Dellavedova had one of his best matches in the best league in the world, reaching double figures in points and assists as the Cavs went down to the Oklahoma City Thunder at home.

The 23-year-old finished with 11 points - on four-of-eight shooting - while also dishing out a career high 10 assists in a standout individual effort.

But it wasn't just at the offensive end where Dellavedova shone as he also did some excellent things on defence while matched up against some of the Thunder's best.

Less than two minutes into the contest Cavs coach Mike Brown introduced Dellavedova into the fray and straight away gave him the unenviable task of guarding Thunder star Kevin Durant.

Now Durant did catch fire later on in the match to finish with 35 points, but it's worth noting that he missed four of his first five field goal attempts as he was harassed into tough shots by the tenacious Australian.

"He didn't get under my skin," Durant admitted after the game.

"He plays hard, you can respect a player like that but I didn't pay him any attention."

Dellavedova was doing it at the other end too, as he connected on a three-pointer from the corner early in the second term to put the Cavs up by five.

Durant found his range shortly after to put the Thunder in control, although Dellavedova almost helped the Cavs pull off a miracle as he run the point with aplomb during the entire final term.

Here is a look at Dellavedova's shot chart from the game:

The Australian ended up playing 33 minutes and it is worth noting that he has only seen more court time in a single game against two opposition teams this season.

He played 41 in a loss against the Pacers last month and was seen for 34 minutes against the Spurs in December.

That's the two teams that lead their respective conferences, while Friday’s opponent - the Thunder - have the equal second best record in the NBA.

It goes to show that coach Brown has the upmost faith in Dellavedova and believes he is more than capable of rising to the occasion against the better teams in the league.

"One thing Delly's going to do for sure is fight," Brown said after Friday's game.

"He's going to get up in your chest and he's going to bother you, he's going to show his hands so he's not going to foul you. He makes you work for points."

Dellavedova finished Friday's match with a plus-minus rating of +8, the third time in succession that he has led the Cavs in this statistic.

While the Cavs are unlikely to feature in the playoffs this campaign, they should be set to feature in the post-season in the future if they continue to show faith in Dellavedova.