CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Fans got a glimpse of how the Cavaliers will look this season under new head coach Kenny Atkinson in the exhibition opener against the Chicago Bulls.
While it is just the preseason, Evan Mobley showed all the promise of a breakout season. He finished with a team-high 19 points, 9-14 from the field with six rebounds, three blocks and one assist in 19 minutes. Mobley also led the team in shot attempts.
“I really liked a lot of things that I saw in the first half,” Atkinson said. “I thought our pace was great.”
The Cavs led by as much as 16 in the first half but a “stagnant” third quarter according to Atkinson, caused them to fall behind.
“Our conditioning has to catch up to regular season rhythm,” Atkinson said. “We looked fatigued at times, we’ll get that right.”
The Bulls went on a 10-3 run to open up the second half and close the gap. When Chicago took their first lead at the 6:01 mark of the third quarter, Atkinson gave his starters the rest of the game off.
Donovan Mitchell finished with 12 points, 2-8 from deep and 4-8 from the field. Darius Garland had 13 points, five assists and was 3-6 from behind the arc. Max Strus started the game but played just nine minutes before leaving with an injury.
Injury update: Cavs’ Max Strus suffered a right hip contusion.
Up next: The Cavs continue their preseason schedule and host the Indiana Pacers on Thursday, at 7 p.m. at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
