The Cleveland Cavaliers were looking for someone to bring the energy after their disappointing loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday evening. They had to dig deep into their bench, and got this boost from Isaac Okoro.
Okoro played a key role in this win. He was a part of Cleveland's comeback charge at the end of the third quarter and into the fourth. He only finished with nine points, but scoring only scratches the surface of Okoro's impact.
He finished the game with seven rebounds and set a new career-high with five steals.
Cleveland was without its sixth-man Caris LeVert, and were looking for someone to fill the void he left with his absence. Okoro was just that for the Cavaliers, which led them to their 11th win of the season.
These sort of performances are nothing new for Okoro, who is in his fourth season with Cleveland.
The Cavs missed Okoro's spark and toughness he brought off the bench when he missed nine games with left knee soreness. The guard-forward combo is finally settling into a consistent role with the team as its defensive specialist off the bench.
Okoro is averaging 7.5 points and 3.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 50% from the field through his first 11 games of the season.
Cleveland needed someone to step up tonight, considering where they stood as a team entering this game. Another loss would have been more than costly to this team's morale.
However, they avoided this thanks to the career night from Okoro.
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