NBA Draft 2011: Cleveland’s Second Round Game Changers
By Editorial Staff
Unbeknownst to those who only stay tuned to the festivities up until the 30th pick, the draft does not end at the first round. The beginning of the first round breeds stars, but the latter rounds birth the dirty work guys that superstars prepare for war beside.
Manu Ginobili and Dennis Rodman are notable second round picks, one being a hall of fame inductee the other well on his way to Naismith. In the case, that there will the media has overlooked these types of gems in the draft this year, I am sure the men in high places will be sure to revisit them with a fine-toothed comb.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have two more picks in the second round and though the true stars seem to have been chosen, there are still role players that the Cavaliers can shuffle through in order to create bench depth.
Second Round, 32nd pick
With the second pick in the second round, behind Miami Heat (LeBron wins again), the Cavaliers should go for someone who will shift the dynamic of their bench in the direction of ball movement and penetration. Nolan Smith proved himself to be a great point guard in the absence of Kyrie Irving, but he was only pushed into that position after Irving was injured and deemed inactive.
Only then was he able to actually showcase his full range of talent.
If the circumstances had been different, we would still be looking at Smith in the background light of Kyrie. However, since he was propelled into the spotlight he does have a middleweight stock in the draft and has been scouted by enough people to make a mark in the early second round.
Nolan Smith would not only be playing in a comfortable situation next to Irving, but he would also be playing the more effective role of shooting guard. Smith is no true point guard and everyone who has watched even a fraction of his games knows this to be factual.
If he could be scripted into a mold that allows him to shoot first and every now and then create shots for his teammates that would be ideal. His primary position needs to mirror his skill set, which is penetration, setting screens and performing one of the best enactments of a catch-and-shoot scenario.
The tandem would be just as lethal as it was at Duke with bigger crowds and bigger mouths.
Second Round, 54th pick
In the NCAA tournament, DeAndre Liggins was a standout defensive mechanism for Kentucky. In fact, I would go as far to say that a large reason why they were able to celebrate making it into the Final Four with Sean “Jay-Z” Carter, was a result of Liggins’ defensive efforts.
He only had twelve points for the game but when it came to making sure no one on UNC could score from the perimeter, he was the guy to call. Oh, did I forget to mention his three-pointer in the last 21 seconds of the game to add four to their lead? After that, North Carolina was staring in the eyes of defeat and was 0-3 from three-point range from then until Kentucky was crowned.
Liggins three-pointer field goal percentages have steadily increased since his arrival in Kentucky, now at 39.1%. He saw an elevation in playing time because of the class of freshmen that left last year and he revealed how much he had grown and how valuable he could be on the floor for the Wildcats.
DeAndre still needs to work a little bit on his turnover ratio, not in the eyes of mediocre ball handling, but in the light of having tunnel vision when penetrating and not paying attention to the defenders’ hands around him.