| 30 Teams, 30 Days: Cleveland Draft Preview (None) Authored by Andrew Perna - June 27, 2007 - 7:05 pm
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What they do well
Cleveland did quite a few things well this season en route to their first-ever appearance in the NBA Finals. LeBron James was the picture of all that was right with the Cavaliers and guys like Larry Hughes, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and more recently Daniel Gibson, played well enough to help LBJ reach the Promised Land.
Never before has one man made an entire team as successful as James did the Cavs in 2007. However, credit should be given to their management and the rest of their roster as no one man can win fifty games and twelve playoff games without some kind of solid supporting cast. They play extremely hard, all the time, and received timely performances from several of their key role players this spring. Sometimes that’s all it takes.
Where do they need improvement?
With Ilgauskas getting older and Anderson Varejao a career role player, the Cavs could use some promising young big men. This draft isn’t short on young bigs, so if they could get themselves into the end of the first round, or anywhere in the second, Danny Ferry will be able to grab some size. Scot Pollard, their third big man, enters the summer as a free agent and didn’t provide much for the team anyway.
Who they should target?
For the sake of this section I’m going to assume that the Cavaliers somehow obtain a second round pick. It’s much more likely that they’ll slide into the back end of the Draft, rather than the promising first stanza.
-Aaron Gray, Pittsburgh
If they slip into the second round Gray might be their best option when it comes to adding a young big man this offseason. No NBA team should expect Gray to become anything more than a strong role player for the next ten years, but that might be what Ferry is looking for in a pick right now.
-Marc Gasol, Spain
Pau’s brother will try to make a name for himself in the League next season, assuming that a team takes a flyer on him in the second round. He has excellent court vision and an above-average basketball IQ, but his lack of athleticism will hurt him a great deal in the NBA. As Eastern Conference Champions, the Cavs might be willing to give Gasol a shot.
-Kyle Visser, Wake Forest
Visser enjoyed a career-year at Wake Forest last season as a senior, and performed well in pre-Draft workouts earlier this month. He added a good amount of weight and muscle last summer and seems to have become more athletic in the process. Despite his growth, some people still consider him soft for an NBA post player.
Picks over the past five years
If you’re wondering how the Cavaliers have faired in recent NBA Drafts, just look to the year 2003. They could never pick another all-star in the franchise history, and still smile at the memory of nabbing King James.
2006
Shannon Brown, 25th
Daniel Gibson, 42nd
Ejike Ugboaja, 55th
2005
No picks
2004
Luke Jackson, 10th
2003
LeBron James, 1st
Jason Kapano, 31st
2002
Dajuan Wagner, 6th
Carlos Boozer, 35th
2001
DeSagana Diop, 8th
Brendan Haywood, 20th
Jeff Trepagnier, 36th
2000
Chris Mihm, 7th
Where do you think Cleveland should hunt for a pick? … Andrew.Perna@RealGM.com |
