Cleveland Cavaliers were rumored to have wanted Ousmane Dieng

The Cleveland Cavaliers were hoping to get Ousmane Dieng apparently.

The Cleveland Cavaliers had a nice draft day, snagging four rookies that they’re hoping they can develop over the next year or two. One of the picks was first-round shooting guard, Ochai Agbaji. Agbaji is seen as a bit of a developmental piece, someone who won’t play right away unless the Cavs can’t re-sign Collin Sexton or bring back Ricky Rubio.

Now, Agbaji could have a major role in the team but his being drafted isn’t a sign that the Cavs are out on bringing back Sexton or even Rubio. Instead, he was the team’s second option. As we talked about earlier in the week, the Cavs were rumored to have made a promise to Ousmane Dieng, that if he were still available the team would draft him.

Come draft night, the New York Knicks did the Knickiest thing they’ve ever done and traded their 11th overall pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Thunder then took Dieng with the Knicks pick. The Thunder weren’t the only team trying to get Dieng, however. The Cavs were trying to trade with the Knicks as well, with the idea of getting Dieng.

As Brian Windhorst claimed;

"Cleveland and Oklahoma City were eyeing each other throughout the last few days. I think both wanting the same prospect, Ousmane Dieng, who is French but played in the Australia league last year.The Thunder were wondering if the Cavs were going to get to 11. The Cavs were wondering if the Thunder would take Dieng ahead of them. I know they both had talks with the Knicks throughout the day."

The Cleveland Cavaliers really couldn’t have gone wrong

The NBA Draft often gets viewed in the same light as the NFL Draft by fans, who think that all first-round picks are the same, or could develop into huge stars in the league. Mostly, each NBA Draft produces a few, if that, top stars, and probably even as many legitimate starters. Most of the guys, especially outside of the Top 10, will likely just be role players off the bench or spot-starters for a team.

So the Cavs missing out on Dieng and getting Agbaji isn’t a huge loss for the Cavs. The likelihood either man truly develops is about the same, and with Agbaji, he at least seems to be a polished shooter, so we’ll see how he fits into the system going forward.