Two big men tied to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Eric Moreland and Edy Tavares, have received big-time honors from the NBA Development League.
Eric Moreland, one of the Cleveland Cavaliers designated affiliate players who play for the Canton Charge, their exclusive NBA Development League affiliate team, was recently named to two All-NBA Development League teams. Edy Tavares, who currently plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers after receiving a call-up from Raptors 905, was named to two All-NBA Development League teams as well. For Tavares, this announcement comes just a week after he was named the NBA Development League Defensive Player of the Year.
For those that don’t remember, former Cleveland Cavaliers guard DeAndre Liggins was a two-time Defensive Player of the Year for the NBA Development League, so while the NBADL is the official minor league of the NBA, they don’t give out that award to guys who can’t defend.
Tavares, who had 6 blocks in his first game for the Cavs, can attest to that.
After completing a season where he averaged 12.8 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.7 blocks and 1.7 steals per game while shooting 56.3 percent from the field, Moreland was named to the All-NBA Development League third team as a center.
Tavares, who averaged 10.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 1.4 assists per game while shooting 59.1 percent from the field, was named to the first team.
Moreland and Tavares were also named to the All-NBA Development League Defensive team along with Briante Weber, Keith Benson and David Nwaba.
While Tavares is in his second tour of the NBA, after spending his rookie season with the Atlanta Hawks, Moreland has yet to make a return to the league after injuries forced him out of Sacramento. Considering the names beside him as he racks up these offseason honors, it shouldn’t be long before a team gives Moreland a chance to make their regular season roster.
Tavares, who signed a three-year deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers, may be the Cleveland Cavaliers backup center in the future. However, he’s more of a throwback center than a player like Tristan Thompson, a guy who can switch onto perimeter players and defend them as well as post players.
Moreland, who is as mobile as Thompson and can do pretty much everything Thompson can offensively including facilitate, is the player who can be a backup for Thompson specifically.
Moreland will likely end up in training camp with the Cleveland Cavaliers this offseason, like last year. However, last year Moreland was unable to participate in camp as he recovered from a foot injury. If he performs at least as well as he did in training camp and shows more polish on his jump shot, he has a great chance to make the Cleveland Cavaliers roster. Quite frankly, there aren’t many players with his skillset.
Hopefully, the Cleveland Cavaliers can find a way to use all three guys next season, especially considering Tavares and Moreland’s ability to step away from the basket and shoot.
According to Chris Fedore of cleveland.com, the Cleveland Cavaliers have expressed interest in a reunion with Larry Sanders if he’s in better shape this offseason.
Related Story: Edy Tavares Records Six Blocks In His Debut
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