Could “diamond in the rough” DeAndre Liggins return to the Cavs?

Should the Cleveland Cavaliers bring back DeAndre Liggins?

After the Dallas Mavericks decided not to pick up his option for the 2017-2018 season, DeAndre Liggins will be available as a free agent this summer. Can he make it back onto the Cleveland Cavaliers’ regular season roster?

Last season, after fighting for a regular season roster spot through Summer League and the preseason, Liggins was a godsend for the Cavs after J.R. Smith fractured his right thumb against the Milwaukee Bucks in December thanks to 19 starts in the latter’s absence. While many would have thought Iman Shumpert would play the role as starting shooting guard with Smith out, Liggins’ defense (he was a two-time Defensive Player of the Year in the NBA G-League) was top-notch; he played so well, hounding point guards to alleviate pressure from Kyrie Irving, he made it impossible for Lue to regret the decision.

He was also shooting 45.5 percent from three-point range in December. Though that number slipped to 29.4 percent in January, there were to factors that contributed to Liggins’ sudden inconsistencies.

On the one hand, Liggins shot 0-4 from three-point range on one occasion and without that night he would have been shooting 38.4 percent from three-point range. On the other hand, the team’s primary facilitator in James often passed on passing to Liggins behind-the-line. While Liggins’ own issues with confidence may have contributed to that, James has passed the ball out to any and everybody over his career regardless of their reputation. In all my years of watching James play, I had never seen James so unwilling to pass to a shooter.

Consider that James never hesitates to pass the ball to Iman Shumpert, who he once told Bleacher Report‘s Ethan Skolnick he thinks has the potential to evolve his game to Jimmy Butler’s level. Shumpert shot 29.5 percent from three-point range in the 2015-2016 season.

When considering that, and that Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue benched Liggins so that Shumpert could regain confidence in his shooting stroke, according to Jason Lloyd (formerly with the Akron Beacon Journal) the situation can be interpreted as favoritism prevailing on the Cavs.

However, James once said Liggins’ defense and the way it complemented Irving was a like a “diamond in the rough” for them.

Per cleveland.com‘s Joe Vardon:

"“He’s been doing more than maybe what he thought he was capable of doing, maybe what we all thought he was capable of doing and that’s being a great complement to Kyrie,” James said.“It’s been a diamond in the rough for us and we’re happy to have him.”"

Unfortunately, after Smith returned to the court, the Cavs acquired Kyle Korver and signed Deron Williams, the backcourt was crowded and there was no spot for Liggins in the rotation. Liggins was eventually waived as the team adjusted the edges of the roster and signed Dahntay Jones to enhance the chemistry and leadership in a locker room that needed it after a rocky regular season.

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Outside of another injury for a rotation player or trading one of the players in the rotation, there’s no way that Liggins would have gotten back in the rotation despite his defensive rating of 108 being tied for the second-best on the Cleveland Cavaliers (with James) behind Kevin Love’s defensive rating of 107. Though Liggins didn’t get a chance to right his three-point stroke when it went awry, like Shumpert and Richard Jefferson did, Liggins was just one of eight former rotation players with a negative on-off offensive rating (-3.3). Mike Dunleavy Jr. (-10.7) was the only other player who failed to stay on the team as the Cavs used his contract to acquire Korver (-2.1) in a trade.

As I said before, Liggins was dealt the short end of the stick by the Cavs. His release doesn’t reflect on his abilities.

The same is true of the Dallas Mavericks, who will have a crowded backcourt after drafting Dennis Smith Jr. and, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein, even plan to decline Dirk Nowitzki’s team option and re-work a deal with him on a cheaper contract so that they can save cap space ahead of free agency.

Liggins’ defensive ability is reputable thanks to his length, strength, technique, awareness and ability to consistently guard players fullcourt a la Patrick Beverley (that would have been valuable in the NBA Finals as ball-handlers were allowed to cross halfcourt without any resistance the entire series). His offensive skillset lends itself to some point-forward opportunities, especially with his affinity for setting teammates up in the pick-and-roll. Liggins knows that he needs to focus on his ability to shoot and score and, last month, he told King James Gospel he already found a trainer to help him with his offensive game.

With that in mind, the cash-strapped Cleveland Cavaliers should strongly consider bringing him back with Dahntay Jones, Deron and Derrick Williams set to br free agents, Jefferson considering retirement and Shumpert on the trading block. Liggins will be fine with signing for the veteran’s minimum, he has familiarity with the organization and, as he told King James Gospel, the Cavs are his “brothers for life“.

Liggins shot 37.8 percent from three-point range for the Cavs last season and averaged 2.2 steals per 36 minutes.

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