Sunday’s game in Minnesota was a bit of a full-circle moment for Antonius Cleveland.
It was against those same Wolves, three weeks earlier, that the rookie earned his NBA debut merely hours after signing a two-way contract with the Mavericks. He spent the morning and afternoon hours of Nov. 17 meeting his coaches and teammates and learning the playbook, and he used the precious few minutes in-between his warmup and tipoff to watch as much film as possible at his locker. He got into the game in the third quarter that night tasked with the tough responsibility of defending Andrew Wiggins. He logged 6:56 of playing time.
Fast-forward three weeks and once again Cleveland was called upon to try slowing down Wiggins, one of the bright young scorers in this league. This time around, he was better-prepared for the task at hand. Cleveland recorded three steals and two blocks in a career-high 17:51 of playing time, adding two points and two boards. It was his most effective performance at the NBA level, and it came after playing less than 20 minutes total in the Mavs’ previous seven games.
“I think it’s a credit to why you should always be ready,” Cleveland said on Monday. “Just always know what you need to do, what you have to do, as well as being ready to go in and compete.”
With rookie point guard Dennis Smith Jr. out for the last two games — as well as tonight’s game against San Antonio, at least — there’s a pocket of minutes available for Cleveland. Typically the Mavs go to the second-unit lineup of Barea-Harris-Ferrell-Dirk-Powell late in the first and third quarters, but with Ferrell starting in place of Smith, Cleveland is the next man up to fill that spot.
It certainly helps, especially against longer teams like Minnesota and Milwaukee, that Cleveland is 6-foot-6. He’s one of only two active Mavericks right now (joining Harrison Barnes) taller than 6-foot-4 and shorter than 6-foot-10. Cleveland’s two primary assignments in his last two games were Andrew Wiggins and Khris Middleton, who are both 6-foot-8. The rookie’s height, length, hops, and instincts were on full display on those contests. Cleveland was able to block both Wiggins and Middleton off the dribble in isolation, which is no easy feat; Middleton has been blocked only 11 times this season, per NBA Stats.
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The following play was probably his most impressive, and this is the type of work that’s going to win over the organization’s brass. Cleveland sags off Wiggins, who’s just a 30.7 percent 3-point shooter this season, to help against a Jeff Teague drive. As Cleveland steps over, Teague kicks it out to Wiggins and the Mavs rookie is briefly turned around. Wiggins reads the situation and immediately (and wisely) puts the ball on the floor, looking to exploit the off-balance rookie. But Cleveland recovers beautifully, keeps his feet moving, and blocks the pull-up jumper. It’s a remarkable play against a good scorer.
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“I can be a major help on defense,” Cleveland said. “I can switch and guard positions 1 through 3, maybe even 4. I can use my ability to stay in front of people for the most part, and just help the team defensively.”
Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle is impressed with the Southeast Missouri State product’s ability to defend intensely without fouling, but at the same time was quick to point out that Cleveland was a -11 in the Mavs’ 97-92 loss to the Wolves. He maintains high expectations no matter the player.
“I like his defense and his athleticism. He really has so much potential and upside,” Carlisle said. “It’s exciting on the one hand, but on the other hand he’s got a long way to go just from an experience standpoint.”
Offensively, Cleveland still has a ways to go in terms of becoming totally comfortable with the finer points of the playbook. To be fair, he hasn’t logged many minutes to this point, but as he’s begun to show more potential, it only makes sense to assume he could receive more playing time in the immediate future, especially while Smith is out. He spent quite a while after Monday’s practice working with Johnathan Motley and Josh McRoberts in 5-on-0 drills, running every play and all of its variations. Carlisle’s playbook is extensive and can be complex, but it works beautifully when executed the right way.
“I always kind of knew what to do in my head, but it always helps to actually go live,” Cleveland said. “That’s what I’m doing now, just getting stuff down to a tee so coach will be able to rely on me offensively, knowing that I know it.”
To this point, they’ve kept things fairly simple with Cleveland on the floor, often running plays like this one where the rookie can dive to the rim hunting for an alley-oop lob.
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Cleveland doesn’t actually know his vertical leap — he cleared the rack the last time anyone tried to measure it — but it’s evident from watching some of his jumps that this guy can absolutely soar. In addition, he’s 6 of 12 from beyond the arc in a limited sample size in the G League this season, but his 38.4 percent shooting from deep during his senior season in college suggests he also has the touch to develop a reliable 3-point shot.
There will always be a place on an NBA roster for a long wing who can defend multiple positions, jump out of the gym, and shoot the 3-ball. Cleveland is in the early stages of developing into a rotation player, and if he can continue making progress, he could become another undrafted find by the Mavs, joining the likes of Yogi Ferrell, Maxi Kleber, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Salah Mejri. Cleveland still has plenty of room for improvement, but so far he’s on the right track.
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