Game Grades: Cavs Victory Over Raptors

The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Toronto Raptors with a second-half comeback effort.

The Cleveland Cavaliers could've easily let their game against the Toronto Raptors get away from them and blamed it on the game being the second night of a back-to-back. 

Instead, the Cavs fought back against a scrappy Raptors team and ended up walking away with a 105-102 victory. 

Let's look at some grades for this relentless Cavaliers team. 

Cavaliers Offense: B+

Cleveland got the win, which was the most important outcome of this game. However, the offense wasn't firing on all cylinders for the full 48 minutes.

The second quarter specifically was pretty ugly, as the Cavs only managed to score 17 points while shooting 35% from the floor. This allowed the Raptors to climb out to a 12-point lead as they went into the halftime break. 

The 32-point third-quarter effort should be the biggest focus on the night. Max Strus went off for 20 points and knocked down four threes in this stretch. Cleveland outscored Toronto by 12 points in this 12-minute stretch, which set up the big fourth-quarter comeback.

Nov 26, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) drives against Toronto Raptors forward O.G. Anunoby (3) in the second quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports / © David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Cleveland's leading scorers looked like this:

• Darius Garland - 25 PTS
• Strus - 20 PTS
• Jarrett Allen - 18 PTS

Was it perfect? No. But the good certainly outweighed the bad, which earns the Cavaliers a "B+" in this department. 

Cavaliers Defense: B+

The Cavs largely played solid defense against the Raptors. They finished with a defensive rating of 105.4, and no Raptor scored over 20 points. Cleveland's three-point defense was also huge, as Toronto shot just 25% from behind the arc.

The biggest issue, which is becoming a trend for the Cavs, is the number of fouls they committed, which turned into Raptor points. Toronto shot 69% (20-29) from the free-throw line, representing a large chunk of their scoring.

Strus, Allen, and Georges Niang each finished the game with four personal fouls. Cleveland can't continue to bail out their opponent by sending them to the line as often as they did on Sunday night.

It'd also be unfair if I didn't bring up Allen's final defensive stop on Gary Trent Jr. That play alone was one of the biggest in the entire game.

Overall, a good defensive effort.

Overall: B+

As Garland said after the game, this was a great "team win" from the Cavaliers. Each player that was on the floor contributed in their own way.

The weary second quarter stopped this game from hitting the "A" tier, but it's definitely one that the Cavaliers should be proud of.