3 reasons to think Collin Sexton can thrive on the Cavs

3 reasons to think Collin Sexton can thrive on the Cavs: Catch and Shoot

Collin Sexton is most comfortable with the ball in his hands. That’s the role he has played presumably since he was knee-high to a grasshopper, and at every level he has been good enough to justify that. Now, for perhaps the first time, Sexton is on a team where he isn’t the best option to have the ball in his hands.

The good news? There are reasons to think that Sexton is actually a really good off-ball player. In 2020-21, Sexton shot 2.6 catch-and-shoot jumpers per game, tied for the most on the team, and shot a healthy 42 percent overall on them and 40.3 percent from 3-point range. Despite his involvement in the offense, he generally had the ball in his hands that season, so he was outside the top-50 guards even on attempts.

If Sexton can buy into that role on offense, the Cavs can run more actions with Darius Garland or Ricky Rubio and Sexton spotting up outside the play. If a defender sags too far off, when he catches the pass he can launch an accurate 3-pointer. If they close out too quickly, he will dust them driving past into the lane.

Sexton can still run some offense on the second unit, but Caris LeVert is also a good option to do that, not to mention Ricky Rubio when he returns and Raul Neto while he is still out. The more Sexton can lean into his strengths as an off-ball player and shooter, the more playing time he will find.