KJG roundtable on all-time starters, LeBron James’ postseason runs with Cavs, his fit with prior CLE legends

#3: Who has been the best bench player in Cavs history?

Sow:

This question is tough considering what justifies being a bench player. With that being said, I believe the Cavaliers’ best bench player was Anderson Varejao during LeBron’s first stint with the Cavaliers. Varejao played his role well and excelled in it. He also made All-Defensive second team in the 2009-10 season despite only starting 7 out of the 76 games he played in the regular season that year, as indicated by Basketball Reference.

Casey:

I’ll go old school and say John “Hot Rod” Williams (R.I.P., Hot Rod). He was a key reserve for some really good Cavs teams in the late 80’s-early 90’s that provided solid scoring off the bench and plenty of times would guard some of the NBA’s best big men in probably the best era of big men.

Fagan:

The Cavaliers have had their fair share of solid bench players. My personal favorite would have to be Channing Frye. Throughout his career, the reserve big averaged 8.7 points per game, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.0 assists. It’s been said by players like Kevin Love that Channing’s presence in the locker room was one of the key components to the 2016 Cavaliers winning the championship.

Channing’s ability to play his role as a spot-up/pick-and-pop threat and remain a positive influence for his teammates is why he is my choice as the best bench player for the Cavs, considering what he did for the club in winning its only ring in team history.

DiPaola:

This is another tough question. The Cavaliers have had their fair share of quality bench players, especially during the past 15 years. While Channing Frye, Jordan Clarkson, Channing Frye, and Richard Jefferson all come to mind, there is another name that comes to mind.

Though Kyle Korver was only here for not nearly a couple of seasons, his impact was notable. Korver’s shooting ability was a perfect teammate for LeBron, given his shooting touch.

While Korver was on the floor, teams always had to account for him, which would give others (LeBron, Kyrie, etc.) room to create. Even though the Cavs lost the 2017 Finals, that team could very well be the best one in franchise history.

Meitin:

This is yet another great question. There’s been so many even just in recent memory that could qualify. The names that instantly come to mind are guys like Channing Frye and Richard Jefferson who both made a serious impact both on and off the court in Cleveland and in the locker room.

There have also been players like Kyle Korver, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert, who all shifted from starting to a bench role during different times in their tenure as a Cavalier. Smith will inevitably be excluded from this for me because his best season with the Cavaliers he actually was the primary starting 2 guard.

Matthew Dellavedova certainly won’t be forgotten either, as he played a key part in providing some hope once Kyrie went down in Game 1 of the 2015 NBA Finals. This is one that I’d say actually doesn’t have a great answer because so many great players have come off the bench for the Cavaliers, even just so recently.

The best answer is probably a mix of Jefferson for his impact on the 2016 Cavaliers Finals run or Korver for his impact as a shooter and helping to improve other players such as LeBron, shooting-wise.

Harris:

While statistically/formally there are no Cavaliers players to win the league’s Sixth Man of the Year honors, I believe that the best bench player in Cavs history is Kyle Korver. During his Finals runs with the Cavs, he was someone who was electric off the bench and could change the game in a matter of minutes. Along with that, he was possibly the greatest pure shooter to ever wear a Cleveland uniform.