Player Grades: Cavs fall to Magic in preseason finale despite impressive showing from Meleek Thomas

The Cleveland Cavaliers got blown out in their final preseason game 132-116 to the Orlando Magic.

All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents that player performing to our expectations for them.

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James Harden

13 points, 2 assists, 0 rebounds

The Cavs struggled to get into any kind of scoring rhythm. The bigs weren’t involved as much as you’d like, and the offense overall wasn’t able to generate many clean looks for outside shooters. Part of that blame falls on the starting point guard.

In addition to that, Harden had a tough time finding his own shot. He went just 6-for-14 from the field in an overall forgettable game.

Grade: D-

Donovan Mitchell

15 points, 2 rebounds, 8 assists

Mitchell made a concerted effort to get others involved. That resulted in eight assists in under 25 minutes to go along with 15 points. This was a solid night from someone who looks ready for regular season basketball to start.

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Grade: B

Evan Mobley

14 points, 5 rebounds, 0 assists

Mobley missed his first five shots before slowly turning it around as he put up seven points in both the second and third quarters.

This preseason has been rough for Mobley offensively. He’s struggled to get to his spots on the floor and hasn’t been very efficient when he gets there. This 6-for-14 performance is on the heels of going 3-for-10 the game before.

Grade: D

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Peyton Watson

10 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists

Watson struggled to find the range from deep as he went 1-for-5 beyond the arc. The three-point volume in 24 minutes is what you want to see, even though the efficiency wasn’t there.

The energy Watson plays with remains encouraging. He was an active defender as he racked up two blocks and a steal.

Grade: B

Jarrett Allen

9 points, 6 rebounds, 0 assists

Allen was an afterthought on offense and wasn’t able to do enough on the other end to cover up for the poor point-of-attack defense elsewhere.

Grade: D

Jaylon…

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Publish date : 2026-10-14 02:00:00

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