Kenny Atkinson Says What Changed for Jarrett Allen Amidst Breakout Stretch With Cavs

Over the past few weeks Jarrett Allen has gone from a solid piece of the Cavaliers lineup, to a true star. He’s been averaging over a 20 points double-double, and is a big part of Cleveland winning 10 of their last 11.

In Cleveland's most recent win Allen was great once again. He scored 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds in a blowout win over the Washington Wizards.

The fans aren’t the only ones noticing Allen’s recent breakout, as even head coach Kenny Atkinson made sure to give Allen some praise following the win.

"I've seen a new person. I would love to know what changed. He's just completely different from the beginning of the year,” Atkinson said. “I think Evan (Mobley) being out, obviously, he's taken more and more responsibility but this might be the best Jarrett Allen I've seen since I've been here. Really impressed with what he’s doing on both ends."

What has caused Allen's breakout?

One theory Atkinson gave of Allen’s success was his recovery from a hand injury he suffered earlier this season.

Allen broke two fingers and was forced to miss some time. Atkinson said Allen put a major emphasis on working with the trainer and getting ready to return. That effort may have gotten Allen into the best shape of his career, and with a healthy hand now, it’s showing.

Obviously the other reason has been Allen filling in the gap for Mobley. Without Mobley, Allen is one of the few true bigs on the roster. Dean and Nae’Qwan Tomlin can both fill in, but Allen takes on the main responsibilities with paint scoring and rebounding.

Allen has always been capable of being this production, but has typically taken a step back throughout his career to let other players be the primary scorer. He’s playing a much more aggressive brand of basketball right now, and a big part of that has been the addition of James Harden.

Harden is an incredibly productive passer who has always been able to get his bigs involved. It’s no different now. With Harden and Donovan Mitchell drawing most of the attention, Allen has been freed up to own the paint. He has fully taken advantage of these opportunities.

Allen's recent stretch of games

Allen’s standout run began against the Portland Trail Blazers, where he dropped a career-high 40 points, along with 17 rebounds, four blocks, five assists and two steals.

He followed it up with a 10/11 double-double in his next game.

He was back over 20 points with a 29/10 game against Sacramento. He finished the Cavaliers road stretch with 22 points and 13 rebounds against Denver.

While Allen didn’t get that double-double against the Wizards, his production was still incredible. He had a perfect day from the floor, going 8/8.

Hopefully Allen can maintain this kind of production over the remainder of the season, even when Mobley is back to full health. It’ll be fun to watch the Cavs try and figure out how to best utilize both Allen and Mobley down the stretch, and how they work with a dynamic new backcourt.