The Cleveland Cavaliers took care of business as they dispatched the Memphis Grizzlies 142-126.
This felt like a preseason game.
The Cavs chose to give nearly all of their regular rotation players who played the night before against the Indiana Pacers the night off. They were without Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Thomas Bryant, and Max Strus due to rest, in addition to Dean Wade and Jaylon Tyson still being out with injuries.
Things were worse on the other side. The Grizzlies had 13 players ruled out for this game. That left nine available players, with four of those being guys on 10-day contracts due to the hardship exemption.
Despite the number of players missing, the Cavs were able to run out some lineups that made more sense compared to Sunday. The starting five of Dennis Schroder, Keon Ellis, Sam Merrill, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen are all expected to be in the playoff rotation. And they played like it.
The Cavaliers made sure this game wasn’t up for grabs in the fourth quarter. A 19-5 run helped them reassert control in the second quarter. Then, a strong third quarter allowed them to create the separation they needed for a stress-free victory.
Schroder had his first great game in a month. He did a good job of setting up the offense and finding avenues to score himself. Continually getting into the lane off the dribble allowed him to do so.
He finished 22 points on 8-12 shooting to go along with 11 assists. This included going 7-8 on shots in the paint.
Monday’s performance was only the second time Schroder has recorded double-digit points with at least three assists since the first week of March. For reference, he accomplished this seven times in his first 15 games with the team.
As we’ve seen throughout his career, Schroder needs the ball in his hands consistently to be his best self. He’s a rhythm player who requires constant touches to get the most out of his game.
What Schroder does best doesn’t translate as neatly to playing off-ball. He’s not someone who attacks quickly off the catch or is a typical floor spacer. Instead, he’s deliberate in how he probes the paint and gets others involved while doing so.
This ideal role isn’t one Schroder has been able to play with the Cavs when Mitchell and Harden are in the lineup. Both of the starting guards do a majority of their work on-ball. And while Schroder has shown to be impactful throughout his career, he’s not good enough to warrant taking the ball out of either Mitchell’s or Harden’s hands for extended stretches.
The Cavs could use this version of Schroder in the playoffs, the one that is consistently getting downhill and playmaking from there. How they go about doing so when the team is fully healthy is an equation they haven’t solved recently.
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Keon Ellis showed how well-rounded his offensive game is. He put up 19 points on 7-11 shooting to go along with eight assists. Ellis did this by decisively attacking whenever the ball swung his way. This included doing a good job of running second-side pick-and-rolls similar to what we’ve seen from Strus.
The offensive game has been better than advertised since coming over from the Sacramento Kings. Right now, Ellis feels firmly cemented in the playoff rotation.
Evan Mobley’s numbers look more impressive than they felt.
There were times it seemed like Mobley wasn’t processing the game quickly enough to be a focal point in the offense. Early on, he struggled to make plays against a Memphis defense that was heavily shading his way whenever he caught the ball in a stationary position. That’s why he ended up with three turnovers in the first half.
However, just because something doesn’t feel impressive doesn’t mean it wasn’t. You don’t luck your way into 24 points on 9-11 shooting with four assists.
Mobley is at his best when he’s in motion. This game proved that once again. Nearly all of his baskets came whenever he was forcefully going toward the basket. Memphis didn’t have anyone who could stop him or even slow him down. And quite frankly, few teams do when he’s attacking with force like this.
Larry Nance Jr. performed well for his second game in a row. He provided good minutes off the bench as he had 10 points, three rebounds, and a steal in just over 21 minutes.
This has been a difficult season for Nance. He hasn’t had nearly the impact that he and the Cavs were hoping for when he returned home this past offseason. An uncharacteristically shaky jumper and slightly less athleticism than he had a few years ago have kept him from doing so. At least he’s been able to end the season strong, even if it’s too late to get back into the rotation.
The Cavs feel locked into the fourth seed.
The New York Knicks‘ win over the Atlanta Hawks secured that Cleveland can’t fall further than four, and also made it difficult for them to climb up to three. That’s a good place for the Cavs to be, considering it would delay a possible matchup with the Boston Celtics for as long as possible.
The Cavs haven’t had much to play for over the past week. That feeling will continue, especially when they take on the Hawks — their likely first-round opponent — twice during their final three regular-season games.
I’d be surprised if Kenny Atkinson decided to play a majority of his guys in those matchups. Atlanta has something to play for with how close spots five through eight are in the East. The Cavs don’t. There isn’t a reason to go for it, considering this team’s injury luck, unless you want to do everything you can to make sure you didn’t play the Hawks in the first round. But even if they did go for it, there’s no guarantee that Atlanta would fall out of fifth place.
We’ll find out how the Cavs choose to approach this when they host the Hawks on Wednesday.
