JBB indicated Wade would replace Markkanen.
Other guys got to step up. And we’ve kind of been through this before when he was out early with COVID. Dean Wade stepped up. We’re gonna ask Dean Wade to do the same thing. He’s got to come in and contribute and allow us to still play with that size.
With Lauri on the floor the Cavs are 7.1 points per 100 possessions better than their opponents. With Wade the Cavs are 6.3 points worse. So the Cavs are 13.4 points better offensively with Lauri than Wade. Yep, other guys are going to have to step up. Mobley will be taking more shots, IMO, maybe Allen as well.
Defensively the Cavs are 5.5 points better with Wade than Markkanen, so the net difference is 7.9 points. That's the average for the season. It's probably higher recently since Lauri's shooting has improved dramatically.
The Cavs are outscoring their opponents by an average of 4.2 points so replacing a starter with a backup that results in the team being 8 points worse is a big deal.
The Cavs are better defensively with Wade so the problem is the lost 13.4 points of offense. Wade's assist rate based on his usage is over twice that of Markkanen, but his points per shot attempt is significantly lower (102.4 versus 110.5). With a better passer but a worse scorer at small forward the key will be having the other Cavs up their offensive games to make up the lost points, or Wade himself taking more shots and improving his shot percentages.
One problem is that Wade is only 6-for-23 on corner threes. That needs to get better. Last year he hit 51% in over twice as many attempts, so he can do it.
The challenge for JBB is how to create offense with Okoro and Wade on the floor at the same time. My assumption is he'll put both in the corners and run the middle pick-and-roll relentlessly. Opponents will crowd the paint and dare Garland to kick it out to Okoro or Wade for a corner three. If they can't knock them down the Cavs will struggle offensively. Same for Lamar and Windler.
The uncontested corner 3 is probably the best shot in basketball other than a dunk or uncontested layup. It's the shortest three-point shot so it should be the easiest to make. The downside is if you miss it opens up fast break opportunites since the shooter is in the corner, so it's a high risk/high reward shot. It's so important to make those corner 3's, especially for the Cavs since opponents will be collapsing on Allen and Mobley. Every time they get the ball near the rim they're surrounded by three defenders hacking at the ball.
Okoro, Wade, Stevens, and Windler should all be taking 100 corner 3's a day. Love, too. Especially Love because he's so slow that if he misses and the opponent gets the rebound it's an automatic 5-on-4 break. These guys should also practice ball faking to get their main in the air and then driving the baseline without shuffling the feet or stepping back and putting a foot on the sideline.
