Fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers are understandably locked in as their team makes a run at 70 wins this season. The beauty of the offense and the joy of success make it hard to look away from what the Cavaliers are doing.
Yet if able, it might behoove Cleveland fans to take a tiny peak at college basketball and start to build an opinion on some of the players currently engaged in the chaotic perfection that is March Madness.
For those not plugged in, this week is "Conference Tournament" week, and on Sunday evening the NCAA Tournament bracket will be revealed. When it is, one team expected to earn a No. 1 seed is the Duke Blue Devils.
One of the biggest brands in college basketball, Duke sends talent to the NBA every single season. Former Blue Devil Jared McCain was the Rookie of the Year favorite before going down to injury. Two years ago Dereck Lively II went 10th overall and proved to be a steal, playing a major role for an NBA Finals team as a rookie. The year before that, Duke forward Paolo Banchero went first overall and won Rookie of the Year.
This season will be no different when it comes to elite talent, as the Blue Devils could have as many as three lottery picks. Cooper Flagg is essentially a lock to go No. 1, and both wing Kon Knueppel and center Khaman Maluach are expected to be lottery picks.
While the Cavaliers likely hope that Flagg ends up in the Western Conference on draft day, they otherwise have little connection to lottery-bound talent. They will finish with either the 29th or 30th pick in the NBA Draft, a pick that they also do not own, sent to Utah in the Donovan Mitchell trade.
Yet the Cavaliers do have a pair of draft picks in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft, and they have a glaring need to add inexpensive talent to the roster. They look like a lock to be over the second luxury tax apron next season with Evan Mobley on track to make 30 percent of the salary cap, and need to start building a reserve of players who can contribute over the next few seasons at a bargain price. That means veteran minimums, yes, but it certainly also means nailing some second round picks.
And while the Duke Blue Devils certainly feature some top-tier NBA talent, they are having an absolutely dominant season and it is driven by a deep team of basketball players. While they have a trio of lottery picks, they also have a trio of players projected to go in the second round. The Cavs seem like they will end up with their two picks in the 48-59 range, and could very reasonably have some Duke players to choose from.
With Flagg likely to miss time with an ankle injury, there will be opportunity in the coming days for other players to step up. Cavaliers fans, now is the time to tune into college basketball's biggest brand and see the players who just might be joining the best team in the NBA this summer.
No. 3: Sion James, Wing
Duke rebuilt their roster this past offseason by adding a large freshman class and also a trio of transfers, including Tulane guard/wing Sion James. He has elevated into the starting lineup and is a powerful two-way force for the Blue Devils.
James is steady as a ball-handler, not enough of a playmaker to be a point guard at the next level but he can do enough to attack defenses and is a problem in transition. His physicality is through the roof, he is strong and has an incredible motor. He looks like the type of player who could be a poor man's Lu Dort or Marcus Smart.
No. 2: Isaiah Evans, Wing
Sion James is built like a truck and struggles with his shot; Isaiah Evans is built like a string bean but may just be the best pure shooter in the draft class. While it took some time for the 6'6" Evans to earn his way into Jon Scheyer's rotation, he has been bombing away for months now and never looked back.
For the season, Evans is averaging just 14.2 minutes per game, but in that time is getting up 4.6 3-point attempts and hitting them at a sizzling 44.7 percent rate. Per 40 minutes that's 12.8 attempts on average, and 82 percent of his shots are from deep.
The Cavaliers took Emoni Bates a couple of years ago hoping to turn him into a movement shooter, but his other flaws were too great and he hasn't made his way out of the G League yet. Evans brings some of the same concerns as Bates, but he is a much better defender and has on-ball upside. A strong March may propel him too high up draft boards, but for now he is landing in the 40s on most draft boards.
No. 1: Tyrese Proctor, Guard
The old head on this Duke team, Australian guard Tyrese Proctor is in his third season with the Blue Devils. He has always played a more prominent role for Duke than his draft stock, but he resides on the fringes of draftability and many thought he would leave Duke prior to this year.
The most significant improvement for Proctor has been as a shooter; he is hitting 39 percent of his 3-pointers this season, up from 35.2 percent last season and 32 percent as a rookie. If that can continue, his playmaking and defense combine to form a long-term backup point guard in the NBA.
The Cavaliers may lose Ty Jerome this summer for financial reasons, so adding a guard alongside Craig Porter Jr. to back up Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell would make a lot of sense. Yet the shooting of Evans or the do-everything game of Sion James would as well.
Simply put, Duke is the only team with three potential draft options for the Cavaliers in one place, making it the perfect team to tune into over the next few weeks.