CLEVELAND — One of the Cavs ' primary objectives on offense: find ways to force defenses into pick-your-poison scenarios. But they key to all of that isn't Donovan Mitchell , Darius Garland or Evan Mobley , the team's top scorers and leading options on the offensive end. It's Jarrett Allen , the big man in the middle.
Allen recently missed five games with a lower back injury but returned to the starting lineup Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers . He's a crucial piece to the Cavs' interior defense, ranking eighth in the NBA with 1.5 blocks per game. On the offensive end, the Cavs didn't just receive the return of an efficient scorer in the paint (14.1 points per game on 60% shooting from the floor, the 12th best percentage in the league). They also again have the element that pushes defenses into making a difficult decision, particularly when Mitchell or Garland drive the lane.
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"I mean, he plays with the vertical spacing that changes the game for everybody," said Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. "Teams have to make decisions on who's going to stop him at the rim. Typically the only guy who's out there that can do that is the big. So now that clears a lane for your guards who are penetrating who are attacking. And if you want to bring in a third guy and try to stop him early, that creates room for shooters on the perimeter. So teams have to make adjustments and they have to make decisions when Jarrett is on the floor, because that's going to create again opportunities for the other guys that are around him."
The league as a whole has been trending away from the traditional lineup that leaned more heavily on interior scoring and size in the paint. Allen is closer, in that way, to a throwback. By "vertical spacing," Bickerstaff is referring to Allen's ability to draw defenders to the rim, thus giving Mitchell and Garland more space on the outside. And it's his placement in the middle that allows the other cogs to the Cavs' offensive machine work a bit more efficiently.
"He makes all of our lives easier," Mitchell said. "His finishing with either hand, able to roll, able to set screens, able to understand the pick and roll game, understand where to be. He gives us so much versatility on that end."
The Cavs offense now primarily runs through the guard spots with Mitchell and Garland, with that duo averaging a combined 51.2 points per game entering Friday night. Mobley is a versatile offensive weapon in his own right. Allen's place, then, is to keep defenses honest instead of being able to send reinforcements to the perimeter as aggressively, as his skillet near the rim is enough to be a factor and open up the rest of the floor. In that way, he carries more value on the offensive end than simply the 14 points or the offensive rebounds he contributes each night.
The Cavs have some serious scoring firepower with Mitchell, Garland and Mobley. But Allen has his place, and it creates headaches for teams already trying to slow down the Cavs' other options while driving into the lane — throw somebody at Mitchell/Garland, both capable scorers or defend an easy lob and alley-oop to Allen.
"You got to pick. You got to pick if you want us to take a layup, if you want [Allen] to get a dunk," Mitchell said. "And and even when you hit him in the pocket, he's able to finish. That's not the case for a lot of bigs that roll the way he does. That's why I'm the beneficiary of a lot of those in the lane, so was Darius."
The chemistry between Allen and Garland, especially, as a duo that has been together a bit longer, has become among the best in the league in pick-n-roll or screen situations. Allen is a talented screen setter, a valuable attribute in trying to give Mitchell and Garland more space to operate. If defenses do come out to stop the guards early, Allen is there, rolling to the rim. They now have it down to a science.
"Yeah, I mean, it, by the numbers, is [an] elite pairing," Bickerstaff said of the pick-n-roll dynamic the Cavs possess. "It's not just as easy as it may look, it's more scientific than we give it credit for. Understanding angles, understanding timing, understanding defenses and rotations, it's calculated. I think from both standpoints, Jarrett has the calculations down, the guards have the calculations down. It's just more so about them playing together and the more they play together the more lethal it's gonna be."
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavs' Jarrett Allen plays key role in keeping defenses honest
