30 Teams, 30 Days: Cleveland Draft Preview

RealGM Analysis

Jun 15, 2008 12:50 PM

2007-2008 Finish: 45-37
2008 Draft Picks: 19th

Pre-Draft 2008-09 Projected Starters:
PG Delonte West
SG Wally Szczerbiak
SF LeBron James
PF Ben Wallace
C Zydrunas Illgauskus
Key Reserves:
SG Sasha Pavlovic
PF Anderson Varejao
PF Joe Smith

What the Cavaliers Do Well:

The Cavs put together a team on the fly last year at the trade deadline, and were close to pulling out the upset of the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Led by a God-like season-long performance by LeBron James, the Cavs did a fair job adjusting to new personnel on their quest to defend their Eastern Conference crown.

LeBron had a disgusting season. He led the NBA in scoring with 30.0 points per game. He led the team with a career-high-tying 7.2 assists per game. He established new career-highs with 7.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game, and set a new career mark with his 48.4% shooting from the field to go along with his 7 triple-doubles. And oh yea, he's only 23.

Big Zydrunas Illgauskus had another productive season in the middle. The big man led the team with 9.3 rebounds per game and added 14.1 points and 1.64 blocks. Next to him in the middle was Brazilian Anderson Varejao. He had a solid year adding 6.7 points and 8.3 rebounds.

Next to Big Z and Varejao, the paint saw a lot of change. Gone are Drew Gooden and Donyell Marshall and in came Ben Wallace and Joe Smith. The newcoming tandem was a huge upgrade and will only get better with a full season under their belts for Coach Mike Brown.

On the outside, the team said goodbye to Larry Hughes and Shannon Brown while welcoming Delonte West and Wally Szczerbiak. Again, they shed Hughes' giant contract and attained a hardnosed point guard and an Ohio basketball legend in Wally. Again, these trades will make Cleveland much better next season with a full offseason to learn one another's tendencies.

Greatest Areas of Improvement:

Scoring on the Block
Big Z and Joe Smith have some moves in the post, but often settle for the mid-range jumper, and Ben Wallace is straight awful with the ball in his hands. LeBron could use a big guy in the middle to dump it off to, or better yet, an alley-oop guy to hit midair while breaking down the defense.

Depth at the Point
Delonte West came in and took the reins as the starting point guard for the Cavs, but they don't have much help behind him. They could use this pick to snatch a backup point guard who can push West as he has been throughout his career.

Who's Gone Number 19 Recently?

Over the past five years, the 19th pick has been used on big wing-type players. Javaris Crittenton is a huge point guard, and Quincy Douby, Hakim Warrick, and Dorell Wright can all handle the wing on any given night. It's also pretty funny that five years ago the Utah Jazz selected Sasha Pavlovic, who has been a key contributor since his move to Cleveland.

2007
Javaris Crittenton, Los Angeles Lakers

2006
Quincy Douby, Sacramento Kings

2005
Hakim Warrick, Memphis Grizzlies

2004
Dorell Wright, Miami Heat

2003
Aleksandar Pavlovic, Utah Jazz

Who Should the Cavs Target?

For more in-depth analysis and background regarding the players that the Cavs should target in this year's Draft, click on each player name to be redirected to Christopher Reina's Prospect Report piece.

- Kosta Koufos of Ohio State

At a legit 7-0, 265 lbs, Kosta Koufos has wowed scouts with his size and athleticism. Why not take another chance on a local guy, coming off a splendid freshman season at Ohio State? Many compare him to a younger Big Z, so why not 'pull a Sacramento Kings' and draft a mini-version of their starting center.

- Jason Thompson of Rider

This may be too early to gamble on the big-time talent out of a small New Jersey college, but Rider has the versatility and athleticism at the power forward position that could pair nicely with LeBron in transition. He needs to get bigger, but so do a lot of guys in this Draft.

- JJ Hickson of NC State

Hickson has the athleticism to pair nicely with LeBron. If Cleveland takes a flyer on this mobile big out of NC State, he could often be featured on SportsCenter's top plays constantly stuffing alley-oops past opponents off feeds from Mr. James.

- Ty Lawson of North Carolina

With Delonte West and Wally slated to start in the backcourt next season, Ty Lawson would give this team quickness, toughness, and depth at the point. Don't forget that before various leg injuries, he was considered the top point guard to ever play at Oak Hill Academy and was the consensus top point guard recruit to UNC in a class that included Mike Conley and Javaris Crittenton.

Picks Over the Past Five Years

The Cavs haven't made many picks over the past five years, but they have made two excellent choices. They were lucky enough to land the first pick in 2003, turning into hometown hero LeBron James, and struck gold in 2006 with second rounder Daniel Gibson.

2007
None

2006
Shannon Brown, 25th
Daniel Gibson, 42nd
Ejike Ugboaja, 55th

2005
None

2004
Luke Jackson, 10th

2003
LeBron James, 1st
Jason Kapono, 31st

Previous Editions of the 30 Teams, 30 Days Series

Who do you want the Cavaliers to draft at number 19? Feel free to contact Jason M. Williams with your thoughts. He can be reached at Jason.Williams@RealGM.com for comments and questions.

Tags: NBA

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Draft Report: J.J. Hickson Of N.C. State

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