Cavs: Cedi Osman hit his stride in confidence booster vs. Lakers

In a pretty decent start to the season for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Cedi Osman has hit his stride.

Before the season even started, if you were to tell me the Cavs would be 8-9 after 17 games given their schedule, I would have told you that you were crazy. If you could predict the future and tell me they would still be 8-9 after 17 games and knew about all the injuries before they happened, I would have lost my mind. Somehow, here we are.

The Cavs sit at 8-9 and are currently in a playoff spot with the next several games all being winnable games. How did we get here? Contributions from all across the board. In a year when they have needed it most, Cedi Osman has stepped up big-time.

Before the Lakers game Monday night, Osman has been providing a spark for the Cavs all season long, either in the starting lineup or coming off the bench. In Osman’s career, he is averaging 9.9 points per game.

This season for the Cavs, he is currently averaging 13.6, and has been on fire as of late. Given that the Cavs have indeed been dealing with injuries all season long, Osman has had plenty of opportunities, and has been taking advantage.

Osman has hit his stride for the Cavs, and Monday’s game was an additional confidence boost.

In Monday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Osman finished with 20 points on 62.5 percent shooting from beyond the arc, as well as an overall field goal percentage of 54.5 percent. While Osman scored 0 points in the first quarter against the Lakers, he caught fire in the final three as he scored all 20 of his points.

With Osman scoring 20 points on Monday, it is the third time in the last five games that Osman has hit 20 points in a contest.

While I do think the Cavs have their work cut out for them in terms of a potential playoff run, I really don’t think it is too far out of the question. One thing is clear; the Cavs are not done when it comes to the March 25 trade deadline.

The Cavs currently have three centers on the roster and there is no way they keep all of them. Trading for Jarrett Allen means the Cavs know he is their center of the future, so it will be very interesting to see where Andre Drummond and JaVale McGee end up, if moved.

McGee, for one, reportedly has been a subject in trade discussions between the Cavs and Brooklyn Nets, per Jason Dumas of KRON 4 News. And although recent reports indicate a potential buyout could be the case for Drummond, to go to the Nets from there it appears, it still seems far more likely he’ll be traded.

In any case, if the Cavs are going to make that playoff run, guys like Osman, who also had three steals versus L.A. in that close loss, are going to need to continue to step up in big ways for the Wine and Gold. Having guys like Osman on your roster can be very valuable to any team if they can stay consistent.

Moreover, Cavaliers head coach J.B Bickerstaff has done a tremendous job with the team so far this season, and he will need to continue to get Osman minutes for him to stay hot.