He may average less than five points per game, but Australian Matthew Dellavedova has carved out a key role for the star-studded Cleveland Cavaliers.
Dellavedova returned this week from an extended stint on the sidelines courtesy of a left knee MCL sprain, and didn’t waste much time working his way back into the Cavs’ rotation.
Eased back into his first game following the early November injury, Dellavedova played a huge part in the Cleveland’s 105-101 win over the Eastern Conference leading Toronto Raptors, dropping in a pair of threes, handing out five assists and earning a +12 point differential during his 21 minutes of action.
Undrafted following a stellar career at Saint Mary’s University and forced to fight his way onto an NBA roster, Dellavedova’s bulldog mentality has drawn the praise from a number of influential Cavs.
“We’ve been waiting for Matty to come back,” coach David Blatt said following the Cavs’ eighth straight win. “He’s a big part of what we do.”
“He gives us a steady hand off the bench. He gives us great energy and activity on the defensive end and he plays simple and smart on the offensive end.
“Given that this was only his second game back and he’s been out for more than four weeks, his performance was just outstanding against very, very high-level NBA guards.”
The Cavs appreciate Dellavedova’s defensive intensity and on-court maturity, the effort levels more than making up for the deficiencies that concerned NBA teams heading into the 2013 Draft.
“Delly is a guy that’s always been counted out,” LeBron James, the NBA’s best player, said this week. “He can’t make it, can’t do this, can’t shoot enough, not fast enough, not tall enough. One thing about it, heart and effort will take away a lot of the things that you cannot do. I’ll take a guy like that on my team any day.”
Dellavedova is averaging 3.2 points, three assists and shooting 40 percent from three per game this season.
Photo: Joe Robbins/Getty Images.
