The Cavaliers will continue to need contributions from Cedi Osman

The Cleveland Cavaliers are going to need steady contributions from Cedi Osman looking onward.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are currently the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and off to a really nice start to the 2020-2021 season.

The team along with Cavs fans are looking for this to be the season that the team finally sees some success without LeBron James on the roster this century.

So who might be poised, in particular, for a bigger role in help making that happen that jumps out at this point, then?

One of the players they will need to continue to contribute to the team for that to happen is Cedi Osman.

The Cavs need Osman to make things happen game-to-game, given their injury woes.

Osman, although seeing fewer minutes than he has since his rookie season is playing essential basketball for the Cavs. He was coming off of the bench at the beginning of the season, but with the recent strike of injuries that the Cavs have seen Osman will be playing a much bigger role it would seem.

Even with the Cavs only playing seven games so far this season, the roster has still been decimated by injuries.

Matthew Dellavedova has not been in action yet due to a concussion. Darius Garland missed the game at the Orlando Magic on Monday due to a right shoulder strain and will reportedly be out on Wednesday at the Magic.

Kevin Love is still set to be sidelined for two-to-three weeks, after which he’ll be re-evaluated due to a right calf strain. From there, Isaac Okoro had missed the Cavs’ past five games due to a foot sprain, and he was previously placed in the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocol.

Albeit according to Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor, Okoro has since been cleared from that protocol and reportedly could make his return versus Orlando on Wednesday, and it appears he’ll be.

Kevin Porter Jr. still has not played in a game this season due to personal reasons and the timetable for that is not known at this point, though.

Plus, Dante Exum unfortunately suffered a right calf strain on Monday, and will reportedly be sidelined for likely “one-to-two months,” per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium. And lastly, Dylan Windler (fractured hand) will reportedly be re-evaluated after the Cavs’ road trip due to a fractured left hand.

With all of these players missing time, a lot more weight will be placed on the shoulders of bench players like Cedi Osman. He is a versatile player that can help pull some of the weight of what the Cavaliers will be missing.

Although his shooting percentages have taken a hit this season, Osman is still playing some of the best and most efficient basketball of his career. In terms of his per 36-minute stats, this is the best scoring season that Osman has had; I know it’s very early, though.

Along with this, while he’s had inconsistency game-to-game, Osman still has hit a career-best 38.6 percent from three-point land, and on a career-high 6.3 attempts per outing.

This shooting is arguably the most important aspect that Osman will be bringing to the team with the recent injuries. With Kevin Love out, the team is losing one of if not the best shooter on the roster. Along with this Love brought a lot of court spacing to the team when he was on the floor.

Osman is someone who can play the small-ball power forward position at times. This will allow him to space the floor just as Love would have if he was on the floor, in those instances.

A lot of pressure will fall on the shoulders of Cedi Osman with all of the injuries that the Cleveland Cavaliers have suffered.

That said, he is more than capable of filling in some of the missing parts, and Osman’s passing feel will be needed. It could lead to him seeing much more minutes and a bigger role in the rotation game-to-game even when players begin to return from injury.