Larry Nance Jr.
As has been referenced by KJG contributors, Larry Nance Jr. is a player that showcased he’s likely one of the team’s best all-around players in coming years in the 2018-19 season.
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He had career-highs in points (9.4), rebounds (8.2), assists (3.2) and steals (1.5) with his biggest opportunity of his career in terms of workload with 26.8 minutes per game (per Basketball Reference).
Going forward, with the way Nance seems to be as team-first as it gets, he comes to mind as having the makings of what Fedor’s source referred to as fitting what Beilein wants in a player.
That’s evidenced by Nance’s unselfishness in continually moving the ball quickly, with him constantly screening and re-screening both on and off the ball, and with the way he’s always doing the little things.
He’s seemingly one of the Cavs’ best defensive communicators, is always trying to get extra possessions on the offensive end, and is frequently getting his hands in the passing lanes of the opposition on the defensive end.
Additionally, with the way Nance worked so much on his three-point shot, which he shot at a respectable (especially for a player that was mostly a roller before last season) 33.7% percent last season (per Basketball Reference), that plays into constantly having the drive to get better and add more to your game, which seems to play into what Beilein wants from his players.
Nance estimated that he “probably shot 20,000 3’s” at the Cleveland Cavaliers practice facility this summer, per the Akron Beacon Journal/Ohio.com’s Marla Ridenour.
With the way Nance has expanded his game and with the way he constantly brings energy when he’s in, he seems to have the makings of that previously mentioned ‘Beilein player.”‘
Nance does on occasion force the ball still to attempt to force scoring passes, though, and still does need to foul a bit less at times; 3.9 career fouls per-36 for his career is a bit high, though he is a big, but with more experience and time with Beilein, I would imagine Nance could really be fitting just what Beilein is looking for in his time with the Cavs in coming years.
Now on to the player Fedor’s source was ultimately referring to.