Cavs: 3 potential pick-and-roll duos to look out for next season

Potential pick-and-roll duo #1: Kevin Porter Jr. and James Wiseman

James Wiseman was the talk of the NCAA basketball season this year after just a few games at Memphis, two after which he played after being granted a temporary restraining order to play, per the Associated Press and h/t the Los Angeles Times, but he was ultimately declared ineligible by the NCAA.

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That was after they deemed Penny Hardaway, the head coach of Memphis, a booster, per his lawyers and h/t ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, and Wiseman eventually ended up withdrawing from Memphis, as KJG’s own Corey Casey touched on.

Despite this, Wiseman is still expected to be a top five pick and may have the highest ceiling out of everyone from this draft class. Standing at 7-foot-1, Wiseman has shown off amazing athleticism and in the three games at Memphis, he shot 80.0 percent on two-point shots, according to Sports Reference. His great athleticism can turn him into an amazing rim-runner and elite shot blocker.

Considering that the Cavs already have Drummond (who seemingly would have a high possibility of opting in), Wiseman is likely to come off the bench. If so, he would be an outstanding pairing alongside another young player that I expect to be our sixth man next season in current rookie Kevin Porter Jr.

Porter Jr. has quickly emerged as a fan favorite and looks to be a star in the making. KPJ had a great stretch of games from January 28th to February 12th, where he really caught fire after missing a 10-game span due to a left knee sprain.

In this seven-game stretch, KPJ averaged 16.1 points per game and shot 51.9% from the field and 50.0% from three, as indicated by Basketball Reference. Also, on February 24, KPJ had the best game of his rookie season against the Miami Heat in a what was a thrilling fourth quarter comeback, of which the aforementioned Casey hit on.

In this game, he scored a career-high 30 points to go along with eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Throughout his rookie campaign, KPJ has shown an amazing leaping ability and an iso-game.

Standing at 6-foot-4 and weighing at 203 pounds but being a strong build for a 19-year-old perimeter player, KPJ has the tools to become a great defender in this league and, at times, he has shown the ability to playmake. Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff previously highlighted how Porter is highly capable as a playmaker in an interview and emphasized how he wanted to experiment with the rookie at point guard at some points by the end of the 2019-20 season, as KJG’s Dan Gilinsky shed light on.

KPJ’s improvements as a ball-handler and facilitator are going to be crucial as his career goes on and a potential PnR duo of him and Wiseman would be an intriguing one, if Cleveland chose to select Wiseman in the 2020 NBA Draft.

For now, I would imagine they’d have a strong possibility of landing Wiseman, too, as though it is just a lottery projection at this juncture, Cleveland is projected to have the second overall pick, according to Tankathon. You’d think the Cavs would have a very good chance of landing at least a top five pick, anyhow, and again, Wiseman would be a logical selection if available.

The second potential PnR duo to look out for next season for Cleveland involves another young playmaker and Drummond.