Cavs final report card: Keon Ellis

When the Cleveland Cavaliers sent De’Andre Hunter to the Sacramento Kings, the “prize” of the trade was getting Keon Ellis in return. Ellis looked poised to be a disruptive defender on the perimeter and someone who could reliably knock down threes enough to keep opposing defenses honest. The return of Ellis was far from what I think the Cavaliers front office and fans were hoping for.

Regular Season Stats

• 8.3 points
• 2.8 rebounds
• 2.4 assists
• 49.1% FG
• 35.5% 3PT FG
• 81.6% FT

Ellis was already falling out of the rotation in Sacramento when the Cavs traded for him. Cleveland was looking to add more backcourt depth in both Ellis and Dennis Schroder. Ellis gave Cleveland another disruptive defender, as Ellis came to Cleveland as being the only player other than Detroit’s Ausar Thompson to average 2.0 steals and 1 block per 36 minutes.

The idea of Ellis was more impactful than actuality. Ellis never felt like he really found his footing in Cleveland. The rotations were constantly in flux so the synergy with lineups was never going to develop. Cleveland’s offense is built with the motion and ball movement that should have allowed Ellis to flourish as a good three-point shooter (40.7% career average).

He registered the lowest three-point percentage of his career this year. In the regular season, the Cavaliers were willing to play through the struggles at times. Disruptive defenders like Ellis have more staying power as their effort stands out. However, the main issue with Ellis came once the postseason came around.

Ellis was in the initial rotation for the Cavaliers against the Toronto Raptors, but made little impact. He was then used sparingly in the second and third rounds before playing 15 minutes in Game 4 against the New York Knicks, when that series was already over. In short, he wasn’t a playoff contributor in any meaningful way.

The defense wasn’t as impactful as it needed to be to justify more minutes, particularly on a defense that was comfortable switching most actions. This forced Ellis to make defensive plays off-ball, and he didn’t provide enough offensively to distinguish himself from being just another guy on the floor.

It was disappointing to see Ellis cosplay as Isaac Okoro in the postseason. Defenses let Ellis fire away from three and a -31 in his limited minutes during the playoffs. A -141 in the regular season is also not great from someone whose calling card is to wreak havoc on offenses.

Ellis, who is now slated to be a free agent this summer, has forced the Cavaliers to make some decisions about whether to buy the dip and see if this was a blip in Ellis’s short career. It might not take much for the Cavs to wave the white flag on the experiment.

The Cavaliers appear to be focused on retaining Dean Wade over Ellis. If this bears true, the swing for Ellis and Schroder will be more remembered for the Schroder of it all. Which, if we are being honest, is a massive flop of a return.

Grade: D+