Cavs: Ranking the young core by ceiling outcomes
The Cleveland Cavaliers have been patient over the past three seasons as they have worked to rebuild the core of their roster. While a few decisions look questionable, such as the contract extension for Kevin Love, for the most part the Cavs have focused on building a young core of players.
That core is now stocked up with very talented players spread across the positional spectrum. The Cavs could reach Opening Night and start five players 23 and under. While there is no guarantee all of these players will pan out and hand the Cavaliers their lineup of the future, for now it represents a bright place to take the next step.
The Cavs have a talented core with which to build on. Which of the players has the highest ceiling outcome?
Each of these young players has an unrealized ceiling ahead of them. The “best-case scenario” for each is a landing spot above where they currently stand. Not every player reaches their ceiling outcome; in fact few do. For every Stephen Curry there are a lot more Emmanuel Mudiays; for every Jayson Tatum there is a trail of Josh Jacksons.
The Cavaliers are no stranger to ceiling outcomes, having fostered the growth of LeBron James into one of the best in NBA history. They are also familiar with what it looks like to fail to deliver on that upside entirely, from a clear bust in Anthony Bennett or a player who failed to realize his full potential in Dion Waiters.
To sort that out, let’s analyze the current young core of five players: Darius Garland, Collin Sexton, Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. What does it look like if each player reaches their ceiling outcome? Which player has the highest ceiling? For the purposes of this exercise we are trying to quantify a player’s realistic ceiling; of course if Darius Garland had a late growth spurt to 6’9″ and started shooting like Curry his ceiling would be insane, but we have to work with what we have seen.
To that end, from 5 to 1, the Cavaliers’ young core ranked by ceiling outcome.