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Cleveland's next playoff run: How the Cavs ascended to the top half of the Eastern Conference standings despite key injuries

Despite injuries to Darius Garland and Evan Mobley, the Cleveland Cavaliers have turned their season around, rising to the 4-seed in the Eastern Conference.

CLEVELAND — For those whose attention has been hard focused on the fleeting playoff run by the Cleveland Browns and are looking for a remedy, may I introduce you to the 4-seed in the NBA's Eastern Conference: your Cleveland Cavaliers.

That's right — as of Monday, Jan. 15, the Cavs have climbed back to the top half of the conference without two of their top players in Darius Garland and Evan Mobley.

Garland has been out of action since Dec. 15 after suffering a fractured jaw after colliding with the Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis. On that same day, the team announced Evan Mobley's arthroscopic surgery on his left knee that would keep him out for at least six to eight weeks.

After the loss to the Celtics, the Cavs slipped to 13-12, good enough for ninth in the conference and a whole lot of question marks about the future of the once promising young core.

With the statuses of the remaining healthy star on the roster in Donovan Mitchell and their head coach J.B. Bickerstaff in question, the 2023-24 season seemed destined for regression.

Problem is, the Cavs didn't buy into that narrative.

Since Dec. 16, only the Oklahoma City Thunder (12-3) have a better record than the Cleveland Cavaliers (9-3). In reaching the 4-seed in the East, the Cavs now own a 22-15 record for the season.

So how did this happen?

Let's look at where the team stood before the Garland/Mobley injuries compared to a more recent look:

Both efficiency landscapes show the Cavs as a net positive defensive team even before the injuries, but the most recent shows that not only have they slightly improved their defense, but are showing a dramatically improved offense.

What has happened over the past month that lead to an improved offense at the cost of two out of their top three scorers? Let's get into it.

Donovan Mitchell

The Cavs' remaining superstar caliber player has taken over the full time point guard and table setting role with the loss of Garland. He currently sits sixth in the NBA in points per game with 27.9, and while on a global pedestal when Cleveland took on the Brooklyn Nets in Paris last week, he turned in a 45-point, 12-rebound, 6-assist performance in an impressive victory across the pond. 

Mitchell has undoubtedly been a stabilizing presence in the back court, but what makes this stretch even more impressive is the fact that the Cavaliers won three of four games without Mitchell between Dec. 20 and 27 while he missed time with an injured right shoulder.

Jarrett Allen

The Cavs knew they had to lean on Allen more than ever in the front court after losing Evan Mobley, and he has more than answered the call.

In 12 games since Dec. 16, Allen has averaged 18.8 points and 13.1 rebounds per game, including eight straight double-doubles. He has played some of the best basketball in his career so far this season, all while going up against some of the league's toughest opponents down low. 

Role players step up

We knew for the Cavaliers to stay afloat while riding out the injuries of Garland and Mobley, the play of Mitchell and Allen had to elevate. What has also been a pleasant surprise is the emergence and elevated play Caris LeVert, Sam Merrill, and Isaac Okoro.

LeVert has stepped up his offensive production in January, averaging 21.4 points in five games. He also turned in a 29-point performance in a three-point victory on Dec. 27 against the Dallas Mavericks.

Saying Isaac Okoro has a "rough" start to the season may be putting it too nicely, but he has since put that in the rearview mirror and has blossomed into one of the better wing defenders in the league this year.

Okoro's 3-point shot has remained inconsistent, but he has shown a quicker trigger and more confidence when given opportunities. He turned in his best offensive performance of the season against the Mavs on Dec. 27, scoring 22 points while draining 4 of 7 3-point attempts.

Perhaps the most surprising development of the season, however, has been the emergence of Sam Merrill.

After being a complete non-factor in the first month and a half of the season, the Cavs' December injuries in the back court provided the opportunity Merrill needed to showcase his sharpshooting ability from beyond the arc. He made his grand entrance to relevancy with a 19-point performance in an overtime victory against the Houston Rockets on Dec. 18, going 5 of 10 from 3-point land.

Two days later, he turned in a 27-point showing against the Utah Jazz, electrifying the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse crowd by converting 8 of 14 3s.

Since the start of the new year, Merrill has been a key offensive weapon off the bench for Cleveland, averaging 12.4 points per game on 37% from long range.

It also can't be put lightly that the offseason acquisitions of Max Strus and Georges Niang have proven pivotal in giving the Cavaliers the kind of depth on offense they just didn't have over the past two seasons.

It's time to give J.B. Bickerstaff his flowers. Will he be the coach that leads the Cavs to championship contention? It's very possible he isn't; the last month still doesn't prove that the Cavs have what it takes to take a seat next to Boston, Milwaukee and Philadelphia. 

But the fact remains that the team had every reason to feel sorry for themselves, to accept their fate and continue their descent into the depths of the Eastern Conference on Dec. 16.

They now sit two games back of the No. 3 seed 76ers, and have given Cleveland sports fans another playoff run to look forward to. 

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