The Cleveland Cavaliers are currently in the basement of the NBA with a 9-40 record. Though it will come down to the wire when determining if they will receive a top-three pick or not, it seems like the chances are pretty strong as of right now. As a result, Ja Morant should be on the team’s mind.
All of the talk in college basketball was supposed to be on Duke’s top prospects this season, as R.J. Barrett, Zion Williamson, and Cam Reddish was the main focus starting in November. The expected lottery choice for the Cleveland Cavaliers should’ve been narrowed down by this time between Barrett and Williamson. At this point, the decision should’ve been about which Blue Devils star the team prefers.
Then Ja Morant took the spotlight and ran with it.
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It’s not easy getting noticed at Murray State, one of the most notable teams in the Ohio Valley Conference. With only two first-round selections since 2000, those being current Cavaliers guard Cameron Payne and Isaiah Canaan, it’s easy to go unrecognized throughout your collegiate playing days as a member of the Racers. But Morant refused for that to be his fate.
The sophomore guard has snatched headlines from Duke’s stars and anyone else who dares threaten his standing as one of the best players in college basketball.
Morant’s progression is something that doesn’t have simple reasoning as to why it happened. After an alright freshman campaign that saw him average 12.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists, the 20-year old has taken full advantage of staying another year at school. He’s now posting 24.3 points, 10.6 assists, and 5.9 rebounds per contest on 54.4 percent shooting.
Nothing really changed around Morant from year one to year two. The roster has remained nearly the same and head coach Matt McMahon is still running the show. It appears the only thing that changed was Morant’s will to succeed and get to the next level and he’s doing just that.
As a result, he’s now being mentioned as a top-three lottery pick.
Morant’s explosiveness and pure instinct with the ball in regard to passing the rock raise some intrigue about what he could do in the NBA. Despite the Cavaliers having Collin Sexton running the point this season, one has to wonder if the franchise has thought about coupling the two in a backcourt of high-octane energy?
As much as there are pros for this idea, as detailed above with Morant’s play, there are cons as well.
The biggest concern would be how the two would coexist on the court as two ball-dominant guards. Neither one is a lights-out shooter from the perimeter and that could limit the productivity the two could have on the floor, as opponents would suspect constant rim-attacking play by both guys. This could really disrupt the spacing on the court.
With that point being made, it also makes you wonder if the Morant-Sexton backcourt pairing would stunt the growth of one or both. Sexton has shown that he is at his best when he has the ball in his hands and is attacking. Likewise, Morant is most effective when he controls the offense.
So could it work out for the Cavaliers if they went that route?
While I tend to believe it would be a challenge, it’s tough to pass up one of the elite prospects in the draft. In my opinion, Morant is the second-best prospect right behind Barrett and that could mean he’s gone before the third pick. So if Cleveland doesn’t luck into the top pick, Morant should really be thought about as their choice.
Offensively, Morant’s passing could make him become the passing guard of the two. That’s not to diminish or take away his touches on offense but it may make his development at the NBA-level a little smoother, as he can focus on knocking down more spot-up looks from the perimeter. Of course, this isn’t to say that Morant can’t go off and have offensive explosions, it’s just more logical for the better all-around player right now to command the floor. This would only help Sexton round out his offensive skill set and become the scorer Cleveland was expecting to get.
Also, Morant’s defensive tendencies are better at this stage than Sexton’s, which could help take the latter off of the better offensive player in opposing backcourts. Not very often is the rookie taking pressure off of the second-year player but in this case, it makes sense and would be the only feasible way this backcourt duo works.
When you first think about Morant and Sexton teaming up, it may seem nonsensical. But the team would be doing a poor job of scouting and assessing the situation if they didn’t even consider the idea.