Cavs: Big Z joins LeBron James on Cavaliers’ All-2000s team

Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images /
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Anderson Varejao, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images /

Cleveland Cavaliers All-2000s Team – F: Anderson Varejao

Fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers for the last twenty years will not only recognize the name Anderson Varejao, but likely remember it fondly. The Brazilian big man was a fan favorite, with his floppy hair and wild arm movements, and his complete dedication to helping the Cavs win basketball games.

The arbitrary cut-off marks of an “All-Decade” team hurt Varejao as his best years straddle the line. He played the first 11.5 seasons of his career in Cleveland, then joined the Golden State Warriors for 36 games; he came back and played a handful of games for Cleveland last season to round out his career.

In the 2000s Varejao was just growing into his own as an NBA player, slowly increasing his minutes and role on the team. He was something of a sixth-man during the Cavs’ run to the NBA Finals in 2007, and by the final year of this decade (2008-09) was a starter, including starting all 14 of their postseason games.

Varejao rarely shot outside the paint, and that helped him to an efficient 50.2 percent field goal percentage for the decade. Despite playing alongside another big man and LeBron James for many of his minutes Varejao was a solid rebounder, and he played great positional defense. Only James and Desagana Diop rated as better defender by Defensive Box Plus-Minus over the course of the decade (minimum 100 games played).

The active big man was never a star for the Cavs, but he was an enthusiastic participant in what they were trying to accomplish.