Cavs: Whether Cedi Osman is extended or not, John Beilein must stay the course with him

The clock is ticking on the Cleveland Cavaliers being able to extend wing Cedi Osman, but whether they do or he is set to be a restricted free agent next summer, head coach John Beilein must give Osman a very long leash and play him a bunch of minutes.

The Cleveland Cavaliers got a pretty solid year from young wing Cedi Osman in his first season as a full-time starter in 2018-19, which was his second year in the NBA.

Osman was also thrust into being one of the team’s primary scoring options offensively as was then-rookie guard Collin Sexton, and with Cleveland star big Kevin Love only being active in 22 games, mostly due to reported toe surgery, Osman was relied upon often to create offense for himself and teammates.

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It was an encouraging season from Osman, as he had 13.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game (per Basketball Reference), and started 75 of his 76 games active.

Going into Osman’s third season, he’ll likely command the starting small forward role, at least the vast majority of 2019-20 for head coach John Beilein, and given that it appears Osman is one of the team’s key young pieces, Beilein and the coaching should give Osman a very long leash.

That should be the case whether or not the Cleveland Cavaliers choose to extend Osman on Monday by 6 P.M., the deadline for which to do so.

Though because he was originally a second-round pick and is not, as Hoops Rumors’ Luke Adams noted last month, “technically eligible for a rookie scale extension,” as Adams emphasized, “Osman qualifies for a veteran extension since it has been over two years since he signed his first NBA contract.”

Adams then highlighted how Osman, if extended, could be eligible for a four-year, $51 million contract extension if the Cavaliers and Osman’s representation, which is ultimately agent Jeff Schwartz, come to an agreement by 6 P.M. Monday, which is closing in quickly here.

Nonetheless, with the growth Osman showed throughout last season, where he had so many jumbled lineups and an ever-changing group of teammates on the floor with him, again, Beilein needs to be really patient with Osman as the starting small forward, whether he is extended or is set to become a restricted free agent next summer (which would be the case if no extension comes for him).

Osman, though he needs to become more consistent in the 2019-20 season, is still just 24 years old, and he has really good feel as a passer, and grew more and more comfortable as pick-and-roll ball-handler as last season progressed.

With the likes of Love on the floor seemingly in the majority of minutes Osman is on the floor this year, too, with Love hopefully healthier, Osman’s passing, which is one of his key strengths (along with cutting and driving the ball) should be featured even more this season in Beilein’s motion offense, as frequent KJG article commenter Ryan Yankee has pointed out.

2.6 assists per game last year didn’t really show it, but Osman, again, has very good passing vision, and Beilein and company will feature that throughout this season, and with Osman being further along than rookie wing Dylan Windler as a playmaker and off-the-dribble creator against NBA wings, Osman should be starting at small forward in coming years.

Granted, he should get some minutes alongside Windler and feasibly rookie 2/3 in Kevin Porter Jr., who could spell Osman at times, too, along with former Golden State Warriors Alfonzo McKinnie, who was waived by Golden State recently, and reportedly claimed off by Cleveland on Monday, per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium.

Furthermore, Windler, who is still dealing with a stress reaction in his left leg and will reportedly likely miss a bit of the early portion of the regular season, along with Porter, could learn from Osman, who previously learned under the tutelage of LeBron James in his rookie season, about what it takes to be successful in the NBA against NBA 3’s.

Osman, who is a quality slasher and capable pull-up shooter in the mid-range in his own right, can only benefit from more minutes alongside Love and I’d think a significant minutes-share with rookie guard Darius Garland, a terrific shooter and naturally gifted passer this season, and with ever-growing chemistry alongside Sexton, again, Beilein should let Cedi continue on in his development as Cleveland’s starting small forward, and whether or not he’s extended.

Porter is only 19 years old, and Windler is going to take some time to get back to full strength and doesn’t project as a plus defender, anyway, so it’s clear that Osman should be playing 28 to 30 or so minutes per game on the wing, and perhaps some small-ball 4 for Beilein and company, where maybe Windler or maybe Porter plays some 3 on the floor with Osman as well.

Additionally, though I’m a fan of the McKinnie signing, as was detailed before that happened as a suggested target over the weekend, McKinnie shouldn’t dip into Osman’s minutes all that much as a recent roster addition in the near end-of-bench variety.

Either way, whether or not Osman is extended, he shouldn’t feel the need to press in games, and even though he could feasibly struggle again this season on the defensive end individually, he still has quality team defensive instincts, always gives maximum effort and with his feel for the game and ability to create for himself and his teammates, he should get a bunch of run this season.

That’s even with Windler, who shot 40.6% from three-point range at Belmont in four seasons (per Sports Reference) and Porter, a promising young scorer with so much on-ball creation ability as a scorer, feasibly behind him.

Anyhow, if Osman and the Cavaliers don’t reach an agreement, which it seems more and more likely they will not by the deadline before the start of the 2019-20 season, Osman looks to be one of the team’s key young pieces in coming years and seems to fit the culture Beilein and company are trying to build, and this coming summer, Cleveland should definitely match any potential offer sheet from other teams for Osman.

The Cavs should have plenty of cap space to do so, with a bunch of expiring contracts involving Tristan Thompson, John Henson, Jordan Clarkson, Matthew Dellavedova and Brandon Knight, and even if Cleveland does trade some of them and take on bad money.

Osman, a fan favorite, is a hustler, constantly active cutter and natural passer, and I’d imagine soon enough, he’ll be a favorite of Beilein’s as well. Whether he’s extended or not, #TheFirstCedi should be playing a bunch of minutes for the Wine and Gold for a long time.