Cavs clip of Isaac Okoro receiving All-Rookie 2nd Team honor is refreshing

Isaac Okoro didn’t have the most noteworthy rookie season in recent memory or anything for the Cleveland Cavaliers, as he had 9.6 points and 3.1 rebounds in 32.4 minutes per outing.

Him hitting 29.0 percent of his three-point attempts was the furthest thing from fantastic, and he needs to showcase more offensively next season. I’m not disputing that.

He did show more assertiveness in the second half of last season, though, and from April-onward, he was demonstrating more willingness to attack. That was nice to see, and while injuries did play some into it, his close to the year was something to build on; Okoro had 16.2 points in his last 12 games of Year 1.

And on the defensive end, while there were some rookie moments, as one would assume would’ve been the case for a 20-year-old, Okoro more than held his own, considering the circumstances, particularly in a COVID-19-affected season.

Overall, I know that it wasn’t a Rookie of the Year season or anything like that, but it was notable that Okoro ended up being named as a member of the NBA’s All-Rookie Second Team, and his close to the season/mindset has me optimistic.

It was cool to see a recent clip from the Cavaliers featuring Okoro’s All-Rookie Second Team Award on Wednesday, too.

That showed Cleveland general manager Koby Altman handing it to him, and Okoro celebrated with his/a few Cavs player development coaches/members of Cleveland’s coaching staff in assistant coaches Greg Buckner and J.J. Outlaw and shooting coach Andrew Olson.

That above Cavs clip involving Okoro getting that All-Rookie Second Team honor is nice to see, and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s in store for him in Year 2.

As we alluded to, Okoro needs to show more offensively in Year 2, and there needs to be better efficiency as a catch-and-shoot threat for him. He and the coaching staff would agree there; we know that.

With the past offseason Okoro only having roughly a month to get acclimated with the Cavaliers though, and the again, COVID-19-affected campaign, to go with the injuries Cleveland suffered as a whole, I’m not going to grill him for that. The offseason will hopefully pay dividends for him as a shooter/catch-and-shoot player for next season, and we’ll see there.

From there, it is apparent that for Okoro, he does need to develop a pull-up he can get to at times, and I would imagine in the pick-and-roll here and there with Jarrett Allen, Larry Nance Jr. and/or 2021 draft prospect Evan Mobley, that could be viable for Ice in the near future.

That’d make him more capable as a driver, where he is viable when he can get opportunities downhill/when the seams are there, and in transition, his 225-pound frame and strength is very difficult to account for.

And I do believe that Cleveland reportedly looking to get Okoro some mid-post opportunities next season throughout games could bode well for him, with his strength and burst when he makes quick decisions, and that could aid his playmaking off that.

All things considered, however, with Okoro reportedly being a tireless worker, I do firmly believe next season/looking onward, he’ll steadily progress and the offense can gradually come for him.

In any case, as we hit on, it was refreshing to see that clip of Okoro receiving his NBA All-Rookie Second Team honor, and him giving props to the aforementioned assistant/player development coaches was cool to see.

If the offense can come along further, and he keeps building on that finish to last season, I wouldn’t be shocked necessarily to see a 4-5 point-per-game uptick from Okoro, either.

Moreover, I can’t wait to see how the Auburn product does in Year 2 for the Wine and Gold.