2020 NBA Draft prospect Onyeka Okongwu could be defensive tone-setter for Cavs in near future

Onyeka Okongwu is a prospect that the Cleveland Cavaliers should be greatly considering in the 2020 NBA Draft.

At this point, it’s evident that Andre Drummond fully intends to pick up his $28.8 million player option for next season, so he’ll be back with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Also, according to a report from Forbes‘ Evan Dammarell, Drummond and the Cavs are “exploring” a potential long term contract extension.

Granted, as Dammarell alluded to, that is seemingly anything but a certainty in relation to an extension, though.

Drummond has only appeared with the Cavs for eight games thus far after being a piece required near the 2020 trade deadline via deal with the Detroit Pistons, and while Drummond is a proven commodity as an interior presence on both ends and elite rebounder, he has not developed a jumper at all. Nor is he switchable really defensively in the pick-and-roll.

Could Drummond be a potential long term piece, with his interior presence and quality team defensive instincts/elite rebounding, though? Possibly, but we’ll have to see what plays out next season. Additionally, a key element involving a potential Drummond deal, as Dammarell emphasized, was that if the Cavs drafted a big, it’d make a Drummond extension nonsensical.

Dammarell hit on the possibility of James Wiseman, who briefly played at Memphis, in that realm. Albeit to me, I’d rather the Cavaliers go with USC’s Onyeka Okongwu if that decision is eventually a relevant one during the 2020 NBA Draft for the Cavs come mid-October.

I’m a big fan of Okongwu’s post polish already, and while the numbers don’t show it, Okongwu’s passing feel is very good for a big, and that, along with his switchability has led to comparisons involving him to Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo. KJG’s Tyler Meitin hit on that recently as well, for context.

Anyway, while I’m a big fan of Auburn’s Isaac Okoro, echoing our own Billy Beebe’s sentiment, in terms of defensive switchability for the Cavs potentially, too, Okongwu could be a player that could take over down the road for Drummond. That’s feasibly if Drummond is not extended come late October, and again, for this Cavs team, defensive switchability can’t be overlooked.

Okongwu could be the defensive tone-setter in the near future for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

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Okongwu does an admirable job switching on to perimeter players when needed as a 4/5, and though I give Drummond credit for often getting his hands in passing lanes in the team sense, that switchability isn’t something he’s often capable of. Even in today’s switch-heavy league, that’s not uncommon, either.

That said, Okongwu has the requisite quickness and fluidity to do so at a more than capable level, which shouldn’t be discounted with how the NBA game now is.

That sort of thing is a key reason why I could see Okongwu being a crucial piece in Cavs closing lineups, and him showing flashes of face-up ability at the other end was encouraging.

Again, though, Okongwu’s defensive capabilities really jumps out, and for the Cavaliers, they clearly need to start assembling better defensive pieces in coming years.

Okongwu could be the defensive tone-setter for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the near future, too, I believe. That’s due to his versatility helping out the Cavs’ potential lineups in coming years, and Okongwu has a high ceiling as a rim protector.

The 6-foot-9 4/5 had 2.7 blocks per outing in his lone collegiate season at USC, and that could aid pieces such as Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Kevin Porter Jr. and others in coming years and Okongwu could firmly establish himself as a defensive cornerstone for the Wine and Gold.

Part of the reason for that also is due to Okongwu’s activity off-ball defensively with his instincts and timing and ability to take advantage going the other way, too. The 18-year-old had 1.2 steals per game as a Trojan, which was a healthy clip for a big, and for one that was in his freshman campaign and is again still just 18.

Okongwu, as the aforementioned Meitin highlighted, is a playmaker on the defensive end that even early on, could help change Cleveland’s defensive outlook in a considerable way with his presence on the inside, team defensive feel and ability to switch out.

While I can’t fault the Cavs if they went with a player such as LaMelo Ball of the NBL’s Illawarra Hawks in the 2020 NBA Draft, who is a gifted playmaker, looking at the likely star-studded 2021 draft class, Cleveland could land a franchise playmaker such as Cade Cunningham.

Or from a wing perspective, Jonathan Kuminga comes to mind, or Jalen Johnson, among others. Albeit again I’d be more than fine with Okoro, too, who is a highly capable finisher and has good secondary playmaking feel, as our own Grant Puskar demonstrated.

Anyhow, to me, for the Cleveland Cavaliers, especially in this upcoming draft, which could have its share of uncertainties, drafting a player that can change your defensive outlook feasibly in the next few years with his versatility and natural rim protection/team feel would be a no-complaints move.

That’d aid Larry Nance Jr., arguably Cleveland’s best defender on the roster currently, for instance and be another more switchable piece on to guards as a big, too. In any case, the Cavs had the league’s worst defensive rating in each of the past two seasons, and Okongwu could be their defensive tone-setter in coming years at the 4/5.

He could very well be a better long term fit perhaps than Drummond, also. Okongwu, who had 16.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per outing in 2019-20, could be very productive if given the opportunities early on offensively and in the rebounding department, too.

We’ll see what plays out involving the Cavs and the 2020 NBA Draft come mid-October, but rest assured, Okongwu should definitely be well on their radar.