CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers reached an important benchmark in their rebuild Monday night, winning their third straight game and punctuating a feel-good homestand with a 121-118 win against the Atlanta Hawks.

It’s their longest winning streak of the season. It’s also their longest of the post-LeBron James era -- a flash of light at the end of this sometimes dark road back to respectability.

“It shows that we’re improving,” Cavs head coach John Beilein said after the game. “I don’t know if we win this game a month ago, especially with Atlanta back at full strength again today. They have a really young talented team. We’re improving, the three home games, and all the three teams that we were playing are sort of transitional as well, and so throw those things together and we’re happy to get three wins.”

The three straight victories have the Cavs feeling better about their current situation -- even if they nearly blew a 13-point lead in the final three minutes. But Monday night wasn’t about the late-game mistakes, the baffling giveaways that continue to plague this growing group. It wasn’t about the shaky shot selection after boosting the lead to a game-high 13. It wasn’t about the defensive breakdowns that let the Hawks bomb away from 3-point range and turn an excited crowd nervous.

Monday night was about the future.

Moments before tipoff, the Cavs agreed to a deal with the Utah Jazz, sending away Jordan Clarkson for 24-year-old Dante Exum and a pair of second-round picks. While Exum may take a small spot in the rotation, with the Cavs viewing the former first-round pick as a reclamation project, the center of the deal was more draft picks.

A byproduct of that move: Cleveland’s youngsters will get more opportunities, especially late in games.

Clarkson was one of the Cavs’ closers. He was an instant bucket. One of the most experienced late-game options. But in the final year of his contract, he was also taking minutes from Collin Sexton, Darius Garland and Kevin Porter Jr. Beilein had to ride the hot hand, and it was usually Clarkson. But with him gone, there’s an opening. Both Garland and Porter got their chance for crunch time minutes. The Cavs’ kids had to grow up. Quickly.

They did just that against the Hawks -- a team that’s supposed to be a year ahead in their rebuild.

Clinging to a one-point lead with 9:56 remaining, the Cavs went on a 14-3 run over the next four-plus minutes to seize control of the game. All 14 points were scored by the tantalizing teenager duo of Garland and Porter.

“We got to play through their mistakes, because those are happening out there too," Beilein said. “But the two of them really see each other, they play well together, everybody should be really excited about the future with those two on the floor.”

Garland finished with 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting. Porter had 15 points, including nine in the fourth quarter.

“I like being in those moments,” Porter said. “Only thing that doesn’t sit with me is my boy not being here.”

Sexton, the second-year guard who was playing against his draft class mate Trae Young, led the Cavaliers with 25 points on 12-of-20 shooting to go with six rebounds and three assists. Even Cedi Osman, another piece of this core group, tallied 18 points.

The Hawks were led by Young, who caught fire late. He scored a game-high 30. John Collins, in his first action following a 25-game suspension, chipped in with 27 points and 10 rebounds.

Clarkson’s abrupt departure was a shock initially to many. Players left the layup line to catch a final glimpse, say goodbye and wish Clarkson well at his next stop.

Then it was time to regroup and play. No excuses. It’s the harsh business side of the league.

“I’ve never been in this situation ever,” Porter said. “It was kind of devastating, but you know, you’ve got a game in two minutes. You kind of just have to snap out of it. It was tough. The first three quarters, I kept thinking about it. It’s not a good feeling. But you gotta keep going, you gotta persevere.”

Cavs general manager Koby Altman watched from his usual seat behind the basket. He was in between assistant GM Mike Gansey and executive Andrae Patterson. Hours after pulling off his latest trade, one that had an eye on the future, Altman watched his handiwork up close. Tough for him to not like what he saw.

Up next

The Cavs will have three days off before opening a three-game road trip in Boston on Friday. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.

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