Cleveland Cavaliers: 15 greatest draft steals in franchise history

• Three seasons w/Cavaliers (1983-86)
• 238 career games w/Cavaliers
• 13.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.8 blocks, 1.0 assists per game w/Cavaliers

Roy Hinson was an excellent player for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in the old Atlantic 10. The Franklin Township, New Jersey native would play at the nearby public institution over in New Brunswick. At Rutgers, Hinson would be named A-10 Player of the Year in 1983.

Though the A-10 was not on par with the Power 6 competition we associate with the best college hoops of today, Hinson’s time with the Scarlet Knights was good enough to make the forward the No. 20 overall pick in the 1983 NBA Draft by the Cavaliers.

Hinson ended up spending his first three NBA seasons in Cleveland, where he played in 238 career games for the Cavaliers, 218 of them being starts. After a so-so rookie year, Hinson would really come onto the scene in year two in 1984-85.

He averaged 15.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game in 30.8 minutes per contest. Cleveland would even make the Eastern Conference Playoffs that season, but lost in four games in a best-of-five series to the Boston Celtics in the first round.

Hinson would have arguably his best season of his eight-year NBA career in 1985-86. He averaged 19.6 points per game to set a career high, making his rebounding total from the year prior, which was also a career high. Simply put, Hinson was at the peak of his powers after year three in the league with Cleveland. However, that would end up being his last year in Northeast Ohio.

In June 1986, Hinson was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for the No. 1 overall pick in the 1986 NBA Draft. Cleveland wisely used that pick on North Carolina Tar Heels center Brad Daugherty, whose No. 43 jersey is retired by the Cavaliers organization. Overall, Hinson averaged 14.2 points per game in his nearly decade long NBA career. Though good for the 76ers and later the then-New Jersey Nets, Hinson’s peak was clearly in Cleveland.