The Spin: Cavs Still Working Out The Kinks, But Appear To Be On Right Track

The Cleveland Cavaliers fell to the Orlando Magic by a final score of 108-105 on Thursday night in their second preseason game.

Spencer Davies highlights five observations from the game and postgame:

DG Heats Up, While Spida Is Still Finding It

Darius Garland left his cold shooting in Atlanta and came out of the gate nailing his first six shots without a hint of trepidation in the first quarter. He knifed inside for a nice floater, hit a couple of in-betweeners inside the arc and hoisted away from deep, finishing with a game-high 19 points in 17 minutes.

It shouldn't come as a surprise to anybody. Garland is an All-Star-caliber maestro, and one off-kilter preseason night wasn’t going to affect his confidence.

Speaking of off-kilter, Donovan Mitchell’s chilly spell during the preseason is nothing to worry about either. His reputation precedes him as a household-name stud in the NBA, and he is one of the best guards in the game. Remember, he's also playing with shooters again and will have much more room to operate.

With that said, Mitchell is a paltry 7-for-23 from the field in Cleveland’s first two games and has made just three triples on 12 attempts. Diagnosing the shooting, it just looks a little flat. On the bright side, he’s registered back-to-back games with three steals.

The New Guys Have Changed This Offense

In two games, it’s clear and obvious that Max Strus and Georges Niang should be on the floor at the same time in certain sets. The threat they present to fire from long distance is making an incredible difference for both Garland and Mitchell.

The star backcourt had ample opportunities to pull from beyond the arc, knife in the paint for the kickout and/or take it inside without being overcrowded. And if defenses elect to throw more bodies toward Garland and Mitchell, it’s going to be to Strus and Niang’s benefit with a quick trigger. Call it picking your poison.

“You can be more dynamic. Don’t have to be as stagnant. Even in that, there are lessons to be learned there,” Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said postgame following the loss.

“When those guys are moving and creating gravity, the guy with the ball in his hand has to get comfortable enough to know what they’re going to do and where they’re going to go and be as outlets. It’s a good problem to have. So much benefit to it. But it’s part of the process of us learning one another and learning how we play together.”

Dean Wade Is Getting A Real Chance

For the majority of the third quarter and parts of the second, Bickerstaff looked Dean Wade’s way to play the 4 and a little bit of the 5. The numbers don’t typically jump off the page with him, but he’s able to shoot the ball off of ball swings and use his strength to body guys up.

“I feel great. This is the healthiest I've been since before my shoulder injury last year. I feel good,” Wade said postgame.

“I'm not trying to show anything different about my game. Just go out there and just be a solid teammate. When I'm open, shoot. But more of what I focus on is defense when I come in. I've tried to bring a little bit more intensity on the defensive end and a little more physicality. I think that'll change the game more for me than my offense will.”

Maybe coming into the season injury-free will help him earn more minutes. Admittedly, seeing this kind of run in the preseason may be an indicator of Bickerstaff’s continued trust in him.

“We’ve had a lot of love for Dean for a long time," Bickerstaff said. "Dean has size. He has shot-making ability. He can guard multiple positions. He can move his feet, keep people in front of him and switch onto smaller guys. It’s our responsibility and his teammates’ responsibility to continue to foster his confidence

“But he is an asset for us and he is someone who can help us play the style we want to play. Dean is the type of guy who never complains. You never hear from him. He goes out and does the job. I’m excited and glad he is making shots and playing with confidence. It’s our responsibility to try to find ways to get him on the floor so he can continue to help us.”

Bickerstaff basically said as much when asked whether or not there was room for him in the rotation.

"Yeah, all those guys gotta go out and earn those minutes,” Bickerstaff said. “The thing with Dean is he has the ability to play multiple positions. There's no reason he can't play alongside Georges. We've seen Dean play the three and be successful and help both sides of the ball.

"So again, it's our responsibility to put the best units on the floor. If Dean is one of those guys that presents the best unit, it's our job to get him out there."

More Than Preseason To The Young Guys

If you were to have tuned into the Cavs' first two preseason games in the fourth quarter alone, you'd have no idea that these were exhibitions.

Trailing by 19 points with 5:04 left in the game, Cleveland's two-way trio of Isaiah Mobley, Emoni Bates and Craig Porter Jr. helped mount a huge comeback and got the deficit all the way down to three.

Bates had 12 points in as many minutes, playing the whole quarter as the first of the two-way guys off the bench. He had a fire in his eyes as if it were the postseason, just like he did in Atlanta two nights ago.

"It's a chance for me. It's an opportunity for me right now. I'm not gonna be taking it lightly," Bates said. "For me, it's really a chance to show my game — for coach to see, for players to see, everybody. I'm just taking it like a real game, like we're in the season right now."

Porter showed plenty of hustle with a couple of offensive boards, shifty ball-handling and some slick passing. Unfortunately, he had a miscommunication down low and made an ill-advised entry pass in the game's last possession, but that might've been his only mistake of the night. There's a lot to look forward to with him.

Mobley defended the interior quite well and got a couple of short-range buckets to drop as well.

Evan Mobley Shuts It Down

Call this a Captain Obvious moment, but Evan Mobley’s defense is something you can’t truly appreciate until you watch it in person. He’s mobile, he covers ground and his recovery skills are head and shoulders above just about everybody else in the NBA.

He gave Magic rookie Anthony Black a perfect welcome-to-the-NBA moment when Black tried to lay the ball in on a reverse. Nope, not in his house.

Mobley also stifled Cole Anthony when the fourth-year guard attempted to drive around him in the restricted area.