Does Lamar Stevens’ Cavs progression make Isaac Okoro expendable?

In the NBA, winning at a consistent level is the result of star power and a great team structure. An underrated part of team building is having the ability to find those “diamond in the rough” players that could either accelerate a rebuild or be an integral part of a team’s core.

The most extreme examples of this are players like Christian Wood and Fred VanVleet, undrafted players who are now playing at an All-Star level. Then there are the milder cases like the Cleveland Cavaliers signing Matthew Dellavedova years ago who became a steady rotation player for them and helped them win a championship in 2016.

Now, the Cavaliers have seemed to find another one in Lamar Stevens who has shown time and time again that he deserves a consistent role with this team. With injuries and COVID-19 affecting the team, Stevens’ name was called upon and he was asked to step up.

Over the team’s last nine games, Lamar has topped his career-high in points twice and this run was topped off with a 23-point performance against the Utah Jazz that included a 15-point third quarter.

This run has shown all of the positives in Stevens’ game. Lamar has been great as a cutter, using his strength and quickness to finish tough baskets over bigger defenders. The mid-range game is something that looks comfortable for him and his three-pointer will only get better with more repetitions.

Defensively, Stevens has had some tough assignments as of late but has continued to keep his composure and buckle down when the Cavs needed it most.

Lamar Stevens will only get better with time and his potential progression poses a very interesting question.

Does Stevens’ progression for the Cavs make Isaac Okoro expendable?

The fifth overall pick just a season ago, initial comparisons had Isaac Okoro progressing into an Andre Iguodala-like player. To end his rookie season, Okoro had an offensive output that had people excited for his second-year leap.

Defensively, Okoro has been more of the same, continuing to hound opposing players with his combination of strength and lateral quickness. Offensively, however, Okoro has yet to make the leap many expected and the drafting of Evan Mobley had Okoro coming off the bench to start the season.

Okoro’s biggest flaws have been the lack of shot creation or an outside shot. Those two are the biggest needs for players in today’s NBA as it’s what separates a guy like Okoro from the upper echelon of 3-and-D wings. Okoro had a very promising four-game stretch prior to COVID-19 derailing that run and his offensive play hasn’t been good since.

Okoro isn’t even of legal age to drink yet so saying he is expendable may seem crazy but just how much will his offensive game improve?

Comparing both Okoro and Stevens, the 24-year-old Stevens is clearly better with the ball in his hands and has a better shot. The 3-level scoring potential is there for Stevens as well with his mid-range game. Okoro is the more athletic of the two, with a quicker first step and seems to be stronger.

Comparing the production of the two, there are a ton of similarities but is that a good thing for Okoro considering he was a fifth overall pick while Stevens went undrafted?

The Cavaliers are in desperate need of another shot creator with players like Caris LeVert and Eric Gordon coming to mind as potential trade targets. The thought is that Okoro wouldn’t be needed to get one of those players off their respective teams but what if the Cavs wanted to make a bigger trade in the offseason?

Looking to capitalize off this season and wanting to go into next year on a high note, it makes sense to dangle Okoro around in the league both during the trade deadline and in the offseason to see what you could get for him.

Chances are that Okoro wouldn’t be the main component for a trade but would be a nice complementary piece in a trade. Pair him with someone like Lauri Markkanen as well as picks and would that be enough to pry an All-Star-level player away from a team? If Okoro is moved, can the Cavaliers replace his defensive production?

This year’s draft is jam-packed with wings that could all be a potential replacement. It’s clear the Okoro is the odd-man-out of the current young core.

Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen both have real shots of being All-stars this season. Evan Mobley is the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year and Collin Sexton has shown the ability to be one of the NBA’s top scorers.

Time isn’t ticking for Okoro to show more but the core allows for the recently-extended Koby Altman (and now the Cavs President of Basketball Operations) to make some sacrifices in an aggressive move. It would be unfortunate to lose Okoro in a potential big trade but for the betterment of the team, it may be something that has to be done.