Why Cavs Shouldn’t Panic About Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen’s Bad Showing vs. OKC

Relax Cavs fans, your NBA titles hopes have not crumbled because of one Sunday afternoon loss in late February.

And despite sluggish games from both Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, the Cavaliers' big men are going to be just fine.

In the Cavs' 121-113 road loss to Oklahoma City, the Cavs' starting bigs combined for just 26 points. Allen alone had scored 20 or more points in four of Cleveland's last five games. Mobley connected for 15 points but grabbed just two rebounds. It was a disappointing performance from the frontcourt against the defending champs.

But everyone's allowed a clunker. The Cavs entered Sunday winners of seven-straight, including the last five with newly acquired superstar James Harden. They were going to lose at some point. Better now than May or June.

What Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said about bad outing

Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson wasn't exactly worried about one underwhelming game from Allen and Mobley.

"They were fine. They didn't have stellar games," Atkinson told reporters following the loss. "I think Evan is still trying to get his footing after the injury (he missed nearly a month with a calf injury and returned to the court for the first time Thursday).

Allen had a +/- of -15, Mobley's was -3. Only two Cavs (Sam Merrill and Nae'Qwan Tomlin) finished with a positive +/-. Despite the porous numbers, Cleveland still fought back from a 15 point first quarter deficit on the road against the reigning champs.

This was the Cavs' third game in four days. That L's been lurking for a week now. It was only matter of time. Just like it was only a matter of time for Allen to return Earth. The 6-foot-9 center had double-doubles in six of the last seven games.

"(Jarrett Allen) was not Superman today," Atkinson added. "It happens. This is not an excuse. This is a tough schedule. .... I'm proud of the way the guys fought back and gave us a chance."

Sometimes a loss isn't the worst thing for a team. The Cavaliers have been riding high since acquiring Harden, Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder. This brief stumble should remind them they're not unbeatable or without flaws. And it's definitely not time to panic.

It's an abnormality that the Cavs' leading scorer on Sunday (Mitchell, Harden and Merrill all shared the highest point total) had only 20 points. That's not happening on a regular basis. A healthy Mobley's going to spend more than 25 minutes on the court and Harden isn't going to turn the ball over five times with regularity. Allen's going to give you more than 11 points, too. Chalk it up to running out of gas in the midst of a five games in seven days stretch.

They've now got a day of rest and refueling before hosting the Knicks on Tuesday night.