Cavaliers’ Jarrett Allen Is Playing The Best Basketball Of His Career

Cleveland's star center has put up video game-like numbers in the Cavaliers' last three games, including a career-high 30 points last night against the Milwaukee Bucks.

With Evan Mobley out for a few more weeks due to arthroscopic left knee surgery, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ frontcourt has needed to increase its productivity to make up for his absence.

While Jarrett Allen has been named an NBA All-Star during his time with the Wine and Gold, he has recently taken his game to another level with Mobley out of the lineup.

In his last three games, Allen has not just been playing like an All-Star. He has been playing like an MVP candidate.

Last night, the Cavaliers fell to the Milwaukee Bucks by a score of 119-111. Their center, Brook Lopez, ranked second in the NBA with 2.9 blocks per game. And their power forward, Giannis Antetokounmpo, has made five NBA All-Defensive Teams and was the 2019-20 NBA Defensive Player of the Year.

But these two did not stop Allen from having the best scoring performance of his career. He poured in a career-high 30 points, while shooting an astounding 15-of-17 (88.2%) from the field. The 25-year-old also added a team-high 12 rebounds, six assists, and a pair of blocks.

Dec 29, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) drives to the basket against Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez (11) during the first half at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse / © Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

According to @CavsNotes on X, Allen became the first Cavaliers player to make at least 15 field goals and shoot at least 85% from the field in a game in franchise history.

.@_bigjayy_ tonight:

30 PTS
15-17 FG (.882)
12 REB
6 AST
2 BLK

He is the 1st player in @cavs history with 15+ FGM on .850+ FG%.

Tonight was also his 3rd straight game with 6+ AST, the longest of his @NBA career. #LetEmKnow

— Cavs Notes (@CavsNotes) December 30, 2023

Over Cleveland’s last three contests, Allen is playing the best basketball of his career.

His numbers during this stretch have almost been something out of NBA 2K: 24.3 points, 17.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists, one steal, and one block per game, while shooting 30-for-43 (69.8%) from the field.

Allen’s 17.3 rebounds per game in this span leads the NBA, as does his field-goal percentage (minimum 11.1 attempts per game).

“My performance has been pretty good as of late,” Allen said after last night’s contest against Milwaukee. “I feel like I’m being more aggressive, just trying to find my spots to score, and even create more for myself.”

But what has especially come alive during his last three games has been his playmaking ability.

At the moment, Allen is currently averaging 1.5 assists per game for his career. Mobley, on the other hand, who is more known for his playmaking, has a career average of 2.7 per game.

But Allen’s outputs in Cleveland's last three games?

Seven, six, and six.

“I feel like I’m going slower with the ball,” Allen said last night. “I’m being more methodical about making the right pass. I’m not just looking to swing the ball and go set a pick-and-roll. I’m starting to look more for cutters and people slashing to the rim.”

The Cavaliers have gone 5-2 since the long-term injuries to Mobley and Darius Garland were announced.

If Allen can even come close to maintaining the way he is playing right now, the Wine and Gold will not skip a beat with Mobley and Garland out of the fold.