The Cavaliers returned to action on Wednesday night as they hosted the winless Orlando Magic(0-5). Cleveland, who came off a 117-107 win in OT over the Wizards on Sunday, was hoping to make it three straight.
Cleveland led 73-69 heading into the fourth, and the Cavs(3-1) took their largest lead of 12 points in the final quarter as they defeated the Magic 103-92.
Here’s the Great, Not So Great, and Bottom Line of the Cavs’ win over the Magic.
The Great:
Jarrett Allen: He had season-highs of 18 points and 16 rebounds; this was Allen’s second straight double-double and his third double-double in four games.
Also, according to the Cavs, he surpassed the 3,000 career rebound mark as he becomes the only active NBA player age 25 or younger to reach that mark.
Evan Mobley: The second-year forward had a breakout performance and led the team with a season-high 20 points. Seven of those 20 points came in the fourth. He’s finding his way on the offense and was big Wednesday night.
Cedi Osman: Osman had 14 points off the Cavs’ bench. Again, another strong performance from Osman as he continues to get the job done for the Cavs. He has scored in double-figures in all four games for the Cavs this season.
Second-Half Defense: The Magic shot 50% from the field in the first half. However, the Cavs’ defense stiffened, and Orlando shot only 36% from the field in the second half.
Not So Great:
Donovan Mitchell: I hate to put Donovan Mitchell on this list because he’s been so good this season. However, he was 5/19 from the field and 1/7 from deep. He ended up with 14 points, but he did have eight assists. Mitchell’s shot was off Wednesday night, but to his credit, he did impact the game in other ways.
Bottom Line:
The Cavs won a game they were supposed to win. They didn’t play their best basketball against the Magic and let them hang around. It wasn’t pretty, but Cleveland got the job done in the end.
What’s Next:
Cleveland goes on the road Friday night to face the reigning Eastern Conference champions, the Boston Celtics.
Best of the Rest:
The Cavs had six players in double figures for the third straight game, including their starting five. Dean Wade and Caris LeVert had 12 points apiece.
Rookie Paolo Banchero had a career-high 29 points for the Magic, and Franz Wagner added 22.
Junk Yard Dog Award:
Allen and Mobley both received the Junk Yard Dog award for their performances on Wednesday night.
