The Cavs may not have a top three pick in 2022, but this summer’s NBA Draft is taking on great importance considering the current state of the franchise.
Cleveland took major strikes in Evan Mobley’s rookie season and qualified for the play-in tournament. It’s a big deal considering how poor the Cavs played after LeBron James left after the 2018 season.
The 2021-2022 season ended in disappointment, but with the belief the Cavs are on to something, especially behind All-Stars Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen, as well as rookie-of-the-year runner-up Mobley.
While finding a superstar is hard enough with a top three pick, it becomes a lot harder to unearth contributing talent halfway through the first round, let alone round two.
It can be done, though. The Athletic’s Kelsey Russo put together three fits the Cavs could take in the second round. Here’s the names, and the player breakdown.
Dalen Terry, Wing, Arizona
Size alone is enough reason to look at Dalen Terry, who played collegiately at Arizona for two seasons. He’s 6-foot-7 with a 7-foot 3/4 wingspan.
If you’re in a lab creating ga small forward, you’d probably make him 6-foot-7.
Terry’s stats aren’t going to impress the casual observer, as he averaged just 6.6 points and 2.9 assists per game. He did pull down 4.8 rebounds per night in his final season with the Wildcats.
Something else to like: As a sophomore, he shot 50 percent from the field, compared to 42 percent as a freshman. His 3-point average also jumped to 36 percent from 32. That said, he only attempted around two 3-pointers per game.
The point? He showed improvement, which is what he’s going to have to do to make it in the NBA.
Ultimately, at college, he could create and rebound. Take into account you can’t teach size at what is probably the league’s most important position right now, and he’s too tough to pass up.
Additionally, Terry showed some things defensively that would lead one to believe he can continue to develop at the NBA Level.
2. Jalen Williams, Wing, Santa Clara
He doesn’t have the size that Terry boasts, but at 6-foot-5 3/4, with a 7-foot-2 1/4 wingspan, the wing-starved Cavs should be static if he falls to them in the second round with the 39th pick.
It’ll be interesting to see if Terry lasts until No. 39, as his name has generated some buzz after impressing scouts at the NBA Combine, according to The Athletic’s Kelsey Russo. The scribe left open the possibility that he could be drafted at the end of the first-round.
Scouts are probably paying attention to the 40 percent clip he shot in his final college season. Plus, it’s been written that he can defend multiple position.
While Lauri Markkanen guarded 3’s admirably, it’d be fine by all of us if the Cavs found someone else who could step and and do it when needed.
Anyway, in his final college season, Williams averaged 18 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists en route to earning All-WCC honors.
David Roddy, Wing, Colorado State
This 6-foot-6 wing with 6-foot-11 1/2 wingspan is another marksmen, averaging an astounding 43.8 percent from behind the arc in his final season with Colorado State while taking 3.4 attempts per game.
He used that shot to average 19.4 points, while also collecting 7.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists en route to winning the Mountain West Conference’s Player of the Year award.
He’s not just all 3-pointers, either. Russo noted he can be efficient near the basket while also offering a mid-range game.
Russo also noted how he excelled at the pick-and-roll during college.
The Cavs need a lift from 3-point territory, shooting just 35 percent as a team last season, but the fact that Roddy isn’t so on-dimensional should play in his favor if the Cavs do grab him in the second round.