Few members of the Cleveland Cavaliers have earned accolades such as All-Star or All-NBA. In total, 33 players throughout more than half a century have added to that list in franchise history.
The players who helped define decades and build a legacy in Cleveland basketball deserve to be remembered. While the team endured decades of hardship before winning an NBA title in 2016, NBA history would not be the same without the multitude of Cavs players who helped shape the modern league.
Bringing up past Cavaliers greats typically conjures memories of Mark Price, Brad Daugherty, John "Hot Rod" Williams or Larry Nance, Sr. It may also bring back the bitter thought of Ron Harper's trade from Cleveland to the Chicago Bulls, adding one of the best perimeter defenders to the Michael Jordan dynastic squad. Even beyond the shortlist of nineties greats, the talent discovered and cultivated with the Cavaliers is deep.
Looking back to the short era after Mark Price and before LeBron James, Cleveland had one of the most talented point guards in the Association who is often forgotten among his fellow greats.
Terrell Brandon was the real deal in Cleveland
Former Cavaliers point guard Terrell Brandon played for the franchise from 1991 until 1997. For the first years of his Cleveland tenure, Brandon came off the bench behind Price, serving as the go-to bench guard for the team. He was a steady presence in both the regular season and playoffs, proving himself to be a quick and talented two-way guard.
Once Price left the Cavs for the Washington Bullets, Brandon flourished as the starting one guard for the next two seasons. In both of his starting years with the Cavaliers, he earned an All-Star appearance and averaged nearly 20 points per game. In the 1995-96 season, he even earned votes for MVP, though he ranked 16th in the final tally as Jordan took home the trophy.
Standing at just 5-foot-11, it was Brandon's crafty ball-handling, determined scoring and intelligent playmaking that made him a true phenom on the hardwood. Though he never was inducted into the Naishmith Basketball Hall of Fame, Brandon's legacy was hardly forgettable. In 1997, Sports Illustrated featured the Cavalier star on the cover of the magazine, dubbing him "The Best Point Guard in the NBA". While that moniker was an exaggeration to emphasize his prominence, a guard with his physical frame scoring more than 19 points and six assists per game for two seasons is a tremendous feat.
By the time Brandon was leading the charge in Cleveland, the rest of the old guard such as Price and Daugherty had left. In a sense, he was the lone star trying to will the Cavaliers to stay relevant. He led his squad to the 1996 playoffs, averaging 19.3 points and eight assists through the short three-game defeat in the first round.
Brandon left the Cavs in 1997 and the Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves before his final season in 2002. In total, Brandon's two All-Star years with the Cavaliers were his only appearances, but they were the culmination of years of loyal hard work to the franchise and a wildly-talented prime.
While his time with the Cavaliers was before many modern fans were involved or even born, myself included, Brandon's influence on the franchise is undeniable. He is included on the Cavs' Wall of Fame inside of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and is arguably the greatest player in team history to wear the number one. He was also inducted in the University of Oregon athletics Hall of Fame.
In total, Terrell Brandon symbolizes the Cleveland Cavaliers' undying pursuit to compete among the best teams and biggest markets across the league. Despite being in the lower half in terms of market size or general popularity, the snowy paradise of Cleveland, Ohio always finds a way to be a prominent fixture of NBA discussion and competition. Brandon is one of the many names who deserves to be recognized for important contributions to that cause.