3 wings Cavs should target if they acquire second first-rounder in 2020 NBA Draft

Jordan Nwora: 6-foot-7 wing – Louisville

The Cleveland Cavaliers made some progress in developing their core of wing and two-way players when they finally opted to re-sign and extend both Alfonzo McKinnie and Cedi Osman.

McKinnie recently went from multiple 10-Day contracts to a well-deserved multi-year contract that could keep the 27-year old-wing in Cleveland for the foreseeable future, though, as KJG’s Dan Gilinsky noted, most of the years on McKinnie’s deal are reportedly non-guaranteed.

Anyhow, the team also committed somewhat to Cedi Osman with a decent long-term extension, of which Gilinsky highlighted, that will see him in a Wine and Gold uniform for a few more seasons. These two players aside, the Cavaliers are still largely missing at least one to two more quality rotational wing players in order to truly round out and develop a potentially very deep unit.

A player like Louisville’s Jordan Nwora can fit that need to a perfect degree and as such would be an intriguing option for the still developing Cleveland Cavaliers, as Tyler Marling, previously of KJG, hit on back in December.

The soon to be 22-year-old from Buffalo, New York has gone on to average an impressive 18.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.7 steals per game, per Sports Reference, in his junior and likely final collegiate season thus far. His numbers are exceptionally similar to his sophomore season, albeit this makes complete sense given his play and role have not needed to change in the slightest for the 15th-ranked and 24-7 Louisville Cardinals.

The large difference in his play is he is putting the ball on the floor and attacking the basket a little bit more frequently, can show more capability on pull-ups and he is shooting at a more efficient clip from deep (40.2 percent from three-point land on 6.1 attempts per game). His age is slightly concerning for teams looking for young talent to develop, but Nwora has a game that should present a smooth transition into the NBA overall.

He has all the makings of someone who projects to be a very solid role player in the NBA, and if his defense develops further he can become one of this draft’s better all-around players. Jordan Nwora may not present immense mismatches with his build (though he is fully developed it seems at 6-foot-7, 225 pounds) and athleticism (or rather lack there of), but has an exceptionally smooth shooting stroke as previously mentioned.

His all-around offensive scoring game that should also allow him to fit perfectly on largely any team that opts to select him in the first or second round of this year’s NBA Draft. His defensive instincts must improve a bit in order to truly become a two-way wing in the NBA, but he has decent measurables and a high basketball IQ that should allow him a path to becoming a serviceable defender in the NBA at least.

If the Cleveland Cavaliers do indeed acquire a second first-rounder or even potentially a second-round pick in the 2020 NBA Draft round pick, the team should absolutely look to select a player like Louisville’s Jordan Nwora if he’s there, as he fits perfectly next to the rest of their core such as Garland, Sexton, Porter Jr. and others.