to injury. Another player two key bench players were also out in Dean Wade and Rajon Rondo. They would’ve bolstered the secondary defense but with those four key players out, the Mavericks were able to get back in the game in the third quarter, out-scoring the Cavs 39-22 in the third quarter alone.

The Cavs fell 120-112 and dropped to 42-34, this after having a nice lead over Dallas heading into halftime. The Cavs are not able to play strong defense at the moment, and that was never more obvious than with LeVert out on the floor.

The Cavs are too injured to compete right now and that’s not a good sign.

Caris LeVert gets burned on defense after fast offensive start for the Cleveland Cavaliers

Cavs Top 3:

1. Lamar Stevens
2. Caris LeVert
3. Darius Garland

Lamar Stevens has been doing the best he can filling in for some of the injured guys. He had 16 points, four rebounds and played solid defense, finishing with a BPM of +9. He gets the first point of the game.

The two points of the game go to Caris LeVert, who wasn’t able to provide much defensively but did put up 31 points on great effeciency. If the Cavs had their full compliment of defenders, LeVert’s game would have looked much better. He finished with a -18 BPM, however.

The three points go to Darius Garland, who seems to be a lock to clinch the Top 3 spot for the year. He finished the game against the Mavericks with a 25 points, 10 assists double-double, while also pulling down five rebounds and four steals. He finished with a BPM of +10.

Yearly Standing:

1. Darius Garland (89 points)
2. Jarrett Allen (68 points)
3. Kevin Love (63)
4. Lauri Markkanen (58 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. (*Tied*)Caris LeVert & Lamar Stevens & Rajon Rondo (6 points)
11. Brandon Goodwin (3 points)
12. Dylan Windler (1 point)