Cavs drop Salt Lake Summer League opener vs. Spurs

The Cavs’ first-ever summer league game in Utah started off well enough. But it didn’t end on quite the same note.

After leading by nine four minutes in the game, Cleveland fell behind a San Antonio squad led by Lonnie Walker and Keldon Johnson by the end of the first quarter and were outplayed the rest of the way: Final score: Spurs 97, Cavs 89.

The star of the night for the Cavs was first-round pick Dylan Windler. He led the team with 19 points on 8-14 shooing, including 3-8 on 3-pointers. He also undoubtedly made the play of the night when he made this deep three-pointer and had Darius Garland, Collin Sexton and others on the bench cheering and out of their seats:

Sexton, as a second-year player, isn’t playing in summer league. Garland, despite being on the roster. won’t play at all in Salt Lake and is unlikely to play in Las Vegas. Kevin Porter Jr. could play in the Salt Lake finale on Wednesday, but is dealing with a hip flexor injury that he’s been dealing with since the draft process got started. With those players out, it was Windler’s night to shine.

Another Cavs standout was two-way player Dean Wade. He finished with 14 points and flashed some good pick-and-pop ability. Former Jazz two-way player Naz Mitrou-Long added 16 points.

Two other players who didn’t play despite being on the roster were Jaron Blossomgame, a two-way player for the Cavs last year, and Yovel Zoosman, an Israeli prospect who went undrafted in the 2019 draft.

Cleveland next plays tomorrow at 9 p.m. EST vs. the Jazz.