Regret No. 3: Signing Georges Niang
Georges Niang was signed this summer as part of a push for increased spacing. There was no doubting his track record as a shooter, as the stretch-4 hit 40 percent or more of his 3-pointers in each of the last five seasons. The potential problem was with everything else; if the shot wasn't falling, Niang brought precious little else to the table to help the Cavaliers win basketball games.
20 games in and the shot has been mediocre, with Niang hitting 34.8 percent of his 4.5 attempts per game. Perhaps influenced by his below-average shooting, Niang has been stepping inside the arc more often than he has in six years, shooting just 59.3 percent of his shots from deep. He's been fine from 2-point range, but the Cavs signed him to be a long-range gunner.
Using their remaining resources this summer on Niang and backup guard Ty Jerome (who hasn't played since the second game of the season due to injury) prevented the Cavs from signing a two-way forward to fill minutes. Could they have landed Grant Williams for the contract that he signed in Dallas? What about Kelly Oubre Jr. for more than the minimum he signed for in Philadelphia? Torrey Craig also signed for the minimum.
The Cavaliers are not going to reach the mountain top by loading up on one-way players; they have been weighed down by those types of players for the past two seasons. They need players who can fill their role, keep defenses honest and hold up against opposing offenses. Even when Niang's shot comes around, he won't be a difference-maker on defense. There were better swings to take this summer, but by elevating one need, the Cavs appear to have opened up others.