Double Dose of Double-A: Akron Aeros Bi-Weekly Review – 6/7/09
June 7, 2009While We’re Waiting… Magic Fall to 0-2, Florida Gator Arrests, and more Cavs Free Agent Rumors
June 8, 2009With no other sports news to indulge in during this first weekend in June, I decided to take a look at some of the possibilities for the Cavaliers in the NBA Draft this season. Patrick McMamanon broke down earlier today the needs for the Cavs as they head into the post-season, and I couldn’t agree more with his assessment. Thus, when looking at our possibilities in this year’s June Draft which is scheduled for Thursday, June 25 the options are relatively clear: low-post scoring option, athletic defending guard or future ball-handler.
Over the past years the Cavaliers have found a way to do decently well in the draft, selecting key role players such as Daniel Gibson, JJ Hickson and company, but have failed to retain the truly impressive steals such as Shannon Brown and Carlos Boozer. Cleveland currently owns the 30th and 46th picks in this year’s draft, which I would not be surprised if they were turned into a trade for a higher selection, but nonetheless here are six players that different mock drafts currently have going to the Cavs this season:
Taj Gibson, PF USC – This junior forward with a knack for inside scoring averaged 14.3 points and 9.0 rebounds for the Trojans this season. At 6-9 and 210 pounds he is a low-scorer unlike the Cavs have on this team, and he is old for his grade in college (23 years) and thus seems to be a more polished threat in the paint than last year’s first rounder Hickson. A selection of Gibson would signal that the Cavs are done with the Hickson experiment, and are looking to stockpile athletic and versatile scoring options in the paint that could blossom into something special, or even package a trade for something even bigger. The lack of big-time low-post scorers at this section of the draft hurts the Cavs, and makes Gibson a pretty legitimate choice.
DaJuan Summers, SF Georgetown – If the Cavaliers are looking to draft another potential guy, here is a 21-year-old junior from Georgetown who really has not blossomed into all that scouts thought he would be. In averaging 13.6 points and 4.1 rebounds a game for the underperforming Hoyas, he proved that he is not worthy of a lottery selection like some had previously thought, but still could be an intriguing NBA prospect. He stands at 6-8, 241, giving him a much more physical presence than any of the other versatile forwards in this part of the draft. He certainly has the NBA body and good shot, but scouts have torn him up in the past for his ball-handling skills and lack of any kind of toughness. With LeBron, I wonder if those toughness question marks go away, but regardless he is a very interesting prospect in the Cavs choose to go this way.
Sam Young, SF Pittsburgh – A highly athletic forward who was on the national stage all season-long for the Panthers, Young averaged 19.2 points and 6.3 rebounds in 31.8 minutes per game. He was a premier scoring option on every position for his uber-talented team, and would be a huge lift for a Cavaliers bench that looked downright awful in the playoffs against the Magic. His ball-handling skills may be limited, but at 6-6, 210 he has the ability to back guys down in the paint and score from anywhere on the court. He is also old for his grade at 24, and does not really have a position on the court as an under-sized forward, but would be a big-time offensive threat off the bench for any team.
Derrick Brown, SF Xavier – As a Dayton student, I saw Brown in person this season and could tell you that his shooting ability at 6-7 is unbelievable for the college game. If he can get some work on the boards and in overall hustle on the court, he could truly be something special considering he is still only 21-years-old. He has a skinny frame at 225, but is long, athletic and excellent wingspan. Unfortunately, his all-around offensive game is not quite so impressive and he averaged 13.7 points, 6.1 rebounds yet only 1.9 assists per game. He has big-time offensive potential written all over him, and to see him and LeBron the court together making shots from all over the place would be an absolute treat.
Wayne Ellington, SG North Carolina – Another guy that was on the big-time national stage with the Tar Heels all season long, Ellington is an elite scorer who played on a team that was loaded with the best scorers in the nation. He averaged 15.8 points per game thanks to 41.7% shooting from threes, proving that he is a pure scorer from the shooting guard position. He stands at 6-5, meaning that he would be an upgrade in terms of size of Delonte West or Boobie Gibson, but he still is not the physical defender that Mike Brown loves from his guards. He is a finesse type player like Gibson who would need LeBron or someone to create offensively for him, and would not be able to create his own shot off the bench, a serious need for the Cavs this off-season.
Patrick Mills, SG St. Mary’s – One of the best go-to scorers in the nation, Mills missed significant time this season for the Gaels yet was still able to put up some gaudy numbers in averaging 18.4 points and 3.9 assists per game. His shot failed him when he attempted to come back from a hand injury at the end of the season, as St. Mary’s missed out on the NCAA Tournament and even the NIT Final Four. Despite this, there is no doubting his ability as an offensive weapon off the bench, the likes of which are seldom seen as a guard in the NBA. The only problems with his potential are his lack of a position (shooting guard or not very distributing point guard?) and his ability to choose the right shot every single time. At 6-0 he does not help our problem of size at the guard position, but is still a premier scorer off the bench.
Rodrigue Beaubois, PG France – Another intriguing prospect who has size, speed and athleticism but has times where he is not the very most consistent point guard. This 6-2, 21-year-old is just starting to emerge on the draft scene and thus has not really had the scouting most other prospects like Mills have had. Just looking at the reports, it seems that he is truly gifted offensively and could be an interesting long-term international guard with ability much like a Jose Calderon, Tony Parker or Beno Udrih before they got really good. He certainly has the offensive talent and size for a point guard that would be very helpful off the bench, but only time will tell if this international player has what it takes to be successful for the long-run in the NBA.
20 Comments
Taj Gibson would be my pick. Or Patty Mills. Gibson is a great low post scorer, and is used to playing second fiddle after playing behind O.J. Mayo and then DeRozen, which is something he will need to do in the NBA. And Patty Mills plays like Mo Williams, with similar defense, but like the article states he hasn’t developed the timing to pick the right shot all of the time. Both picks I would love
I think we should look at that Griffin kid from Oklahoma. He seems like he’d fit in pretty well with our needs.
Taj Gibson played at USC, as #1 alluded to, not Texas. And I like Summers. It worked out pretty well the last time we drafted a 6’8″ 240 lb small forward, so let’s try it again. If nothing else, he could give Lewis or Turkoglu a much harder time than they had against the Cavs this year.
I vote for that Griffin kid too. I think he did alright in college.
Griffin would be a nice 2nd round pick for the Cavs.
With the way the Clippers frontcounter is loaded and the way Donald Sterling loves to screw his own franchise, who says the number one pick couldn’t be had? đ
Er, frontcourt. Sorry.
shannon brown was a truly impressive steal???
thought the same thing #8
i’m french so i knowa little bit about beaubois. He has blossomed this year in a quite good scorer but he can be streaky and inconsistent at times. And he is not a true point guard since he has played the SG position this year, where he was the most effective. For me he looks like a worse version of mo on offense but better on defense! Even though he’ll be drafted this year, i think it’d be wise to let him play in europe one or 2 other years. But he has a chance to be a very solid player.
i know its not the topic but according to the boston Globe the knicks are willing to do a sign and trade with David Lee in order to clear cap space. I think the cavs should definitely try to get him. Even though he’s a little bit undersized, he’s very active and efficient and could be the playr that we’ve been looking for, don’t you think?
since when was shannon brown a truly impressive steal? he STUNK for us!
I think they were being sarcastic.
We don’t do sarcasm here fellas, just the facts.
And sarcasm.
But honestly, I don’t know if JR was being surrrius or not.
I was being serious actually everyone. Shannon Brown has been a very productive option off the bench for the Lakers in the post-season thus far. Say what you want about his career with the Cavaliers, he has averaged 5.2 points in 13.7 minutes off the bench in 20 games during the playoffs. In addition, he put up 7.2 points per game in the Utah series and 6.0 in the Houston series.
Sure he may be under-sized at the guard position, but I think he is turning into a very decent contributor off the bench for the best team in the NBA right now. At only 23 years old, I believe he has a bright future ahead of him, and the Cavs should be upset about not giving him ample opportunities to succeed here in Cleveland.
you are crazy if you think shannon brown was a better pick or more of a “steal” than someone like daniel gibson. remember that one time we beat detroit in the conference finals? shannon brown happens to have a pulse, which is more than Jordan Farmar or Derek Fisher can say half the time. brown is also fortunate to play with Kobe Bryant who can take care of most of the ball handling issues to mask his inability to caretake the ball.
so yes, if we still had eric snow playing point guard for us and had one of the best 2-guards in NBA history on our roster Shannon Brown might be someone we would still want our roster. That Brown is getting serious minutes in the NBA finals is not something that makes Phil Jackson happy, im guessing he sees it as an unfortunate necessity.
shannon brown and carlos boozer should not be included in the same sentence when it comes to late draft steals. boozer? absolutey. brown? – not even close.
the position that brown plays for the lakers’ triangle offense basically requires athleticism and an inkling of know-how. this is the same offense and position that smush parker was moderately successful in. brown comes in off the bench and gives moderate minutes. he, however, would be completely replaceable with about any other mid-size PG/SG with super-athleticism. chances are thats what will happen this offseason. there wont be teams lining up to sign shannon brown when he is a free agent.
besides – if im not mistaken – brown’s contract was needed in that huge trade last year to make the numbers work. if it took sacrificing shannon brown in order to dump larry hughes, ill make that trade again every day of the week and twice on sunday.
The way Shannon Brown has been playing compared to the way Daniel Gibson has been playing, I think I would take Brown. He can create his own shot off the bench, and has actually shown some life when it matters most recently. Opposing teams have figured out Gibson and I really don’t think he will blossom into something all that special at all.
Great article, but there is no way that Wayne Ellington is 6-5.
[…] wasn’t all that long ago that I wrote the first part of my Cavaliers Draft Preview, and here I am back again with a list of seven new prospects the team […]