A negative intrusive thought hit Cleveland fans on Thursday because Paris is known as the City of Lights and the Cleveland Cavaliers were in town. Last season, as many know, the Cavs were punked by the New York Knicks in the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs. In his exit interview, Cleveland big man Jarrett Allen had a moment of clarity, saying, “Even for me, the lights were brighter than expected.”

So when Allen and the Cavs came out sluggish against the Brooklyn Nets at Accor Arena, perhaps the City of Lights was brighter than the Cavs expected. Thankfully, what's in the past appears to be the past with Allen, once again, being the catalyst on either end of the floor for Cleveland, locking down the team's first win in their first time playing in Paris.

In the 111-102 win over the Nets, Allen had 12 points on 3-5 shooting, 12 rebounds, four assists, two steals and four blocks. Sure, Allen stuffed the stat sheet on top of making it eight games in a row where he's had a double-double. But looking at the box score doesn't fully paint the picture of how vital Allen was on both sides of the ball for the Cavs.

“I feel like I'm having fun with it,” Allen said to Bally Sports postgame, shying away from praise levied by Serena Winters. “When I'm having fun with it, it's easier to relax and try my best out there.”

Cavs' Jarrett Allen dominates Nets in City of Lights

Following their comeback win over the Mavericks, Jarrett Allen let it be known that he's still confident in the Cavs chances to compete.

On top of battling with Nic Claxton, there were possessions Allen took on the challenge of Mikal Bridges, Cam Thomas, Cam Johnson or any perimeter threat on the court for Brooklyn. From a tactical standpoint, it makes sense for the Nets to attack Allen, a traditional center, in isolation. Well, that may work on other bigs, but Allen met the Nets at that one-on-one summit again and again on Thursday, finding ways to lock up and slow down Brooklyn's best scorers.

One of the night's biggest plays was when Allen took on Bridges in isolation and negated the forward's dunk attempt with relative ease.

Sure, Bridges got Allen back later with an emphatic fast-break dunk. But most big men can't pull that off, unless of course you're Jarrett Allen. The biggest man on the court most nights for the Cavs has some of his team's biggest plays of late and, most importantly, it's resulted in winning.

Since the news broke that Darius Garland and Evan Mobley would undergo surgery, Cleveland is 9-3 with Allen acting as the primary catalyst offensively and defensively. In 32.4 minutes per game, Allen has averaged 18.2 points, 13.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.2 blocks over that 12-game stretch, dominating all over the floor.

With Max Strus pulled from this game against Brooklyn due to an ongoing sore left knee and Garland ruled out for Monday's game against the Chicago Bulls, the Cavs may need Allen to step up once again. Thankfully, the All-Star big man has shown he's more than capable of doing so and should once again be the key reason why Cleveland keeps winning to start 2024.