Cleveland Cavaliers: 2 goals for Denzel Valentine in 2021-22

What to expect from recent Cleveland Cavaliers free agency signing Denzel Valentine is an uncertainty heading into this upcoming season.

Valentine has had his share of struggles in the past two seasons for the Chicago Bulls, and that played into him being signed via team-friendly deal. This next season for Valentine is partially-guaranteed, whereas the second season is set to be non-guaranteed.

Valentine has had issues staying healthy in his career, with ankle problems not aiding him, for one, and he missed all of 2018-19 because of ankle stabilization surgery. That was unfortunate for him, as the season prior, he had the best year of his NBA career to date.

Valentine looked to be a player on the rise, as he had 10.2 points per contest in Year 2, and in his bench role, knocked in 38.6 percent of his three-point attempts. He had 3.2 assists per outing as well.

Since though, whether it’s been role inconsistencies, him not seeming to have a fan in then-Bulls head coach Jim Boylen, or just not looking comfortable, it’s been a rough past two seasons for him. Valentine has had his moments, sure, but he hasn’t been in a good rhythm in bench opportunities, and hit only 33.6 and 33.1 percent from three-point range the past two years.

Even with the struggles in the past few years, I can understand Cleveland’s reasoning for taking a flyer on Valentine, who is a talented offensive player still.

So what could be two goals for Valentine with the Cavs this upcoming season, then?

We’ll take a look at those here, beginning with the first goal, regarding his potential role off the bench in minutes at the 2/3.