3 potential lineups Cavs could use involving 2020 NBA Draft prospect Deni Avdija
By Mason Cole
Deni Avdija potential Cleveland Cavaliers lineup #1: Darius Garland-Collin Sexton-Avdija-Kevin Love-Andre Drummond
This is probably the least interesting lineup option because it is the simplest. If Deni Avdija is drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, he will likely have been drafted to start. The current starting small forward for Cleveland is Cedi Osman. But Osman’s ceiling is nowhere near as high as that of Avdija’s.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are still in the core-building phase of their rebuild. Players such as Collin Sexton, Darius Garland and Kevin Porter Jr. have all shown flashes of developable ability, but none of them have shown that they are for sure a core piece of their franchise. The Cavs three young prospects are all still balls of potential, not necessarily building blocks as of yet, albeit Sexton, Cleveland’s leading scorer in 2019-20 at 20.8 points per game, appears to be the closest thing to that at this point.
That’s not necessarily a guarantee, though, and every move that the Cavaliers make should be an attempt to find themselves a true franchise building block. The Cavs are still searching for that player with superstar potential who could hopefully accelerate the team’s rebuilding process, and Avdija has that superstar potential.
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If Avdija is drafted by the Cavaliers, he will immediately join the ranks of Sexton, Garland, and KPJ. Deni will instantly be viewed as a source of hope within the organization. He will be looked at as someone who can hopefully take the reigns of the organization and become the first Cavaliers All-Star since LeBron James back in the 2018-19 NBA season.
If the Cavaliers draft Avdija, immediately inserting him into the starting lineup would only make sense.
By giving him starter reps early, Avdija can quickly gain real, NBA experience against some of the best basketball players in the world, and he will be doing it next to some of his potential long-term teammates.
Altman is most likely still hoping that Garland, Sexton and Porter Jr. turn into NBA stars. The trio is still young enough to develop their games further, and they will have plenty of playing opportunity under head coach J.B. Bickerstaff next season.
The best-case scenario for the Cavaliers organization is that their current young core as well as their potential draftee in the 2020 NBA Draft follow similar developmental paths and all become strong players at the pro level.
If the Cleveland Cavaliers come out of the draft with Deni Avdija, the most sensical next step would be his insertion into the starting five. Thus making this particular lineup one to be looking for if Avdija ends up donning wine and gold.