Cleveland Cavaliers: What jumped out in loss to OKC Thunder

Ante Zizic continues to improve.

Ante Zizic made the most of his 16-plus minutes of playing time Wednesday night. He finished with 10 points, nine rebounds, and was a team-high plus nine in his time on the court.

The Cavs have mentioned repeatedly that they are now in the player development business as they are reloading for the future. The problem is that many of their “younger players” aren’t actually that young. Rodney Hood, Jordan Clarkson, and Larry Nance Jr. will all be 26 at the start of the New Year and aren’t exactly young by NBA standards.

Cleveland only has three players on full-time NBA contracts who are 23 or younger and Zizic is one of them. Unfortunately, Zizic hasn’t been able to see much time on the court this season. However, every time he’s out there he shows promise.

Zizic continues to show that he has the footwork and touch to be an effective low-post scorer. He showed skill around the rim against Steven Adams, who is one of the best defensive centers in the league.

There are still concerns with Zizic’s speed and ability to guard the perimeter, which is important for centers in today’s game. But, to his credit he more than held his own against Oklahoma City on that end of the floor.

The problem is that getting minutes will be hard to find. Tristan Thompson has returned to his 2016 championship form and has been the most consistent player for the Cavs this season. Nance isn’t having the season we all hoped he’d have so far, but his new contract shows that the front office is committed to him for the future. Unfortunately, each player’s skill set is too similar to justify having more than one of these three on the court at the same time.

While there is a logjam at center, the Cavs really should be trying to find ways to get Zizic minutes if they’re really committed to the player development business. He’s still just 21 years old and continues to show improvement every time he’s on the floor.