The Cleveland Cavaliers were the top team in the East last year, and they’re going to be fighting for a playoff spot this season. But not long ago, they were battling to escape the gallows of the conference, and a trade for Donovan Mitchell helped them do so. But one of the guys they traded for Mitchell, Ochai Agbaji, is currently falling apart with no signs of recovery.
Cleveland selected Agbaji with the No. 14 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. He was slated to be a solid 3-and-D piece alongside Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen. But that idea didn’t last long. On September 3, just a few months after he was drafted, Agbaji was traded to the Utah Jazz in the package that brought Mitchell to Cleveland.
However, things haven’t gone too well for Agbaji as of late.
Ochai Agbaji has been struggling this season
Agbaji didn’t end up spending very long in Utah. He played one full season there, but in his sophomore year in the NBA, he was traded a second time. This time, to the Toronto Raptors.
He and Kelly Olynyk were traded to Toronto in exchange for the first-round pick that became Isaiah Collier, as well as a couple of filler pieces (Otto Porter Jr. and Kira Lewis Jr.).
Agbaji struggled to shoot the ball in his first half season with the Raptors, but by the 2024-25 campaign, he found a rhythm. He was playing heavy minutes for Toronto and shooting the ball very well.
In 64 appearances last season (45 starts), Agbaji played 27.2 minutes per contest. He averaged 10.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists while shooting 49.8% from the field and 39.9% from deep on 4.0 three-point attempts per contest.
Everything was looking up for Agbaji. And this year, the Raptors are fighting for home-court advantage in the Eastern Conference. Unfortunately, Agbaji hasn’t been as critical to their success.
Rather than building on his successful 2024-25 campaign, Agbaji has completely fallen apart this season. His efficiency splits have fallen off a cliff, as he’s shooting just 41.1% from the field and 19.7% from deep on 1.9 three-point attempts per contest.
As a result, his minutes have been slashed. He’s only playing 16.4 minutes per game. A big part of that has been Brandon Ingram’s addition to the rotation, but still, if Agbaji were still shooting nearly 40% from deep, he would undoubtedly be playing more.
In just a few years, Agbaji has gone from lottery pick, to trade piece, to emerging young wing, to trade candidate once again.