Cleveland Cavaliers: The Athletic’s mock draft sees trade in Cavs’ future

The Athletic takes a guess as to what the Cleveland Cavaliers will do in the 2020 NBA draft.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will finally do something with the fifth overall pick, with the NBA draft set to commence Nov. 18.

There’s no shortage of speculation, as everyone with a keyboard remembered Kevin Love is on the trade block.Yep, I’m guilty, too. He’s ALWAYS on the trade block. He’s getting older and he makes too much money. However, he’s a link to the 2016 squad, and frankly, he’s better than anyone the Cavs can get right now.

That said, the Cavs may still be involved in some trades around the draft, or even after, and the name that keeps getting more run is none other than Larry Nance Jr.

The Athletic’s mock draft (subscription) was recently published by John Hollinger. The long-time scribe had the Cavs selecting Obi Toppin with the fifth pick. He’s wrote that Toppin is one of two names consistently tied to Cleveland.

"“I’ve heard two names with Cleveland: Obi Toppin and Deni Avdija. That’s it. That’s the list. I’m not really sure which way to run with this. Avdija has fans in the front office but I get conflicting thoughts on him from scouts I talk to: Some love him, some think he’s just okay. More people think Toppin is a pretty legit top-5 talent due to his offensive skill, but I’ve been told to keep an eye on his medicals from the combine.”"

Selecting Toppin would mean a duplication of skills between he and Nance. Both are bigs that have nice games around the rim, but are also capable of stretching the floor. Toppin was a capable 3-point shooter in college, while Nance really developed his shot before the start of last season.

"“I could see the Cavs moving Nance and creating a role for Toppin (see Boston pick at 14 below). Cleveland might need to do the same with Avdija, actually, if you see his future as more of a 4 than a 3.”"

If the Cavs got the 14th pick for Nance, Hollinger wrote he could see the Cavs taking small forwards, Saddiq Bay, out of  Villanova, or Aaron Nesmith out of Vanderbilt. Hollinger had Bay and Nesmith going 14th and 15th, respectively, if there are no trades. Orlando owns the 15th pick.

As for Toppin and Deni Avdija, Hollinger tapped Toppin for Cleveland because he’s someone who can help the Cavs improve on day one, while Avdija would need more development. Hollinger wrote the Cavs are growing “weary” of the second post-LeBron rebuild.

I’m not sure it’s so simple for the Cavs because if they think Avdija cold be a star, they’ve got to take him. The same is true of Toppin. However, Toppin being better now can’t be the reason for his selection. Even with Toppin, the Cavs are going to be really lousy, unless they somehow make that trade for Chris Paul.

With Koby Altman in charge, I’m confident the Cavs will take the best player with the highest ceiling available.