Cleveland Cavaliers: 3 bold predictions for Collin Sexton in 2021-22

Bold prediction #3: Sexton receives a max contract from the Cavs before the 2021-22 season

There are no if, ands, or buts about it, Collin Sexton is in a make-or-break year. Even with his immense capabilities to score the basketball, the “Young Bull,” as his teammates affectionately refer to him as, is still doubted in many NBA circles by both fans and GMs alike.

So what can the fourth-year guard do to quiet his detractors and earn that shiny new deal? Is it assisting the ball more? More ball movement? Less dribbling? Even more scoring? Improvement on the defensive end? Quite simply put, it’s a conglomeration of all of these things.

Sexton must continue to put his head down and let his play on the court speak for itself. If nothing else, he has been an absolute workhorse and continues to impress with his work ethic. He may not have been blessed with prototypical size at his position but surely seems to give his all at least on the offensive end of the court.

Much of his issues and tendencies on the defense end come from poor positioning, and seemingly at times, a lack of effort there, and while his size (6-foot-1) may place a limit to just how effective he can be on that end, he can certainly still develop into a respectable defender.

He has shown nothing but improvement every step of the way and I’m banking on that being the case for the 2021-22 season as well. This will be the year Sexton proves his importance to the Cleveland-based team and for my third bold prediction for him, he will force the organization into paying him max-level money next offseason, based sheerly upon his on-court production.

The team has until 6 PM on Oct. 18 to show their commitment to him. If that doesn’t happen, Sexton will likely enter restricted free-agency come seasons end.

As Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com discussed and gave further reporting on, the Cavs and Sexton share a mutual interest in keeping him in Cleveland long term. But a max contract deal before next offseason is not a certainty at this juncture, although one would think he could still receive a significant extension.

Either way, here’s to hoping Sexton is here for the long haul.