On the bright side Clevelanders, the Browns look like a playoff team.
The Cavaliers — already off to a disappointing 13-12 start to the season — now will be without key starters Darius Garland and Evan Mobley for at least a month due to separate injuries. Both injuries were revealed on Friday by the team.
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) December 15, 2023
Garland, the team’s starting point guard, fractured his jaw against Boston in the third quarter Thursday night when he attempted to drive past Kristaps Porzingis and ran into him.
DGInjury pic.twitter.com/egNJXuMOO6
— Diamond Dog (@DiamondDogzzz) December 15, 2023
Garland’s absence was a huge blow, but the news only got worse. Less than an hour after the Garland news was announced, another report came down that defensive anchor Evan Mobley will be out 6-8 weeks after getting his knee scoped.
This hits the Cavaliers hard on both ends of the court — Cleveland has a -3.9 net rating when both Garland and Mobley are off the court this season.
Garland is a key offensive engine for the Cavaliers, averaging 20.7 points and 5.8 assists per game. Clevland’s offense clicks when both Garland and Donovan Mitchell are on the court, the team has a +9.5 net rating in the minutes both are playing.
Mobley finished second in the Defensive Player of the Year voting for last season and this season and was having a similar impact this season, leading the Cavaliers’ eighth-ranked defense. Clevland’s defense is 9.6 points per 100 possessions worse without Mobley on the court.
Cleveland sits ninth in the East, have lost three straight, and will have a hard time making up ground in the short term despite a run of home games and a somewhat softer schedule. A lot will fall on the shoulders of Mitchell now, as well as Jarrett Allen to be more of a rim protector in the paint.
Expect Caris LeVert and Craig Porter to get more run at the guard spots. Up front, George Niang will likely start — bringing valued floor spacing — with Dean Wade and Tristan Thompson likely seeing an uptick in minutes.
