A Cleveland Cavaliers All Star Run Backed Up

Your Cleveland Cavaliers are winners in 18 of their last 20 games. They are sending Donovan Mitchell to the All-Star Game and the Three-Point Contest. Emoni Bates is representing the organization in the G-League portion of the Rising Stars game, and fellow rookie Craig Porter Jr. just signed a 4-year deal to stay with the big club to replace his initial Two-Way contract.  Darius Garland and Evan Mobley are finally looking fully back from injuries and Jarrett Allen had real All-Star replacement buzz from around the league.But let’s talk about Dean Wade, Isaac Okoro, and Georges Niang, and how they have made the Cavs so good this year. These three guys represent the lowest three active players on the team in Usage Rate percentage, meaning they have the fewest offensive possessions that end in them shooting, assisting, or turning the ball over when they are on the floor. When the team is healthy, there are three role players coming off the bench for the Cavs, so they shouldn’t be expected to carry a lot of offensive burden like high-usage players are. But the Cavs haven’t been very healthy this year, leading to Niang starting 1 of 52 games played, Okoro 24 of 43, and Wade a whopping 30 of 44. Interestingly, their usage percentages don’t follow the player that has started most, with Niang leading the trio at 15.9%, followed by Okoro at 12.9%, and Wade at a paltry 9.7%, which is in the 5th percentile league-wide. For comparison, the Cavs leader in usage rate, as you might expect, is Donovan Mitchell at 33.6%, good for the 100th percentile in the league, ranking 5th among all NBA players.You might not know it for all three of these guys in particular, but what has made them most valuable this year is their defense more than their offense. For Niang, while he did have one game where looked unstoppable on offense this year, the jump shot hasn’t been consistent for him, this being his first year of significant minutes played where he has shot under 40% from three, coming in at only 35.5% so far. However, his Defensive Win Shares ((Defensive Win Shares are a cumulative stat based on how much impact a player has on a team’s defensive rating averaged over 100 possessions)) of 1.5 ranks 7th on the whole team, right between Dean  (at 1.6) and Isaac (at 1.5) ((Okoro is also averaging career bests in steals, blocks, 3pt%, and rebounds. It’s nice to see his overall game grow as it has over his career)). In fact, Cleveland has three players in the top 20 of the NBA in DWS: Allen and Mitchell tied at 2.7, and Max Strus at 2.4. ((Allen also happens to lead the Cavs in Offensive Win Shares as well as DWS. And he’s not an All-Star? Are those not the stats everyone looks at when voting???)) So defense is the key to the Cavs sustained success this year ((They are ranked 2nd in team Defensive Rating, just behind the Minnesota Timberwolves, who have NBA DWS leader Rudy Gobert (4.1!) anchoring them.)), but it comes from more than their stars and their known defensive role players. It has been a total team effort.What led me down this particular statistical rabbit hole was the ESPN broadcast mentioning the Cavs record with and without Wade. With: 31-13. Without, after Wednesday’s win over the Bulls sans Wade: 5-4. It’s easy to see what kind of impact Mitchell has on the success of Cleveland. Without Donovan, the Cavs surely would have been sunk by the injuries to Allen, Garland, and Mobley. But Wade’s value goes beyond the counting stats. He doesn’t chuck a lot of shots and rarely has passes that lead to assists, but his connectivity on defense in being able to switch and hold his own on wings and bigs alike makes him almost irreplaceable for the Cavs, outside of the Core Four. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Zach Lowe are constantly fanboying over Wade’s game on their respective podcasts, with Lowe even having a jingle he sings for the Cavalier. Niang won’t get that kind of hype for his defense, but he will play tough and get in a guy’s face, ((much like Strus; needed some bulldogs for this team of nice boys)) like he did Wednesday night on the Bulls’ Coby White. Okoro is Ice, we’re getting to the point where what he brings on offense and defense is both great and expected. This All-Star Weekend brings a lot of fun for Cavs fans to stay engaged with the team for the festivities, or a moment to catch their breath before the stretch run. But whether or not Mitchell becomes the first player to ever win a Slam Dunk Contest and a 3pt Contest, or whether or not Emoni Bates sets a Rising Stars shots attempted record, there’s a lot to watch for in the NBA’s second half, including Ice, Minivan, and Deeeeean Waaaade, yum! ((That’s not how Zach Lowe’s jingle goes, but it’s not far off)) Let’s keep that 2 seed. ((I agree go Cavs))