Collin Sexton has had a solid, yet somewhat shaky start to his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers, scoring at an elite clip yet leaving plenty of questions regarding fit on the team and playmaking.
Sexton is a guard loved by many Cavs fans who can score at a high level while not really bringing too much value anywhere else and has plenty of questions regarding his long-term fit next to Darius Garland, a young guard who can do just about anything on offense.
Many fans have seemingly made comparisons of Sexton to Lou Williams, while others say that the idea of the two being compared is a complete travesty and is overdone.
Over time, I have slowly joined that second group, and have eventually come around with more conviction of late.
In fact, there is a far better comparison to be made for Sexton.
Monta Ellis entered the NBA on a Golden State Warriors team that was in the midst of the longest playoff drought in franchise history. This would change early in his career in one of the most iconic playoff series in NBA history when they upset the Dallas Mavericks despite being the eight seed that season.
Ellis was a fan favorite guard who could score at an elite level without bringing tons of value in other aspects of the game. He faced many questions regarding his fit with the young point guard Stephen Curry who could do anything you needed on offense.
Sound familiar?
The similarities don’t end there either. Both players were 20 years old in their debut on a team that was struggling to make any noise in their conference, missing the playoffs relatively often in their young careers.
In fact, their stats for the first four seasons of their careers are nearly identical. The only standout, that being points per game by Collin Sexton, can be easily explained by the fact that he took nearly four more shots per game than Ellis while outscoring him by that same number.
Monta Ellis averaged 16 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in his first four seasons as a secondary scorer behind Baron Davis.
Collin Sexton averaged 20 points, 3.3 assists, and 3 rebounds per game in his first four seasons as the primary scorer.
Ellis shot a higher percentage from the field at 48.8% compared to Sexton’s 45.8% although the Cavaliers guard shoots a higher percentage from three at 37.8% compared to the former Warriors’ 28.7%. Although, this stat is partially skewed due to the rise in importance of the three-point shot over the last 10 seasons.
The only stats that can’t be explained away by era or increased shot attempts are the defensive stats where Ellis has a slight advantage, although still nothing to write home about.
The story and the stats of these players match up almost perfectly, as well as the playstyle of the two largely fan favorite guards, making this an incredibly interesting comparison.
Ellis would go on to be traded from the Warriors in a deal that would allow them to win their first championship since before the NBA-ABA merger and dominoed into the dynasty that we all know today.
Following that trade he would see a significant decline in production and eventually was phased out of the league entirely after a lackluster season with the Indiana Pacers.
Will Collin Sexton follow in the footsteps of the once borderline All-Star guard, or will he continue to rise and become an elite player in his own right?
Only time can tell for the young guard, who is currently a restricted free agent, and we’ll have to see if he is back with the Cavs this coming season and/or potentially with the team long term.