Cavaliers: Caris LeVert hitting his stride at exactly the right time

CLEVELAND — Caris LeVert is coming off back-to-back strong performances for the Cavaliers, and it's the kind of play the team has wanted to see out of him, especially with the playoffs looming. LeVert led the Cavs with 24 points in a disappointing loss to Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday and added six assists, three rebounds and a steal in 36 minutes off the bench. The night before in a won over Charlotte, he had 22 points, seven assists, four steals and rebounds. "It's a credit to him for sticking to it," Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of LeVert after the loss to the Sixers. "He's obviously had some ups and downs, but he's never let it get the best of him. He's always gone out and done whatever he can do to help the team win." The 6-foot-6 guard, while frustrated after Wednesday's loss, is still locked in on winning — and winning in the postseason. LeVert has been in and out of the starting lineup at various points this season and took some time to find his rhythm after signing with Cleveland last year, getting injured early and finding his own way among the Cavs' many lineup changes and broader injury woes. While Bickerstaff and the rest of the team take notice of the hours LeVert puts in at the gym, it's his teammates, LeVert said, that give him the confidence to stay focused. "I feel pretty sharp — my handle feels sharp, my jump shot feels pretty sharp, my conditioning feels up to par," LeVert said of where he thinks his game is with 10 games left in the regular season. "I've kind of kicked it into playoff mode just mentally and I think my teammates make it extremely easy on me each and every game, especially when I get it going — calling my play, calling my number and just telling me to just be aggressive. "I'm just trying to be more locked in with playoff time coming and I know what that entails. I've been there a couple times, so I'm just trying to put myself in that mindset. My teammates give me a lot of confidence each and every night to just be myself, so they make it easy on me." The Cavs have often been frustrated with their bench play the latter half of this season, but against the Sixers on Wednesday, Bickerstaff said an effort like LeVert had took a lot of pressure off stars Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland — especially with Jarrett Allen out with an eye contusion — and now Cleveland has to capitalize on it. "You need to have guys that can provide a punch and can provide a spark, and I think we have those guys and they've shown that they can do it," Bickerstaff said. "It's just a matter of us as coaches helping to put them in a position and them going out and performing to the best of their ability. "He was able to make (the Sixers) pay by getting to the paint, sharing the ball, creating for himself, but I also think he did a great job defensively. He's been running long stretches and he has had a huge impact for us. I think he's trending in the right direction and ramping it up." Mitchell went so far as to say it was LeVert who kept the Cavaliers in a game that felt out of reach so many times with Joel Embiid imposing his will to the tune of 36 points and 18 rebounds. "We all trust him, giving him the ball, putting him in his spots," Mitchell said of LeVert. "Defensively he's playing well, too. … He had a hell of an impact on the defensive end, and I think that's something that I didn't even realize about his game until I got here. So, you're seeing it, and it's not always easy coming from a situation when you're not really knowing what to expect every night to come in and do what he's doing, especially at this part of the season. I give him credit. He's able to lock in. He gives us a spark and he's the reason we were in this game." Contact Marissa McNees at ctsports@chroniclet.com and follow her on Twitter @MarissaNM.