3 prospects Cavs could target as result of potential J.R. Smith trade with Heat

#2: Nassir Little – North Carolina

Nassir Little came into the season with a ton of hype, as he was the sixth-ranked recruit (per ESPN) and Little wasn’t quite ready, as he came off the bench for UNC all season in all 36 games (per Sports Reference).

Little stands at 6-foot-6 and 225 pounds, with a 7-foot-1 wingspan (per Tankathon), and he has good size and is an explosive athlete. While he may not have lived up to some of the expectations coming into the season, the immense talent and physical tools are obvious and the team that drafts him will try to unlock them over time.

Last year at UNC coming off the bench, he averaged 9.8 points per game on 47.8% shooting, to go with 4.6 rebounds in 18.2 minutes per game (per Sports Reference). Him only shooting 26.9% from three-point range for a wing is a big concern, but his driving ability can enable him to get baskets early on.

Again, right now Little’s game especially offensively is very raw, and if the Cavs draft him, they’ll have to take their time with him and they’d be betting on new head coach John Beilein being able to develop him.

If Little reaches his ceiling he has the potential to be an elite perimeter in the NBA and I’d even go as far to say that he has All-NBA defensive potential; he’ll definitely need to improve his off-ball defensive instincts for that to be the case at some point, though, but the individual defense should be there at least.

The concern with Little is he just can’t shoot the ball very well right now. We’ve seen guys improve, as the reigning Finals MVP in Kawhi Leonard came into the league with a raw offensive game and didn’t have much of an outside shot.

Leonard has obviously worked very hard and has probably become a much better offensive player than anyone could’ve imagined, and while I’m not saying Little will become Leonard, if he can improve his offensive game and become a better outside shooter, he can become a valuable “three-and-D player.”

If not, his offensive limitations can hinder his overall game and can impact the game offensively in ways other than scoring? That’s unclear.

Nonetheless, the Cleveland Cavaliers potentially drafting Little at 13 could depend on what happens at fifth overall in the 2019 NBA Draft.

If Cleveland ends up taking someone like Duke wing Cam Reddish at five, I don’t envision the Cavs taking another player that’s is raw, like Little.

If the Cavs draft someone like Reddish at five, they could draft someone that’s more ready to contribute next year if they get the 13th pick.

That could be the next potential prospect.