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Tag Archives: dion waiters
NBA FREE AGENCY AND THE CLEVLAND CAVS DEPTH CHART
NBA Free Agency begins tonight July 1st at midnight eastern time. The Cavaliers have plenty of cap space to go after a big name free agent like LeBron James, or if G.M. David Griffin feels there’s no chance of bringing James back to Cleveland, he can direct his attention and dollars elsewhere on maybe one or two other free agents.
With that in mind here is a look at the Cavs current depth chart that new head coach David Blatt and associate head coach Tyronn Lue have to work with.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS DEPTH CHART
PG – Kyrie Irving (4th year) Jarret Jack (10th year) Matthew Dellavedova (2nd year)
SG – Dion Waiters (3rd year) Sergey Karasev (2nd year) Joe Harris (rookie)
SF – Andrew Wiggins (rookie) Carrick Felix (2nd year) Scottie Hopson (2nd year)
PF – Tristan Thompson (4th year) Anthony Bennett (2nd year)
C – Anderson Varjao (11th year) Tyler Zeller (3rd year) Dwight Powell (rookie) Brendan Haywood(13th year)
DAVID GRIFFIN ZIGGING AND ZAGGING HIS WAY TO THE NUMBER #1 PICK
Cavs G.M. David Griffin told us he didn’t want to follow the trend in a copycat league. That he wanted to zig when everyone else zags in the NBA as he was searching for his next head coach. Griff did just that, surprising a lot of people and making NBA history in hiring David Blatt from Europe’s Maccabi Tel Aviv championship team. So trying to figure out which direction Griffin will go with the number #1 pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft could be just as tricky.
With Joel Embiid out now at least 4 to 6 months after having surgery, where he had two screws inserted into his fractured right foot, I think it’s safe to say that the Cavs, if they keep the number #1 pick, will choose between Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker. But which one is the big question?
Either player would be a welcomed addition at small forward for the Cavs, as they have yet to fill that position since LeBron James took his talents to South Beach in the summer of 2010.
So here’s my approach as I try and figure out the Cavs new general manager and whether he’ll pick Parker or Wiggins. If I learned anything from the hiring of David Blatt, it was to go back and listen to the answers that David Griffin shared with us at his first press conference when he was officially named the team’s full-time G.M. Griff said they wanted to be different and weren’t going to follow what a lot of other teams were doing as they looked for their next head coach. He also mentioned that he was an offensive minded guy. Looking back on those responses now, it should have signaled to us all that the European version of Phil Jackson was going to be Griff’s choice, and soon the Cavaliers would be playing “BLATTsketball”.
With that in mind I went back and listened to that May 13th press conference again to see if there were any signs or clues given by Griff as to which way he would lean if he was picking between Parker or Wiggins. Here’s what I came up with.
Griffin, came right out and said “I believe in offense” and “I’ve had a primarily offensive based focus with the people that I was raised by”. Also, he said he wants the Cavaliers to be a better shooting team, a bigger team, a team that has a high basketball IQ and he’s looking for the right “Fit”. I’ve also added in what I’ve heard about David Blatt’s coaching style and how his offense is all about spreading the floor. Then I factored in that the Cavs already have two ball dominate guards in Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters. So they’re probably looking for someone who doesn’t always need the ball in his hands to be effective.
With all that information and based on the my scouting report of Wiggins and Parker, as well as other scouting reports I’ve read on the net, and people that I’ve talked to, it’s a very close call. But it sounds like to me that Jabari Parker would be the right “Fit Guy” for Griff and this Cavaliers roster.
Parker is more skilled offensively. He shoots the ball better than Wiggins. Has a better handle than Wiggins. Parker is said to have a very high basketball IQ and he’s ready to play right now. He’s a “Plug and Play” guy at small forward from day one. The right “Fit”!
I hope I’m wrong in my assessment based on David Griffin’s comments because I think Andrew Wiggins has the potential to be the better player based on his ability to play both ends of the floor as well as he freakish athleticism. Wiggins would be my choice as the number #1 pick. But something tells me the player Griff is looking for in the draft. The player he was describing in that press conference, is Jabari Parker.
We’ll find out Thursday night if I read David Griffin right, or if he did one hell of a job zigging again, when I thought he was going to zag.
LANDING LEBRON
Writers note – This story was written before Joel Embiid suffered a right foot injury and it is being evaluated. If the injury is serious, along with his recent back issues, it could change a lot in my plan to “Land LeBron”!
If the Cavaliers are serious about trying to reunite with LeBron James and get him to return to Cleveland as a free agent this off season, there are a number of things they need to do before free agency starts on July 1st to even have a chance of making this happen. I’m not saying it will, I’m saying it would better their chances.
First off, since they don’t have a Pat Riley or Phil Jackson in the front office they need to hire a coach who’s been a winner on the sidelines, played in the NBA and has some cache and a name. Right now none of their reported candidates have that combination. Tyronn Lue doesn’t. Neither does Alvin Gentry or David Blatt. While there is no proven, championship winning coach available out there, the closest thing to a coach who’s been successful on the sidelines, has played the game and has some “street cred” to go along with his game smarts is Mark Jackson.
That move I believe would get LeBron’s attention while he is on vacation with his family and thinking about his future. Problem is, according to a story I read from the News-Herald/Morning Journal’s Bob Finnan today, he had a quote from Jackson in the article saying that reports that the Cavs have contacted him are, “Nothing but rumors and speculation.” If that indeed is the case, and G.M. David Griffin has said they will leave no stone unturned as they search for their next head coach, you have to ask yourself why haven’t the Cavs contacted Mark Jackson? What are they waiting for, especially if they are thinking about trying to lure LBJ back to C’Town?
Secondly, if you’re not going to make a major trade for Kevin Love, and the only way I do that if I’m the Cavs is if I get Love to sign a contract extension, then you draft center Joel Embiid. Now granted, you have to feel confident that after putting him through all of your medical tests that his back is fine, but if it is, then you go get the “Big” out of Kansas.
Embiid has a ton of upside, and while right now he’s still a little raw on offense, he reportedly impressed the Cavs in his work out by showing off his great foot work and the ability to shoot the basketball from some distance, along with a nice touch around the rim. While his offense is a work in progress and there is evidence there that it will develop, he can make his presence felt in his rookie season with his defense and rebounding. Right away he gives the Cavs a much needed rim protector in blocking shots and altering others. Plus his rebounding would allow the Cavs to get out and run more and get easy baskets in transition.
So if Jackson ended up being your coach and Embiid was the choice as the first overall pick in the draft, you would have your coach who’s got some swag to go along with his winning record in the NBA as your bench boss and you’d have a young legitimate center with a lot of potential and the ability to patrol the paint. On top of that you’d have a fourth year all-star point guard in Kyrie Irving, a third year shooting guard in Dion Waiters, plus some cap space and maneuverability to fill some other spots on your roster through trade or free agency.
There have been some reports out there that LeBron and Kyrie don’t get along that well any more, or that James doesn’t want to play with a ball dominate point guard. I say that’s hogwash. After seeing how a lack of point guard play killed the Heat in the NBA Finals against San Antonio this year, I believe LBJ understands the importance of having a top notch point guard in today’s game and would sacrifice being in control of the offense the majority of the time if it meant more wins and less minutes for him as he gets older.
While none of what I just wrote would guarantee that LeBron James will decide to opt out of his contract in Miami and come back to Cleveland this off season as a free agent, I believe if the Cavs are serious about bringing James home again, it has to start there. If LeBron is not in their plans, then they can consider hiring a Tyronn Lue or a David Blatt as their inexperienced head coach and fill the small forward hole on their roster by picking either Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker and continue to build for the future with a young squad growing together over time.
But if the Cavaliers want to try and lure LeBron back and win right away, bold moves and chances have to be taken by Dan Gilbert and David Griffin, and hiring Jackson and drafting Embiid would be the place to start!
DECISIONS, DECISIONS, DECISIONS FOR DAN GILBERT
It seems like we say this every year but I really believe this time it’s true. This upcoming off season for the Cavs will be the most important in team history. Owner Dan Gilbert needs to decide which direction he’s going to take the team.
@CavsDan has many important decisions to make. Does he make David Griffin his fulltime General Manager or does he go out and bring in new blood? Will he hire a President of Basketball Operations type? If he does, there are rumors circulating that the names atop that list are former “Bad Boys” Joe Dumars, who reportedly will resign his position with the Pistons soon, or Isaiah Thomas. If either one is hired, it’s possible Gilbert could keep David Griffin as G.M. and have him answer to Dumars or Thomas.
Whenever this brain trust is finally put together their first decision will be to decide should they keep Mike Brown on as the team’s head coach? If not, who do you replace him with?
After that decision is made, next on the check list is do you offer Kyrie Irving the maximum 5-year contract? Do you believe in his brittle body, but made skills enough to make him the focal point of your team moving forward? If you do offer “Uncle Drew” the max and he turns it down and wants a shorter contract, then do you avoid getting burned again like you did with a former local high school star turned NBA MVP and try and trade him if he’s sending you messages he could leave ? If Irving does accept the max contract then you have to figure out if he and Dion Waiters can co-exist on the same team. If you think they can, you don’t do anything. If you think they can’t, then you have to begin the process of trying to trade Waiters and get equal value in return.
After that determination is made, next up on the to do list is which of your own free agents or contract option players do you keep or trade to free up cap space. The important names on that list are free agents Luol Deng, Spencer Hawes and C.J. Miles and team option players Anderson Varejao, Alonzo Gee and Scottie Hopson.
What you do there, then leads into maybe your biggest decision of all and that is do you go after LeBron James in free agency if he opts out of his contract with the Miami Heat. If he doesn’t opt out, or you decide not to target him, then what is “Plan B” and who will you target with all of your cap space in free agency? Do you go after Carmelo Anthony? Is Gordon Hayward your small forward of the future? Do you go after a veteran like Pau Gasol or Rudy Gay or Danny Granger?
You could also go another route and try and make a blockbuster trade to bring in an impact player like Kevin Love, but would you have to give up to get him?
And on top of all of that, unless a miracle happens, you once again will be picking in the lottery. As of now you would have the ninth most ping pong balls in the hopper. You better hope that Nick Gilbert’s bow-tie has a lot of luck left in it to get a top 3 pick if you want to land a projected franchise type player. If not, then your new front office will have to do a better job than they did last year in selecting the right player in the draft to help your struggling franchise. Even if it’s not a top three pick, you can’t afford to swing and miss like you did with Anthony Bennett.
So I think it’s safe to say that this “IS” the most important off season in Cavaliers franchise history and it falls squarely on the shoulders of owner Dan Gilbert to make all the right decisions to turn it around.