With the 2022 NBA Draft on Thursday, Koby Altman, Mike Gansey and the front office for the Cleveland Cavaliers will have a lot of questions on their hands. Sometimes, it seems like the Cavs had their sights set on Malaki Branham. Other times, it seems like Ochai Agbaji. Now, a rumor about Ousmane Dieng and a potential promise from Cleveland has been discussed, if he makes it to #14. But, a prospect I think that is getting slept on is TyTy Washington Jr. out of Kentucky.
Do I think Cleveland will draft him? Probably not, but you never know. I’m not going to lie, he’s been the main guy I’ve wanted Cleveland to draft in the first round for a while now, and for good reason. I really like his game, and think he could really help the Cavs.
In 31 games this season, he averaged 12.5 points and 3.9 assists, also winning a spot on both the SEC All-Freshman team and the All-SEC team, a very solid feat by a first-year college player. According to ESPN, Washington was the 14th-ranked recruit in the 2021 high school class, ahead of names such as AJ Griffin and Malaki Branham.
Here are three reasons why I believe Washington should be the Cavs’ pick in the draft, when it comes to #14 overall.
Reason #1: Playmaking
Like I have said before, our only real point guard on the roster as of now is Darius Garland, who cannot play all 48 minutes. Rajon Rondo looks close to retirement, and Brandon Goodwin is a solid backup, even on a two-way deal at the time, but if the Cavs want to be contenders, this needs to be upgraded. Maybe Ricky Rubio does return to the Cavaliers, but after a significant injury, maybe he won’t be as productive as his former self, and may very well not be ready to start the season straight away it seems.
According to NCAA.com, Washington had the 32nd-best assist-to-turnover ratio in all of college basketball, at a solid 2.35. 32nd may not sound the best, but considering that there 350 players in this statistic that were deemed to be qualifying, it is pretty good. His assist-to-turnover ratio was better than players such as Jaden Ivey, Paolo Banchero, and JD Davison. He only had 120 assists, but that was solid, especially for a freshman.
While the Cavs ranked 11th in assists per game for an NBA team, which is good, their turnovers ranked 22nd overall in the league, which definitely can be improved. Like I mentioned, Washington’s assist-to-turnover ratio was good for a college player, so he could definitely help out the Cavs on that end.
Washington is more than capable in pick-and-roll, has impressive vision and can looks to shooters in a timely manner in their spots. He’d be a backup lead guard boost.
Reason #2: Fit
At the end of the lottery, I’d like to think fit on the roster would have a very big factor on who the Cavs would draft. What I mentioned earlier, the Cavaliers do not have any other point guard definitively on roster besides Darius Garland, so having another one would definitely help out Cleveland.
While players such as Ochai Agbaji, Malaki Branham, and Ousmane Dieng might be better players, I think that Washington would fit better on the Cavs’ roster and will get more playing time earlier on. For the other 3 prospects I just named, the Cavaliers already have wings such as Caris LeVert, Dean Wade, Cedi Osman, Lamar Stevens, and Collin Sexton if he re-signs. I know I’ve heard of the saying as “There’s no such thing as too many wings,” but if you have a lot of wings and can take a player with the better fit, I’d take the better fit.
Let’s just say that Rajon Rondo, Brandon Goodwin, and Ricky Rubio do not sign to Cleveland in free agency. This will mean that the Cavs could feasibly have to sign a player for the veteran’s minimum, and that would not be the best option for the Cavs as a backup point guard, or a starter if Garland gets hurt.
This is why the Cavs should go for Washington in the first round in the 2022 NBA Draft. Chances are, he’ll be available at the 14th overall pick, in the event they do keep that, and can really help the Cavaliers as a primary playmaker for stretches.
Reason #3: Scoring skill set/shot creation
While 12.5 points per game don’t jump off a page, it’s solid and shows that Washington can contribute offensively when it comes to scoring. While deep shooting is not necessarily Washington’s strong suit, it’s solid enough to be a moderate threat from long range, shooting 35.0 percent from 3 this season on 3.3 attempts per game.
That being said, while Washington has to improve his deep shooting, off-the-catch I do think that can translate early on, and he’s a polished shooter off-the-bounce in the mid-range. In pick-and-roll, he does a nice job of knocking down those looks, and he can knock down floaters in set offense as well, both of which can help the Cavaliers for stretches.
Washington does need to improve as a driver, and him being slender has some to do with that, however, in time, he can get better in that regard, along with as a deep shooter off-the-bounce. Neither of those things are too concerning, in my opinion, given he’s only currently 20.
If Washington were to be drafted by the Cavs, I’d predict a statline to end off the season around 7 points, and 2-3 or so assists, playing about 15-18 minutes a night, also playing around 70 games in the season, staring 8 of those games.
Very precise, I know, but that’s just what I think he could average in his first season if he were to be drafted by Cleveland.