2012 NBA Offseason: Cleveland Cavaliers
Draft Grades, Offseason Needs, Free Agents
Written by Paul Banks of the Washington Times, David Kay and Peter Christian of the The Sports Bank. Send Paul an e-mail here: paulb05 AT hotmail DOT com.
All other e-mail, including advertising and link proposals, send to: wpc112@gmail.com
Cleveland Cavaliers (Last Year: 21-45)
Live 2012 NBA Draft Grades:
4. Dion Waiters, G, Syracuse: A Grade
I LOVE Dion Waiters. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE him. It is shocking he goes this high, but I have been on his bandwagon for months and it looks like I was right - sorry, bragging. It is crazy Waiters goes this high, but he definitely fills a need at shooting guard and it will be exciting to watch him and Kyrie Irving play together for the next few years.
17. Tyler Zeller, C, North Carolina: D Grade
Cleveland gives up No. 24, No. 33 and No. 34 for Zeller, which seems like a lot for a big man who will be a solid, but not spectacular, big man in the NBA. The Cavaliers need depth all across the board and could have selected three quality players instead of simply taking Zeller. Don't like it.
*** 2012 NBA Offseason Needs and Free Agents listed below this comment box. ***
2011-12 Season Summary:
I make a weekly appearance on a radio show based out of Cleveland, and it's actually rather amazing that a month and a half into the season we were having a legitimate conversation as to whether or not the Cavaliers were going to be a playoff team. However, that talk was quickly put to rest as they finished with the third-worst record in the league.
Still, there were some bright spots, particularly the play from first-round picks Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson. Irving performed better than most expected during his rookie season, and every indication appears that he will be Cleveland's franchise player moving forward. Thompson had a solid rookie campaign even though he spent a decent amount of time late in the season playing out of position at center.
Even with the bright play of their rookies, it was clear that the Cavaliers simply lacked the talent to truly be competitive especially after losing Anderson Varejao to a fractured wrist midway through the season. The team also made a move for the future by dealing Ramon Sessions to the Lakers for a first-round pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.
That left players like Antawn Jamison, Anthony Parker, and Alonzo Gee to shoulder the load as Irving also missed a chunk of time late in the season due to injury. With Jamison's outrageously overpriced contract finally coming off the books, and the likelihood that the team will not pick up the almost $4.8 million team-option on Daniel Gibson's contract, Cleveland will have a ton of cap space this offseason. That provides the Cavaliers with the opportunity to be aggressive in free agency if they so choose.
2012-13 Projected Depth Chart:
C: Anderson Varejao/*Semih Erden
PF: Tristan Thompson/*Luke Harangody
SF: Omri Casspi/Luke Walton
SG: *Alonzo Gee/#Daniel Gibson
PG: Kyrie Irving/David Sloan
NBA Free Agents:
#G-Daniel Gibson (TO)
*SG-Alonzo Gee (RFA)
*C-Semih Erden (RFA)
*PF-Luke Harangody (RFA)
PF-Antawn Jamison (UFA)
SG-Anthony Parker (UFA)
PF-Samardo Samuels (UFA)
G/F-Jason Kapono (UFA)
SG-Manny Harris (UFA)
2012-13 Team Salary: Approximately $29 million
NBA Offseason Needs:
1. Wing Help: From the likes of Luke Walton and Anthony Parker to Mychal Thompson, Manny Harris, D.J. Kennedy, Ben Uzoh, and Christian Eyenga; the Cavaliers had quite the revolving door of crap trying to plug the holes at shooting guard and small forward last season. Cleveland sorely needs a wing player who can help take some of the pressure off Kyrie Irving. Expect the team to target either Bradley Beal, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, or Harrison Barnes with its lottery pick. The Cavaliers should still look to add another proven perimeter scorer or use one of their other picks on a wing player in hopes of finding an upgrade.
2. True Center: When Anderson Varejao went down with a season-ending injury, Cleveland lacked any sort of inside presence. Guys like Semih Erden and Ryan Hollins don't even deserve to be in the league, and the teams was forced to play undersized power forwards Tristan Thompson and Samardo Samuels in the middle. Even though Varejao will be back next season, he is not a true banging, physical presence down low. The Cavaliers need to find a serviceable big body to clog up space in the paint, and preferably not one named Erden or Hollins.
3. Veteran Point Guard: Since dealing Ramon Sessions, Cleveland has had a void behind Kyrie Irving at point guard. Ideally, finding a veteran who can play 12-15 minutes a night if needed while also providing some guidance to help further Irving's development would be a smart addition.
4. Patience: The worst thing management can do this offseason is blow the team's cap space by overspending on mediocre talent or acquiring expensive, long-term contracts. General Manager Chris Grant needs to stick to the script and follow the Oklahoma City Thunder blueprint of building through the draft and wisely using the Cavaliers' cap space on short-term deals for veterans who can temporarily fill-in where needed.
2013 Fantasy Football Rankings - May 24
2013 NBA Mock Draft - May 22
2014 NFL Mock Draft - May 21
Charlie's 2014 NFL Mock Draft - May 20
NFL Picks - Feb. 3
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© 1999-2011 Walter Cherepinsky : all rights reserved
Privacy Policy
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All other e-mail, including advertising and link proposals, send to: wpc112@gmail.com
Cleveland Cavaliers (Last Year: 21-45)
Live 2012 NBA Draft Grades:
4. Dion Waiters, G, Syracuse: A Grade
I LOVE Dion Waiters. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE him. It is shocking he goes this high, but I have been on his bandwagon for months and it looks like I was right - sorry, bragging. It is crazy Waiters goes this high, but he definitely fills a need at shooting guard and it will be exciting to watch him and Kyrie Irving play together for the next few years.
17. Tyler Zeller, C, North Carolina: D Grade
Cleveland gives up No. 24, No. 33 and No. 34 for Zeller, which seems like a lot for a big man who will be a solid, but not spectacular, big man in the NBA. The Cavaliers need depth all across the board and could have selected three quality players instead of simply taking Zeller. Don't like it.
*** 2012 NBA Offseason Needs and Free Agents listed below this comment box. ***
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mosesgunn
06-24-2011
03:02 pm
xxx.xxx.xxx45.2
(total posts: 1)
 27
 22
Personally I liked the draft although I wished the Cavs took Kawhi Leonard with the 4th pick since he would fill an immediate need for a defensive wing with great upside on the offensive side at SF.
To answer your 'huh?' question on JJ Hickson and Antwan Jamison... Jamison is on the downside of 32 years old with very cranky knees and in the last year of his contract. Look for him to be dealt by the trade deadline. JJ Hickson is also in the last year of his contract although he would be a restricted FA (I think) so my thought is Tristan would be a rebounding/defensive specialist while JJ or Antwan are on the floor eliminating the need to have Varajao on the floor for extended minutes. If you look at his productivity, Varajao is most effective when he serves 20-24 minutes a game. Any more and he tends to break down. Both players will benefit from being in Byron Scott's Princeton offense.
mprofetta
06-24-2011
11:19 am
xxx.xxx.xxx.217
(total posts: 5)
28
48
Am I missing something? Why is Irving universally touted as the undisputed #1 prospect in this draft? He's not NEARLY the athlete that Rose and Wall are, the toe injury is an issue and Duke looked better with Nolan Smith running the point. I understand "upside" and "projection" and all that good stuff, but this kid has done NOTHING.
Matt
06-24-2011
11:08 am
xxx.xxx.xxx0.32
(total posts: 1)
25
27
Is the worst talent-pool of rookies ever? Outside of the top-two, all I see are role players at best.
Neal
06-24-2011
10:58 am
xxx.xxx.xxx.173
(total posts: 1)
28
23
Kyrie was the best pick, hopefully we deal Hickson and Andy V since we got Thompson
Dave P
06-24-2011
08:18 am
xxx.xxx.xxx.145
(total posts: 1)
22
27
I'm a big Kyrie fan, but I'm not sold on Thompson.
Cavs fan in Oregon
06-24-2011
12:59 am
xxx.xxx.xxx3.35
(total posts: 1)
23
128
I wish we had gone Derrick Williams #1 and grabbed Brandon Knight or Kemba Walker #4. I was hoping we could have traded back into the 1st round and grabbed Bismack Boyumbo too.
John
06-23-2011
11:02 pm
xxx.xxx.xxx5.57
(total posts: 1)
25
96
worst draft by a team I have ever seen. Half this team is now power forwards who cant shoot. Wow the cavs are dumb
adz1957@cox.net
06-23-2011
12:46 am
xxx.xxx.xxx.240
(total posts: 1)
25
113
The CAVS need a player like Derek Willims,hes 6"8 and can shoot three pointers nearly at will he also seems like a mature and articulate young man with good work ethic and a great attitude. cleveland needs a winner like that.
anthony
06-22-2011
02:56 am
xxx.xxx.xxx6.33
(total posts: 1)
17
22
Boogers and tits jus clap ur hands jus clap ur hands.
Walter
06-21-2011
05:02 pm
xxx.xxx.xxx4.88
(total posts: 1)
13
13
First comment... we're going to have comment boards like this all over the site soon. We're still working out the kinks, so this is not the finished product.
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2011-12 Season Summary:
I make a weekly appearance on a radio show based out of Cleveland, and it's actually rather amazing that a month and a half into the season we were having a legitimate conversation as to whether or not the Cavaliers were going to be a playoff team. However, that talk was quickly put to rest as they finished with the third-worst record in the league.
Still, there were some bright spots, particularly the play from first-round picks Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson. Irving performed better than most expected during his rookie season, and every indication appears that he will be Cleveland's franchise player moving forward. Thompson had a solid rookie campaign even though he spent a decent amount of time late in the season playing out of position at center.
Even with the bright play of their rookies, it was clear that the Cavaliers simply lacked the talent to truly be competitive especially after losing Anderson Varejao to a fractured wrist midway through the season. The team also made a move for the future by dealing Ramon Sessions to the Lakers for a first-round pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.
That left players like Antawn Jamison, Anthony Parker, and Alonzo Gee to shoulder the load as Irving also missed a chunk of time late in the season due to injury. With Jamison's outrageously overpriced contract finally coming off the books, and the likelihood that the team will not pick up the almost $4.8 million team-option on Daniel Gibson's contract, Cleveland will have a ton of cap space this offseason. That provides the Cavaliers with the opportunity to be aggressive in free agency if they so choose.
2012-13 Projected Depth Chart:
C: Anderson Varejao/*Semih Erden
PF: Tristan Thompson/*Luke Harangody
SF: Omri Casspi/Luke Walton
SG: *Alonzo Gee/#Daniel Gibson
PG: Kyrie Irving/David Sloan
NBA Free Agents:
#G-Daniel Gibson (TO)
*SG-Alonzo Gee (RFA)
*C-Semih Erden (RFA)
*PF-Luke Harangody (RFA)
PF-Antawn Jamison (UFA)
SG-Anthony Parker (UFA)
PF-Samardo Samuels (UFA)
G/F-Jason Kapono (UFA)
SG-Manny Harris (UFA)
2012-13 Team Salary: Approximately $29 million
NBA Offseason Needs:
1. Wing Help: From the likes of Luke Walton and Anthony Parker to Mychal Thompson, Manny Harris, D.J. Kennedy, Ben Uzoh, and Christian Eyenga; the Cavaliers had quite the revolving door of crap trying to plug the holes at shooting guard and small forward last season. Cleveland sorely needs a wing player who can help take some of the pressure off Kyrie Irving. Expect the team to target either Bradley Beal, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, or Harrison Barnes with its lottery pick. The Cavaliers should still look to add another proven perimeter scorer or use one of their other picks on a wing player in hopes of finding an upgrade.
2. True Center: When Anderson Varejao went down with a season-ending injury, Cleveland lacked any sort of inside presence. Guys like Semih Erden and Ryan Hollins don't even deserve to be in the league, and the teams was forced to play undersized power forwards Tristan Thompson and Samardo Samuels in the middle. Even though Varejao will be back next season, he is not a true banging, physical presence down low. The Cavaliers need to find a serviceable big body to clog up space in the paint, and preferably not one named Erden or Hollins.
3. Veteran Point Guard: Since dealing Ramon Sessions, Cleveland has had a void behind Kyrie Irving at point guard. Ideally, finding a veteran who can play 12-15 minutes a night if needed while also providing some guidance to help further Irving's development would be a smart addition.
4. Patience: The worst thing management can do this offseason is blow the team's cap space by overspending on mediocre talent or acquiring expensive, long-term contracts. General Manager Chris Grant needs to stick to the script and follow the Oklahoma City Thunder blueprint of building through the draft and wisely using the Cavaliers' cap space on short-term deals for veterans who can temporarily fill-in where needed.
2013 Fantasy Football Rankings - May 24
2013 NBA Mock Draft - May 22
2014 NFL Mock Draft - May 21
Charlie's 2014 NFL Mock Draft - May 20
NFL Picks - Feb. 3
© 1999-2011 Walter Cherepinsky : all rights reserved
Privacy Policy
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