The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a history of getting great contributions from their big men on the inside. These players have protected the paint, fought for rebounds, scored a lot of buckets and done all the dirty work for their teams. Over the past 50 years of Cavalier basketball these giants of the game have helped their teams get to the playoffs and compete for NBA championships.
Today, the Cavs have Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen imposing their tenacious ways on opponents and this has started to rev up the Cavs chances at more NBA titles. Can they make a future Top 10 list for the Cavs?
Let’s look at the current Top 10 list of Cavs big men that have shaped the identity of these hard-working Cleveland teams, with this factoring in true 4s and 5s, as opposed to a prior Top 15 forwards and Top 10 centers list. Let’s begin with No. 10.
No. 10 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Campy Russell
Campy Russell is a figure on the Cavalier television broadcasts these days, but he was an excellent player for the Cavs when he played for them from 1974-80. He averaged 16 points and five rebounds. His best seasons were between 1977 and 1980 when he was posting 20 points a night and six to seven boards.
He also helped the Cavs when they went to the playoffs during the 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1981 seasons. He typically was scoring in double figures in these games and rebounding well. In the 1976 playoffs, Cleveland made it to the Eastern Conference Finals and Russell was a big part of that series. Though the Wine and Gold lost the series it was a fight to the end as they lost in six games. Russell scored in double digits in all but the last game of the set.
Russell made one NBA All-Star Game back in 1979. He had one triple-double that season as well. He was often in the top 20 in free throw attempts and makes as well throughout his career.
No. 9 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Phil Hubbard
Hubbard played for the Cavs between 1981-89. He was in Cleveland prior to the team’s big run in the playoffs in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was there when other big men like Brad Daugherty and John “Hot Rod” Williams were just getting started.
In his eight seasons as a Cavalier, he averaged almost 11 points and five rebounds. His best statistical season was the 1984-85 season where he averaged 16 points and over six rebounds a game. He had 65 games that season where he scored in double figures, including 18 games of scoring more than 20 points. He also had 10 games of having double-digit rebounds.
His big 1985 season helped get the Cavs to the playoffs where they lost to the Boston Celtics in four games. He did what he could by averaging almost 16 points and five boards in the series. The Cavs were trending up after that season and Hubbard, who had seen a lot of seasons of bad basketball in Cleveland, was around when the Cavs made it a regular thing in going to the playoffs.
He struggled in his career because of injuries, especially to his knee which he had injured badly in college. Hubbard grew up in Canton, Ohio and played at McKinley High School, and was a local hero. He isn’t talked about on many top 10 lists in Cavaliers history, but he was a big part of those early 1980’s teams and should be recognized for his dedication and hard work.
No. 8 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Jim Chones
If you listen to Cavaliers radio broadcasts these days, you might hear a familiar voice in Jim Chones. He played for Cleveland between 1974-1979 and was simply a big man who did a bit of everything for a team that was just getting started in the early days back in the 1970s.
He moved on to play for the dazzling Los Angeles Lakers and won an NBA Championship with greats like Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul Jabar back in 1980. He scored 7,664 points and had 5,196 rebounds over his great career. That averages out to 12 points a game with eight rebounds. He was a steady presence for the Cavs and helped them get to the playoffs in 1976, 1977, and 1978.
The Cavs made it through to the Eastern Conference Finals in 1976 after they beat the Washington Bullets 4-3 in the seven-game Eastern Conference Semifinal series and Chones played an important role in that upset series win. He also broke his foot and wasn’t able to play in the Eastern Conference Finals, unfortunately. But during that season of 1976, Chones had 73 games of scoring in double figures and had 35 games of registering more than 10 rebounds in a game.
No. 7 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Kevin Love
When Kevin Love arrived in Cleveland prior to the 2014 season, when LeBron James was leading the Cavs charge toward a championship, you probably didn’t have him still being a Cavalier today. He’s now in his ninth season with the Wine and Gold. He came to them when he was just entering his prime as a player at the age of 26, and he’s now 34 years old. Will this be his last season? It could be, but what an amazing ride he’s had, and he’s helped the Cavaliers over that stretch with some great play.
Love has played the forward spot but has jumped into the center role as well and is definitely one of the best Cleveland big men of all time. In his tenure as a Cav, he’s averaged 16 points and nine rebounds. In recent seasons he’s become a three-point sharpshooter but when he was playing with LeBron James, he managed to do still some of the dirty work down in the paint.
In the Cavs 2016 championship season he averaged 16 points with 10 rebounds, and he’s had seven seasons in his career where he averaged more than 10 rebounds in a game. While both his points and rebounds have fallen over these last few seasons, his contributions to the organization over this last decade can’t be overstated.
He’s made five All-Star teams, and he made the All-NBA 2nd Team in the 2011 and 2013 seasons. He’s currently fifth all-time in total rebounds among active players with 8,659 and his 10.5 average rebounds per game in his career is currently seventh among active players as well.
The list goes on and on for Love and he will likely rise as one of the best big men in Cavs history once he retires.
No. 6 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Roy Hinson
Hinson was brought to Cleveland during the 1983 NBA Draft as he was drafted at No. 20. He was a big part of those early 1980’s teams and helped the team reach the playoffs by 1985. He was later traded in a massive deal prior to the 1986 NBA Draft that sent him to the Philadelphia 76ers and allowed the Cavs to draft Brad Daugherty, who we will discuss in a bit.
From 1984-1986, Hinson was everywhere for those Cavs teams. He averaged 16 points in 1984 and almost 20 points in 1985, and he also was averaging about eight rebounds in each of those seasons. He was a blocking machine too during those years. He averaged close to two blocks a game. He was usually ranked in the top 10 in blocks during his career and was ranked as high as fifth in both the 1983 and 1984 seasons.
Before the Cavs became the playoff-contending group that they were in the late 1980s, Hinson was a staple on those Cavs teams that struggled to get wins. But that didn’t stop Hinson’s efforts and his contributions, like those of Phil Hubbard as mentioned before, should be honored.
No. 5 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Anderson Varejao
A fan favorite for many years in Cleveland, the very animated player with the flowing and wild hair made a name for himself that will not soon be forgotten. He was never the best player on the floor, but the Brazilian-born player made his teams better because of his hard work.
He was also a legend in Cleveland because of the longevity of his Cavs career. He played in Cleveland for over 13 seasons. His last season in Cleveland was more or less so he could retire as a Cavs player during the 2020-21 season. He started with the Cavs back in 2004. That was also about the same time that LeBron James started his career in Cleveland as well, so these two players developed a good chemistry over the years that allowed Varajao to flourish.
While he was primarily a bench player to start with, he eventually became an everyday starter. However, he was often hampered by injuries over his lengthy career and that affected his play time. For his career, he averaged 7.5 points and rebounds per game with Cleveland. His best seasons were in 2011 and 2012 when he averaged 11 and 14 points respectively and also averaged 11 and 14 rebounds, too. If you want consistency from a player, look no further.
He also was an excellent defender and that was really his recipe to staying in the league so long; he made the 2009 All-Defensive 2nd team. He was ranked as high as 13th in rebounds per game back in 2013, too, and his defensive rating among active players is ranked as fifth best as well. But beyond the statistics, it was the pure energy and hard work that fans saw every night that made Varejao so well-loved.
No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: John “Hot Rod” Williams
The name speaks for itself but as a kid growing up in Northeastern Ohio back in the1980s, following those Cavs teams and cheering on a player like “Hot Rod” Williams was always a treat. There were two other big men on those Cavs teams including Larry Nance and Brad Daugherty, but Williams did a lot for those teams that allowed them to have so much success.
He was drafted in the second round of the 1986 NBA Draft, the same draft that gave the Cavs Brad Daugherty and Mark Price. That was quite the haul in skilled players for Cleveland and led to an amazing run of success.
Williams spent nine seasons in Cleveland, in which he averaged 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks a game. While Nance and Daugherty would get most of the headlines back then, Williams just went along and did his job. He had his best season in 1989 when he averaged 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds a game. He recorded 73 games that season where he scored more than 10 points, which included 29 games of scoring more than 20 points, also. Even more impressive was that he had 23 games where he had three blocks or more in games.
For his career he was voted on to the 1986 All-Rookie Team. He’s ranked 45th in NBA all-time in blocks with 1,456. He went on to to play for the Phoenix Suns in 1995. His averages went down a bit and he left the game by 1999, but he had a great career.
Unfortunately, Williams died of prostate cancer at the young age of 53 back in 2015 and is sorely missed by his old Cavs teammates.
No. 3 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Zydrunas IIgauskas “Big Z”
Another fixture in Cavs history was one giant 7-foot-3 player from Lithuania named Zydrunas IIgauskas, or more popularly known as “Big Z.”
He played for Cleveland from 1997 through the 2009-10 season. That adds up to 12 seasons with one team and that’s not very common place in this day and age of the NBA. He finished his career with the Wine and Gold by averaging 14 points and almost eight rebounds per game plus added two blocks a game.
His teammate LeBron James was drafted by the Cavs in 2003 and “Big Z” flourished with him in the lineup. His 2004, 2005 and 2006 seasons were some of his best. During the 2004 season he collected 67 games of double-digit scoring and had 25 games where he grabbed more than 10 rebounds. What’s even more impressive about his career was that he always played and never missed games, aside from very early on. That consistency to play so often really helped those early Cavs teams when LeBron James was part of them, too.
He finished his career in Cleveland by collecting 5,904 rebounds, blocking 1,269 shots and scoring 10,616 points. Ilgauskas made two NBA All-Star Games and was voted to the 1997 All-Rookie Team.
No. 2 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Larry Nance
Larry Nance came to the Cavs in the middle of the 1987 season. He had been a staple with the Phoenix Suns, but the Cleveland team back then was starting to get going. After they had a terrific 1986 NBA Draft where they picked up players like Mark Price and Brad Daugherty, gaining the veteran presence of Nance was a game changer and made the Cavs legitimate title contenders for several seasons. The only and most annoying issue for Nance and his teammates back then was that they had Michael Jordan standing in their way to gaining championships.
Nance immediately made a huge impact for the Cavs when he was traded. That season he averaged 16 points and had an eight-rebound average. He also averaged over two blocks a game. He finished his seven seasons in Cleveland with a 17 point and eight rebounds average, and he also maintained a pretty healthy career even though he played until he was 34 years old.
His 1988 season was one of his best where he scored in double figures in 66 games and had 67 games where he had more than five rebounds. He also registered 39 games of three blocks or more. In all, Nance helped the Cavaliers reach the playoffs in five seasons and they made the Eastern Conference Semifinals twice and the Eastern Finals once.
Though they couldn’t escape Michael Jordan and his dominance during that time frame, those Cavs teams were some of the best in NBA history, thanks to players like Nance.
No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers big man: Brad Daugherty
Daugherty was the No. 1 pick of the 1986 NBA Draft and lived up to all the pressures of being the No. 1 pick. Although his playing career was cut short due to a neck and back injury after only playing in eight seasons, he made the most of his years that were all in Cleveland. One of the most intriguing parts of putting together these types of rankings today is to see that the players that are ranked the highest were usually players that spent the majority of their careers on one team.
Daughtery did everything for the Cavs and was that imposing presence on the inside that tagged up with Larry Nance to clog up the paint. That tandem reminds many Cavs fans today of their team’s current duo in Jarrett Allen and Even Mobley. For Daugherty, he finished his career averaging 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Over a four-season stretch from 1990 to 1994, he averaged over 20 points and 10 boards. During that impressive 1990-91 season, he never scored in single digits. He had 54 games of scoring 20 points or more, and he had 53 games of pulling down 10 rebounds or more. He’s had a career-high scoring 44 points in one game back in the 1987 season. He also had a 24-rebound game back in the 1990 season as well.
Daugherty made it on to five All-Star teams. He made the All-Rookie Team in 1986 and made the All-NBA 3rd Team back during the 1991 season as well. It was a great run for the big man that played at North Carolina in college.
Can current Cavs players like Mobley and Allen be the next Daugherty and Larry Nance? Time will tell, but the Cavaliers have been gifted over the years with some outstanding big men at, in this sense, the 4 and 5 positions.