Player Grades: Cavs at Clippers – Donovan Mitchell shines in wire-to-wire victory

Whether or not the Cleveland Cavaliers won their recent trade with the Los Angeles Clippers remains to be seen. We can, however, confirm that they won their game against them rather convincingly. They routed the Clippers 124-91.

All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player. A “B” represents an average game for that player.

Donovan Mitchell

29 points, 9 assists, 5 rebounds, 4 steals

Mitchell brings energy nearly every night, but some games, he plays like he’s been shot out of a cannon. This was one of those outings.

That effort was coupled with just a good all-around game. Mitchell got to the basket at will, set up his teammates well, took care of the ball, and was active defensively. It was the perfect game from someone who looked reenergized by the team’s recent additions.

Grade: A

Jarrett Allen

10 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block

Allen didn’t dominate the scoring column like he did against the Portland Trail Blazers, but he had a noticeable impact on this game. He controlled the paint defensively and played with force on offense.

The Cavs don’t need Allen to lead them in points every night. They do, however, need him to play with energy and focus. He did so again this evening.

Grade: B+

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Jaylon Tyson

17 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal

Tyson has continually made the most of the touches he gets offensively. That happened again in Los Angeles as he went 7-10 from the floor, 3-3 from three, all while playing good defense.

Head coach Kenny Atkinson has called Tyson the “ultimate role player” at various points the last two seasons. Tyson has continually proven Atkinson correct, but performances like this make you wonder how good he can be if you continue to scale up his usage.

Grade: A

Sam Merrill

11 points, 0 assists, 1 rebound

Merrill was an active off-ball mover and hit some threes. It was the exact performance you want from him, even if he didn’t make a large impact elsewhere.

Grade: B+

Thomas Bryant

8 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks

Bryant came in, got offensive rebounds (three), blocked some shots (two), and made the most of his chances to score. He even got rewarded for a deep seal in transition, which you absolutely love to see. You’d sign up for performances like this from your third big every night.

Grade: A

Dean Wade

5 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal

Dean Wade did Dean Wade things.

Grade: B+

Nae’Qwan Tomlin

4 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks

Tomlin was the one Cavalier who didn’t have an efficient scoring night. He went 1-7 from the field, but was still helpful due to his energy and effort. This was reflected in his plus/minus of +16

Grade: B–

Dennis Schröder

11 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, 3 steals

Schroder showed you the energy and straight-line attacking that he can provide. Both are things the second unit has desperately needed. Also, contributing three steals is helpful.

This was a solid debut, even if it wasn’t an efficient shooting game. He went 5-14 from the field and 1-5 from deep.

Grade: B+

Craig Porter Jr.

7 points, 2 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals

Porter being able to shift to a more off-ball role worked tonight. He played well alongside Schroder. He’ll need to keep doing that if he’s going to continue to get steady minutes once James Harden joins the team on Friday.

Grade: B+

Keon Ellis

6 points, 0 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 steal

Ellis was disruptive defensively. He showed what he can do on that end in the limited minutes that he played how he can help. I’m interested to see how he performs when he gets a longer runway and gets more acclimated with the team’s system.

Grade: B