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The Cleveland Cavaliers picked up their sixth win in their last seven games thanks to a 40-ball from Jarrett Allen that helped lead them past the Portland Trail Blazers 130-111.
Allen is incredibly skilled offensively. His footwork, touch around the rim, quickness, and passing are advanced for someone at his position. That was on display as he ran around, over, and through Portland’s hapless center, Donovan Clingan, all evening.
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The 40-point performance is what’s going to get the headlines, but the variety of ways Allen was able to score is what was most impressive.
He was a force in transition, beating his man down the floor. This created easy baskets if the defense forgot about him, and also allowed him to get smaller defenders caught in deep seals. This created driving lanes for others, as there are very few things that disrupt a defense as much as a mismatch right at the start of a possession.
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Allen also consistently made the right move out of dribble-hand-offs. If his defender gave him room, Allen created space for the guard. If the center came up, Allen went around him for the drive to the hoop.
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Then, there was the pick-and-roll game. He found ways to finish and create space for the ball handler in those situations. The vertical spacing he provides is incredibly valuable when the team is down two of its top scorers.
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And lastly, Allen just did a good job of scoring on the block. He displayed his post moves, using up-and-unders and hook shots, to create angles inside.
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Overall, it was just a completely dominant offensive showing from Allen, who did all of this in under 30 minutes and registered five assists as well.
As if the 40-ball wasn’t enough, Allen was also the best defender on the court. He completely controlled the glass with 17 rebounds, had four rejections, and added two steals just for fun. His defensive effort buoyed the Cavs on a night they started a little helter-skelter on that end.
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Allen put up one of the most ridiculous stat lines in NBA history. I’m generally not a fan of cherry-picked stats, but you can tell if one…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/10-takeaways-cavs-130-111-110000067.html
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Publish date : 2026-02-02 11:00:00
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