On Monday night, Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Collin Sexton played a season-low 17 minutes in the Cavs’ 102-100 defeat at the hands of the Orlando Magic. New head coach Larry Drew explained after the ballgame that his decision to keep Sexton on the bench was motivated by his desire to win the ballgame.
“I really was coaching to win the game,” Drew said, via Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “I thought that was more important right now.”
The Cavs came awfully close to securing their second victory under Drew, but Magic guard Evan Fournier — who hit a 23-foot jumper at the buzzer to win the game — had other ideas.
Sexton failed to make a significant impact in his limited run, as the 19-year-old was only able to score five points (2-6 FG, 1-1 FT) and add one rebound, two assists, and two turnovers in a forgettable outing for the youngster.
According to multiple reports, one of the reasons behind Tyronn Lue’s recent firing was because he refused to implement the front office’s directive of giving more playing time to the team’s younger players — Sexton in particular. In this respect, it appears that Drew has yet to receive the memo.
Nonetheless, coach Drew also explained that it was more a situational decision on his part, and that Sexton still very much figures in his plans moving forward.
“I didn’t get Collin in as much as I want to, but this is one of those games,” Drew said. “He’ll be in there, he’ll be in there certainly a lot in the next few games.”
Sexton still appears to be the team’s point guard of the future. There will be some growing pains along the way, but at least he seems to have the full backing of his coach.