Cleveland’s depth allowed them to roll out many effective lineups last season.
The
Cleveland Cavaliers’
depth was one of their main advantages last season. They were able to run out numerous and varied lineups that worked.
It also helped that their four best players — Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen — played extremely well together. This all added up to a 64-win regular season.
Let’s take a look at Cleveland’s most-used lineups and what made them work.
The starting five
Lineup: Garland, Mitchell, Max Strus, Mobley, and Allen
Minutes played: 243
Offensive rating:
118.7 (57th percentile)
Defensive rating:
107.3 (74th percentile)
Net rating:
+11.5 (67th percentile)
This group was an incredibly effective starting lineup despite not living up completely to their offensive potential. The offensive rating was good, but it suffered since this lineup simply wasn’t able to consistently hit outside shots (
36%, 34th percentile).
This was a positive step for a lineup that struggled to find its rhythm the previous season (
+2.3 net rating, 52nd percentile). There’s a lot of things that you could point to as reasons this happened, such as the offense being better under Kenny Atkinson, Allen and Mobley figuring out how to play with each other, and better health in the regular season, among others. But whatever the reason, this was encouraging to see.
Despite the progress in the regular season, this lineup struggled throughout the playoffs. They posted a
-3.3 net rating (30th percentile) in the postseason with a
112 offensive rating (35th percentile) and a
115.3 defensive rating (35th percentile).
It’d be easy to point to Garland and Mobley’s injuries in their second-round series against the Indiana Pacers as reasons why they struggled. Neither were at full strength (even though Mobley looked better, he had a hard time moving laterally on defense) which naturally caused them to play worse. But this lineup also had a negative net rating against the Miami Heat in the two games they appeared in (
-5.1 net rating) when the group was mostly healthy.
The Cavs as a whole will be judged by how they perform in the playoffs going forward. This starting lineup is no different. This group will need to be better in the postseason if Cleveland is going to ever replicate their regular-season success when the games matter most.
The starters with Dean Wade
Lineup: Garland, Mitchell, Wade, Mobley, and Allen
Minutes played: 197
Offensive rating:
117.8 (51st percentile)
Defensive rating:
112.7 (53rd percentile)
Net rating:
+5.1 (54th percentile)
Wade did a good job filling in for Strus when he missed the start of the last regular season. Surprisingly, the offense was mostly just as effective. The defense, more surprisingly, was worse.
Cleveland’s defense has historically been good when its three best interior defenders share the floor (
100th percentile in 2022-23 and ‘23-24). Why that didn’t carry over this past season is anyone’s guess.
The starters with Isaac Okoro
Lineup: Garland, Mitchell, Wade, Mobley, and Allen
Minutes played: 160
Offensive rating:
123.3 (71st percentile)
Defensive rating:
118 (32nd percentile)
Net rating:
+5.3 (54th percentile)
Lineup data is weird. What you want to take from five-man groups is up to you, as there can be a lot of different factors for why things broke how they did.
One of the more surprising things from this exercise is finding out that Okoro with the starters performed incredibly well on offense and poorly on defense.
It’d be easy to point at this and to say that we shouldn’t make too much of this. But I do think there’s one thing worth pointing out from this lineup.
The Cavs were able to get out in transition more often with this group and were more effective when they did so. They scored
1.66 points per transition play (91st percentile) with this lineup. Okoro’s ability to get into the open court and finish there is a big reason for that success. For comparison, the starters with Strus only scored
1.17 points per transition play (
32nd percentile).
Cleveland doesn’t have Okoro anymore, but getting out in the open court is something that they should be able to do with Lonzo Ball. This is an area that he’s excelled in throughout his career.
Mobley + shooters = phenomenal offense
Lineup: Mitchell, Caris LeVert, Sam Merrill, Georges Niang, Mobley
Minutes played: 84
Offensive rating:
129.3 (87th percentile)
Defensive rating:
92.8 (99th percentile)
Net rating:
+36.5 (99th percentile)
Mobley showed that he can play with Allen this past season. The Cavs posted a
+11.5 net rating when they shared the floor. That number jumped up slightly to
+11.9 when Mobley was on without Allen.
Mobley’s progression as a shooter allowed for lineups where he’s the center to be truly five out. Groups with him and Niang were phenomenal as they posted a
122.4 offensive rating and outscored opponents by
+12.8 points per 100 possessions.
The Cavs weren’t able to replicate that success as well with De’Andre Hunter as the power forward with Mobley at center. They worked better offensively (
128 offensive rating, 99th percentile), but struggled on defense because they couldn’t get rebounds (
30.7% offensive rebound allowance percentage, 16th percentile). Even though Niang isn’t known for his rebounding, he’s still significantly better than Hunter.
This is also a good argument for Wade getting more time at the four next to Mobley. Groups where he’s the four and Mobley is the five worked incredibly well (
+14.7 net rating in 663 possessions). Even though Wade isn’t a willing shooter, he provides spacing and rebounding, which can take some of that burden off of Hunter.
Mobley’s best position is and will always be center. Figuring out the lineups that allow him to showcase his abilities, like this one did last season, is something Atkinson’s staff needs to continue to emphasize.
The Caris LeVert effect
Lineup: Garland, Mitchell, LeVert, Mobley, and Allen
Minutes played: 82
Offensive rating:
128.9 (86th percentile)
Defensive rating:
106 (78th percentile)
Net rating:
+22.9 (89th percentile)
The Cavs were really good without LeVert on the court last season (
+9.3 net rating), but they were even better with him on (
+11.5 net rating). Most of that is due to Atkinson’s offensive philosophy that emphasizes players who can create offense in many different contexts.
Spacing has taken over the NBA. Having a power forward who can shoot is a prerequisite, not a luxury anymore. In a context where everyone can shoot, playmaking is what separates the good and great offensive lineups.
LeVert can be a frustrating player. The shot profile often left something to be desired, but he was exceptional this past season when he had a clearly defined role and the freedom to operate within it.
Trading him for Hunter was the right and understandable move, but it came at a cost. Ball handling could be an issue this upcoming season for a team that has lost LeVert and Ty Jerome while only replacing that skill with just Ball — who isn’t someone who necessarily creates his own shot, even though he’s an exceptional ball handler.
The Cavs have the depth to put together many effective lineups this upcoming season. It’ll be interesting to see if Atkinson can replicate some of the success of these groups with different lineups this upcoming season.
