Dion Waiters: Our Roundtable Remembers
The Cleveland Cavaliers traded Dion Waiters to the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier this week. Waiters was an interesting character and player that polarized fans, writers and even his teammates it seemed. He showed great talent but was maddeningly inconsistent.
So we got three of our writers together to talk about Waiters and our thoughts on him. Wonder if some of our thoughts are some of your thoughts:
1 – When you think of Dion Waiters and his time with the Cavs what do you think about/remember?
Luke Sicari
Where do I start?
There are countless things I’ll remember about Dion Waiters time with the Cleveland Cavaliers. From his on court competiveness, to his lofty self-confidence, his incredibility entertaining media interviews, his always controversial Twitter account or just him yelling ‘AND ONE’ on lay-ups that he missed and didn’t get touched on, Waiters will always be in the hearts of Cavs fans everywhere.
Two moments I’ll never forgot though is Waiters’ game-winner in Detroit last season and his famous battle with Tim Hardaway Jr. at the Rising Stars Game. I remember watching the final moments of the Pistons game on my phone in my Health class and when Waiters hit that shot, I just couldn’t hold in my excitement. I went absolutely nuts and have replayed that shot over and over.
The Rising Stars Game had my on my feet whenever Waiters or Hardaway touched the ball. Then, to have Kevin Durant and James Harden standing and cheering on the sideline, it just raised the stacks of a meaningless exhibition game. It showed Waiters’ competitiveness, even when it was just an All-Star game and it showed how fun he is be when he gets hot.
Mike Schreiner
Contested step-back long twos off the dribble. To me, Dion Waiters always seemed like a good guy who wanted to win, but lacked the self-awareness to play a winning style of basketball. He dominated the ball, had a poor shot selection, and displayed inconsistent effort on defense. There’s no doubt Waiters had talent, and on draft night I preferred him over Harrison Barnes, who has less upside, and Andre Drummond, who people forget was absolute garbage at UConn. The problem was that he almost defiantly refused to play to his own strengths. I wish him the best, but I’m not too torn up about this deal.
Jared Mueller
I think about an undersized shooting guard who did as much as he could to make things happen but couldn’t do enough. He always seemed like he had a complex and was trying to prove he could be LeBron James or Dwyane Wade. I loved his heart even if it was misplaced. Like Luke I loved his Rising Star showdown with Hardaway.
2 – What is your emotional, fan reaction to the trade?
Luke
To be honest, my first, emotional, fan reaction to the trade was complete confusion.
From reading on my phone that Dion Waiters was starting, to then looking up at my TV and seeing Joe Harris was starting, I was completely lost. Had I missed something? Did Waiters get injured in warm-ups? After the #WojBomb though, everything started making sense.
Before I knew whom the Cavs were receiving back, I was honestly guttered and still kind of am, even though I love the deal. Waiters has been my favorite Cavalier ever since he was drafted and when I saw he got traded, I just couldn’t believe it. It is going to take a while to get used to watching a Waiters in an Oklahoma City jersey but I’m sure Thunder fans will quickly get emotional attached to him, just like most Cavalier fans did.
Mike
I’ve had some mixed feelings. I like Iman Shumpert as a player who is roughly the equal of Waiters, but plays more like the Cavs need from their shooting guard. I also was happy that the Cavaliers got a first round pick that could be enough to secure a Mozgov or Koufos type. Getting those two things for Waiters seemed like a minor miracle to me. The problem is that J.R. Smith was likely my least favorite player in the league before this. Now I have to talk myself into rooting for him? That’s going to be tough.
Jared
More from King James Gospel
- 3 possible starting lineups for Cleveland Cavaliers in 2023-24
- The Cavaliers may have snagged a hidden gem in Craig Porter Jr.
- 4 players the Cavaliers should pursue in 2024 free agency
- 6 players Cavaliers might replace Jarrett Allen with by the trade deadline
- This stat is one to keep an eye on for Cavaliers’ Max Strus in years ahead
I was very confused as the process started. We are getting J.R. Smith? Why? An older, more experienced, more expensive version of Waiters doesn’t make a ton of sense. Okay, Iman Shumpert that makes a ton of sense. He is a good defender and is athletic. Maybe we get Samuel Dalembert too. Getting our starting 2, 6th man and a backup big for our ill fitted 6th man is a deal.
Wait, we are getting a first round pick instead of Dalembert? Wow. I know it is going to be used to get a center but if the Knicks can’t use Sammy for anything I got to love an extra first no matter what we use it for. I think I would have been happy with Shump straight up for Dion at this point so… I’m in.
Then it hit me: Dion Waiters won’t be playing for the Cavs and we can’t use him in a bigger deal. I, along with Sam Amico, thought Dion could be an All Star level player next to the Big 3 this year. Wow I was wrong. He could have been but he never bought in. I hope he does well.
What was your fan response to the Dion Waiters deal?
Connect with King James Gospel