Who projects as the Cavs’ second option this season?

Last season, we saw Darius Garland emerge as the engine of the Cleveland Cavaliers‘ offense in what was a true breakout season for him with 21.7 points and 8.6 assists per contest, and this coming season at least, I’d expect him to be the club’s top scoring option.

Garland’s combination of handle, change-of-pace, deep range, floater game and driving capabilities make him so difficult to guard. Garland is Cleveland’s most versatile offensive player, and looking onward, he’ll only become more well-rounded. This isn’t to diminish his playmaking chops, as a side note.

Now, objectively, when the Cavaliers were at their best last season, Garland had more help around him for stretches of games, and Garland dealing with a back injury in the second half of the season didn’t exactly alleviate pressure.

The issue was Collin Sexton was lost for most of the season (torn meniscus), then Ricky Rubio in late December (torn ACL), so it was tough for the team and Garland himself at times. And later in the season, trade acquisition Caris LeVert took time to get acclimated, understandly mid-season, and then he missed the first nine games of post-All-Star break play because of a foot sprain.

Ultimately, the Cavaliers would turn a corner noticeably last season, as did Garland himself, but this coming season, it’s still going to be key for Garland to have more help throughout games. The Cavaliers get that, too, even while he clearly stirs the drink offensively, and for this coming year feasibly, is the team’s top scoring option, with his range, versatility on-ball and playmaking threat.

That raises the question, though.

Who projects as the Cavs’ second option in 2022-23?

Let’s examine the candidates, with the three names coming to mind being feasibly Caris LeVert, Evan Mobley and at least to some extent, Collin Sexton, who could function as a de facto top scorer for stretches. That’s whether he could ultimately start or be bought-in as a bench bucket-getter, regardless of me personally thinking he should start next season at the 2, which doesn’t seem likely, per recent reports.

So we’ll start with the Sexton element first.