3 Cavs players that are now expendable after their recent moves

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Isaac Okoro, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images /

No. 3: Isaac Okoro

This one seems obvious. Isaac Okoro was never an offensive juggernaut, even since college. His shaky outside shooting has really hurt his game and his playing time, throughout his whole career. Sure, he shot a respectable 36.3% from distance this season, but for the most part, his jump shooting has always been flawed, and he’s never going to be a volume shooter from three.

With a starting lineup that has two non-shooters in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, if Okoro was a knockdown three-point shooter, he wouldn’t be in this conversation at all. In fact, if Okoro was a good shooter, he’d have signed a contract extension by now. Sadly, he is not a reliable jump shooter, and might not ever be, and his lack of progression in other offensive areas has been concerning as well.

Okoro’s role has fluctuated throughout his whole career, from being a starter, to a bench player, to a starter again, to sometimes barely playing in games. In the playoffs, Okoro rarely played against the New York Knicks. The Cavs thought that they could play better without him, and for one game, they really did. In the one game the Cavs won, Okoro played three minutes, and the Cavs beat New York by 17 points.

With Max Strus in Cleveland and Caris LeVert back on the team, Okoro’s role looks like it will be smaller than ever, and to be honest, he might not be in Cleveland come the 2024-25 season. In fairness, Okoro could have a solid and long NBA career, but Cleveland wouldn’t seem to be a part of his career for much longer. Okoro’s trade value has also plummeted, and his value around the league is likely different than how the Cavaliers value Okoro.

dark. Next. Should LeVert or Strus start at SF for Cavaliers?

Ricky Rubio, Dean Wade, and Isaac Okoro are all looking at less minutes to start the 2023-24 seasons because of the recent acquisitions from free agency. While they do have value as players in their own rights, because of the new signings, their roles might shrink on the Cavs, and they could even be moved on to other teams.