Cavs: 3 players under the most pressure this season

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Collin Sexton, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images /

Cavs: 3 players under the most pressure this season – Collin Sexton

Collin Sexton has to be applauded for his work ethic and competitive fire. He has improved every season he has been in the league, increasing his scoring average and becoming one of the most talented young backcourt scorers in the league.

Even so, the Cavs are clearly not sold on Sexton, exploring the trade market for their young guard prior to the NBA Draft. Where standout players from his draft class have inked extensions, including Trae Young and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Sexton and the Cavs have failed to agree to anything.

Why wouldn’t the Cavs want to keep Sexton at all costs? For all of the value Sexton provides as a scorer, he isn’t elevating his team’s overall performance on that end. The Cavs played about the same on offense with or without Sexton. Is that just numerical chaff, or does it illustrate the limitations of a player who elevates himself as a scorer but not his teammates?

Add in the severe defensive limitations and Sexton grades out as a negative player. How much should the Cavs spend on a player with that type of profile? Sexton might grow as a player — in fact, he should — but will he gain enough overall impact to tip the scales from liability to star?

That makes this upcoming season, and perhaps especially the first half of the season, exceptionally critical for Sexton. If he can consolidate the scoring and perimeter shooting gains of last season, improve to average defensively, and demonstrate an ability to lift the teammates around him, a max or near-max contract next summer is absolutely in reach. Strong play early on, including All-Star buzz, could also draw the interest of other teams that do value him at a high level and would pay the Cavs accordingly to bring him in.

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Sexton’s play next season could be the swing factor for tens of millions over the life of his next deal. It could demonstrate which team he plays on moving forward. Most of all, it will help dictate the future of this franchise, which finds itself at a crossroads and is trying to determine where the pressure is coming from.