Cavs Draft: 3 reasons why Jalen Green should be the pick at #3
By Corey Casey
After some tough luck the last couple years, on Tuesday night the Cleveland Cavaliers were able to rediscover some lottery luck.
The Cavs saw their lottery fortunes change, as they were able to land a very crucial top 3 pick in a loaded 2021 NBA Draft. This was a very critical moment for the Cavs franchise. Next year will be the Cavaliers’ fourth year in the second post-LeBron James rebuild.
This is a time when this franchise and front office need to start showing more progress next year. That doesn’t mean playoffs or bust (in my opinion), but they probably need to improve where they aren’t one of the three or four worst teams in basketball next year. That’s apparent.
That’s why there was a ton of pressure as Tuesday was a big moment for the franchise and this front office. The Cavs have been missing the clear-cut franchise type of player on this roster ever since LeBron headed to the Los Angeles Lakers. Most believe there are three-to-four elite talents at the top (depending on how you feel about Jalen Suggs).
With the new lottery odds though, you see a lot more movement and Cleveland has witnessed that the last couple years. Finishing with the second-worst record back-to-back years, but to only watch them fall three spots each of the last two years.
Per Tankathon, the Cavaliers’ most likely spot was seventh, so when the Cavs didn’t come up at #7 and when the Oklahoma City Thunder fell to #6, the Wine and Gold ensured themselves of a top 4 pick. The Cavaliers ultimately ended up at #3, which is huge and could very well be a turning point for this franchise and this rebuild.
The Cavs finally have a chance to select a franchise centerpiece to build around. And though the Cavaliers could reportedly be open to trading their pick/potential salary matching for an established player to aid their rebuild, I believe they’ll take their pick, which would be wise.
In that realm, if he’s available, that guy should be none other than Jalen Green who played for the G League Ignite squad and averaged 17.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game. That was while shooting 36.5 percent from three-point range and 46.1 percent overall for the Ignite in the G League bubble (15 games).
To that point, here, we’ll highlight three reasons why if he’s there, the Cavs should draft Green at #3.
The first relates to his talent and ceiling.