The Rebuilding Process

Every Vice President and General Manager dream of plenty of cap space and a mass amount of first round draft picks; that is exactly where the Cavaliers stand right now.

After Cleveland signed C.J. Miles to a two-year, $4 million contract, they are still estimated to have $14 million in cap space.  If Alonzo Gee is unable to find a long-term deal elsewhere, it appears he will sign the qualifying offer the Cavs extended to him.

Just because we have the cap space to sign free agents, doesn’t mean we’ll sign any.  Cleveland is not an ideal landing spot for free agents.  But players do want to play with good point guards.  If you have a PG who is unselfish, a facilitator, and can spread the ball around the court, big name players want to be apart of that.  That is the Cavs selling point right now.  The players we have drafted or signed this offseason have mentioned how excited they are to start practicing and getting to work with Kyrie Irving.

Not only do we have the cash to sign any free agent, but with all the dealing Chris Grant has done in the past two years, the Cavaliers will have six first-round draft picks in the next three years.

In the last two drafts, Grant has drafted the core of our team with Irving, Tristan Thompson, Dion Waiters, and Tyler Zeller.  The signing of Miles will prove to be worth more than the $2 million a year we will be giving him.  He is entering the prime of his career at the age of 25 and he already has seven years of NBA experience.

The Cavalier front office has done a great job at getting this team to where it’s at now.  Now it is up to Grant and the rest of his scouting staff, as well as the coaching staff, to take this team over the top.  As one of the youngest teams in the league, this Cavalier roster will rely heavily on the coaching staff for guidance.

Chris Grant has come out and made it known that this team will be rebuilt through the draft and free agency will not define this team.  He has set himself up in great position to fulfill this projection.

But one thing to note is that no rookie has ever taken a team over the top.  By this I mean when you draft rookies they’re never going to have a greater impact than a premium free agent would.  A first-round draft pick may make you 10-15 games better, but they wont make you a championship better.

Grant will leave his salary where it stands for the time being.  When he and Dan Gilbert believe their team is at championship contention, they will use their cap space to make them better than the rest.

So be patient Cleveland, our big name free agent or blockbuster deal is on its way.  It won’t be this year; it may not even be the next.  Just sit back and enjoy watching the core of our team develop and learn how to play together.  The chemistry on the court and relationships they build off the court will be a key factor for this teams success moving forward.