Cavaliers Head Coach Calls Lu Dort 'One of the Best Defenders' in the NBA

The Oklahoma City Thunder continued their road trip with a 136-104 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, Jan. 19.

After falling at the hands of the Miami Heat in the second game of OKC's four-game road trip, the team improved to 36-8 by taking down Cleveland. Up next, the Thunder will meet Milwaukee on Jan. 21 before returning home for Oklahoma City's next three games.

The Thunder's 3-point shooting was crucial in the team's win against the Cavaliers, while Mark Daigneault's defense performed well on the other end of the floor.

A large part of the group's efforts on offense and defense was Lu Dort, who finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal while shooting 6-of-7 from the field and 5-of-6 from 3-point range.

In addition to one of his best performances on offense this season, Dort was the primary defender for Cavaliers' star Donovan Mitchell. The six-time All-Star finished with 19 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists while shooting 5-of-18 from the field and 1-of-9 from beyond the arc.

On the season, Mitchell is averaging 29 points, 5.7 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game while shooting 48.5% from the field and 38.4% from deep.

Following Dort's impressive showing, Cleveland head coach Kenny Atkinson complimented the Thunder standout.

"I mean Lu Dort is one of the best defenders in the league and proved it again tonight," Atkinson said when asked about Mitchell's struggles from the field against OKC.

Dort was a key piece of Oklahoma City's title run in 2024-25, earning First-Team All-Defense honors and finishing fourth in Defensive Player of the Year voting. This year, the 26-year-old's numbers have taken a dip, especially on offense, but Dort showed against Cleveland that he still has the same defensive prowess.

With injuries to multiple key rotation players for the Thunder, including fellow wing players Alex Caruso and Jalen Williams, Dort will be even more important for OKC in the coming weeks.

While Oklahoma City has revealed a timetable for Caruso's return, Williams will be reevaluated in two weeks, according to the team. In that time, Dort will be valuable on offense and defense for the Thunder, as Diagneault's team will miss the strong defensive abilities of both Caruson and Williams.

On offense, Dort likely won't be asked to pick up as much of the slack, but will need to be reliable from beyond the arc to aid a group that is without multiple playmakers.

Want to join the discussion? Like Thunder on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.