Cavs: Just 2 players on The Athletic’s Top 125 players list

The Athletic’s Top 125 players list: Just 2 Cavs make the cut

Collin Sexton: Tier “5A”

Partnow’s list was split into tiers, and his Tier 5A was the largest, encompassing every player from 80th to 125th. Collin Sexton fell in this tier, but whether he was 81st or 119th is unclear from Partnow’s article.

To provide some numbers for context, Sexton’s 24.3 points per game ranked 18th in the entire league, and his Box Plus-Minus ranked him 92nd. 538’s RAPTOR model ranked him 204th in Wins Above Replacement. Still just 22, Sexton’s arrow is pointing up, and if he continues to score at this rate he is certain to move further up the list next season. It’s reasonable to say he should be there now, when players such as Caris LeVert and Derrick Rose fell in Tier 4.

Jarrett Allen: Tier “5A”

Jarrett Allen likewise fell into Tier 5A, and his landing spot seems reasonable when compared to other big men in this range, assuming he is in actuality near the “top” of this tier. Richaun Holmes is older than Allen but had a breakout year for the Sacramento Kings, while Ivica Zubac is a rock-solid starting center who is basically 90 percent of Jarrett Allen on both ends of the court.

Even so, Allen also probably should have slipped into Tier 4. Some players that Partnow ranked in Tier “4B” are better than Allen, including Al Horford, Brook Lopez and DeAndre Ayton. Yet Jusuf Nurkic and Jonas Valanciunas also made the cut, and Allen is at least in the conversation with them. With an entire offseason in the Cavs’ program leading into next year, he is likewise a player primed to move up.