Waiting For Next Year has a rundown of where the Cavs sit in this draft. It's got a good rundown on popular picks, as well as an analysis of what the common consensus is on their pick. While who's hot for any team will change about a trillion times between now and the Draft, there are two guys that stand out right now for Cleveland.
Brandon Rush versus Chris Douglas Roberts.
Here's why the Cavs should opt for CDR.
Recently I was in a bar talking with a friend and we were discussing the Memphis kids. His argument was pretty solid, based around their conference schedule, Calipari's system, and the difficult leap that the NBA requires in shooting percentages. He just felt like teams needed to be worried about the Memphis guys.
I stared at him for a second, took a long swig of my beer, slowly put my hands in my lap, looked at my friend, and smiled.
Then I screamed.
"He's a 6-7 shooting guard with unbelievable athleticism, for God's sake! This isn't rocket science! Being a great college shooter isn't going to mean squat when Ron Artest is blocking the hell out of you because you can't create any space!"
I bring this up not because I think CDR is a sleeper or steal or any of that in this draft. What he is, is a terrific possible complement to LeBron James. One thing that killed the Cavaliers this year, and by extension LeBron, is the fact that the Cavs had no one with breakaway speed that could finish at the basket. That's what the Cavaliers are desperate for. They are loaded with perimeter shooters with Gibson, West, Szczerbiak, and Pavlovic. They have a small army of pure rebounders that can't score worth a damn in the block with Ben Wallace, Anderson Varejao, and Zydrunas Ilgauskus. They need slashers. And CDR provides that. It's a big name prospect that will please the King and provide some much needed athleticism in a back court that lacks it.
This should be a no-brainer for the Cavs. Pass on the big men that will only serve to compound your problem: you have lots of guys to defend and rebound and no one to put the ball in the hole. Take Roberts and give the King a running mate.
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