Willie Reed could bring a two-way presence to the Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers still need more rim protection, and free agent Willie Reed would be a nice solution.

The Cleveland Cavaliers did not have a good year on the defensive end in 2016-17. They were 22nd overall in defensive rating, compared to being 10th the year before (per nba.com). There were a multitude of factors that went into that drop-off, and one of those was the lack of rim protection. The Cavs were just 23rd in blocks per game last season, according to teamrankings.com.

In addition, they gave up over four more paint points per game to opponents compared to the year before, and that really hurt their defensive efficiency, which dipped to 22nd in the league. That’s where the addition of center Willie Reed could really come in handy.

Reed emerged last season as a force in the defensive interior for the Miami Heat. Despite only playing 14.5 minutes per game, he accounted for 0.7 blocks. That was tied for third on the team, and is notable considering he played about half as much as James Johnson, who was second on the Heat in blocks with 1.1 (per nba.com).

He was an integral part of the Heat’s defense (they were fifth overall in defensive rating) as opposing players shot nearly 8 percent lower within six feet when he was the closest defender, per Bleacher Report’s Kelly Scaletta.

Reed does a great job of timing his blocks when coming over on rotations and on the ball. He often baits opponents into straight-line drives in which he uses his frame to wall up, and let his 7-foot-3 wingspan do the work. Besides Tristan Thompson and LeBron on the weakside, the Cavs didn’t have consistent inside defensive presence last year. In the NBA Finals, that reared its ugly head too often, and Reed could help not concede so many easy two’s.

I understand the Cavs do have a project shot blocker in Edy Tavares but his lack of speed would make him essentially unplayable against the best small-ball teams in the league. Reed’s activity both in shot-blocking and the defensive glass had a lot to do with him having the second-best defensive rating on Miami, per nba.com. He’s no slouch on the offensive end, either.

The big man had 13.1 points per 36 minutes, per Basketball Reference. He’s an active cutter off pick-and-roll action and has a good feel of when to look for lobs off penetration. That’s something that’s always in play with James and Kyrie Irving on the roster and he’d fit in similarly to TT in that regard.

He was in the 70th percentile as the roll-man, as he’s a nifty finisher in the paint in those situations with short floaters as well as he is powerful on rim runs. As a result, he was second on the Heat in true shooting percentage.

That inside roll man expertise allows players like Channing Frye, Jeff Green, and Kyle Korver more room to operate from the perimeter. In turn, that opens up the painted area for Reed.

Lastly, he would help the Cavs get more offensive boards from their bench.

Reed led the Heat in offensive rebound percentage last year, per nba.com. The Cavs need more bodies to get extra possessions next year, as they were just 20th in offensive rebounding, per teamrankings.com. This guy is a workmanlike player who doesn’t need high usage to contribute and that is never a bad addition.

According to Scaletta, the Cavs could afford him if he would be willing to roll the dice and take the other half of the MLE and get a big pay-day after next season.

Maybe LeBron can help convince him to do just that.