Cleveland Cavaliers: Evaluating the state of the C position

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Evan Mobley, USC Trojans. Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images /

Evaluating the state of the C position: Offseason Plan

The Cleveland Cavaliers are in a better position than many teams when it comes to the center position. They aren’t stuck without a clear starting-level option, such as the Charlotte Hornets; they also aren’t stuck paying through the nose for a low-impact player, such as the New Orleans Hornets and Steven Adams. They also don’t have to clear a logjam, as the Indiana Pacers must do.

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Instead they can enter the offseason with some amount of flexibility and agency. The biggest question that must be answered is whether or not Jarrett Allen returns on a long-term deal. Allen is a talented young player worthy of an eight-figure contract, yet if the number gets too high the Cavaliers have the option to walk away, or work out a sign-and-trade.

What is that walk away number? Clint Capela signed a five-year, $80 million deal in a similar situation to Allen as a low-usage, rim protecting center coming off of his rookie deal. The cap has gone up since then, however, and a center winning MVP isn’t helping to depress the contracts of big men. Would Allen demand something more like $20 million a year? Can the Cavs stomach that price tag?

Before they know the resolution to Allen’s contract situation, they will likely have a major decision to make in the NBA Draft. When Cleveland picks at third overall, there is a decent chance that USC big man Evan Mobley will be available to choose. An incredibly gifted player, Mobley is likely too thin to play the 5 immediately but long-term projects as a center.

If the Cavaliers take Mobley, they will find it more difficult to re-sign Allen to a large contract as their frontcourt suddenly gets very crowded. In such a scenario, let’s say Allen signs an offer sheet with the Charlotte Hornets for four years, $80 million. Matching that, drafting Mobley and not moving on from any current players would mean paying around $85 million for six players at either the power forward or center positions, an insane proposition in the modern NBA.

Cleveland has to continually canvas the league for a taker on Kevin Love’s contract. He is clearly a negative-value contract, and the days of getting positive value back have sailed. They should not burn a premium asset attaching it to his contract simply to clear cap space, not with where they are in their rebuild. If a team is willing to send back their bad contract, perhaps one at a different position or for less than what Love is owed, that could be a way for the Cavaliers to better spread their cap space across the five positions.

What is the plan if they don’t bring back Jarrett Allen? Unfortunately there aren’t a lot of great options. If they draft Mobley, then he can play a few minutes at the 5 and the team can bring in a stop-gap for a couple of years. If they draft Jalen Green or Jalen Suggs, they will have a large hole at the five long-term. The free agent market for centers is not robust, and the team won’t have meaningful cap space even with Allen leaving to hand out a major contract. The team could use all or part of its midlevel exception to bring in an option or two, shopping for the likes of Daniel Theis, Montrezl Harrell or Serge Ibaka.

Center is the position with the greatest number of reasonable options out there, even if this free agent class is devoid of high-end starters. The Cavaliers should be able to find serviceable options for the short-term if they don’t re-sign Allen.

Next. Evaluating the state of the PF position. dark

At the end of the day, the Cleveland Cavaliers have a roster filled with intriguing and talented players. They don’t fit together all that well, and the team still has a lot of work to do in growing into the team it wants to be. Whether at center or across the roster, it’s imperative for the team to honestly assess what they have to know what it is they need.