Cavs: 3 ways to compare their young core across the league

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Jalen Suggs and Cole Anthony, Orlando Magic. Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

Cavs: 3 ways to compare their young core across the league – Tallying young starters

It’s unclear which players each NBA team will start, but a reasonable guess can help us to highlight which teams not only have good young players, but ones good enough to start. For most teams in the league this means they have a player good enough to help them win games, although for a select few this is merely highlighting their commitment to development.

Most likely the Cleveland Cavaliers will be starting five young players, defined here again as the last five draft classes. Darius Garland, Collin Sexton, Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, with another recent pick Lauri Markkanen serving as the 6th Man.

Only the Orlando Magic are likely to match that number, with a starting five flush with young players of their own. Our best guess at their starting lineup would be Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner, Jonathan Isaac and Wendell Carter Jr. The team could swap in Cole Anthony, R.J. Hampton, Chuma Okeke or Mo Bamba into any of those slots and still satisfy the exercise. The Magic have fully committed to their rebuild.

Two other teams look likely to start four young players when the 2021-22 NBA season begins. One is the Oklahoma City Thunder, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Josh Giddey and Aleksej Pokusevski. Their center options will likely rotate throughout the year and could easily place a fifth young starter into the lineup.

The Detroit Pistons are the other team likely to start four youngsters, and possibly all from the last two drafts. Cade Cunningham is the No. 1 pick from this summer’s draft, while Killian Hayes, Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart all went in the first round of last year’s draft. Jerami Grant is a lock to start alongside them, providing the veteran presence in an otherwise young lineup.

Barring the unexpected, other teams can only hope to match the Cavs in this metric. It’s overly simplistic, but it does highlight the Cavs’ positional versatility across their young core and their commitment to developing these players next season.