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June 22, 2015In the NBA Finals, the Golden State Warriors were the team with health on their side, but they also built an incredible amount of depth with a veteran bench that insultated them from losing a couple of players, foul trouble, or a lack of production1. Now, this isn’t to say the Cleveland Cavaliers could have built a bench to recover from the losses of Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving. But, at the bitter end, when anything was on the table, Coach David Blatt didn’t have enough confidence (or health) in Mike Miller, Shawn Marion, or Kendrick Perkins to call upon them for any type of spark or even just solid minutes to spell the likes of Dellavedova, Shumpert, and Thompson. How did Golden State acquire that depth and can the Cavaliers improve upon theirs working within their current cap restraints? Let’s examine.
The Warriors invested heavily in their bench over a two-year period. In the 2013 offseason, they signed-and-traded for Andre Iguodala (four years, $48 million) and Marreese Speights (mid-level exception of three years, $11 million). In the 2014 offseason, they signed Shaun Livingston (mid-level exception of three years, $16.6 million) and Leandro Barbosa (veteran minimum of $1.45 million) . Festus Ezeli was a 2012 draft pick (30th overall), and David Lee was a sign-and-trade with the Knicks for six years and nearly $80 million back in the summer of 2010. Through those different means, the Warriors supported a core of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Harrison Barnes (all drafted by Golden State), and were able to go 10 deep in the Finals by rotating and massaging those 10 to find 7-8 to play on a given night.
Barbosa gave them 13 points in Game 5 when the Cavaliers had to give up something and let somebody shoot it. David Lee gave them a spark in Games 3 and 4 with 20 points, nine rebounds, and five assists. Livingston scored 10 points in the closeout Game 6. Speights poured in a quick eight points in the series opener while the starters sat. And Iguodala, we know all too well, was inserted into the Game 4 starting lineup, changing the dynamic of the series and taking home Finals MVP.
Last summer, following the big catches of LeBron James and Kevin Love, the Cavaliers signed a host of veteran players in the offseason. They hoped the vets would contribute on the floor but also provide a strong voice in the locker room and change the culture of losing that had permeated for four straight seasons. Mike Miller, James Jones, and Shawn Marion all joined the team in the hopes that they would find regular rotation minutes and in turn help a young team find its way. Jones and Marion took the veteran minimum after being recruited by James, and Miller fit into the team’s cap room mid-level exception (one year, $2.7 million, with a player option for $2.9 million).
The least likely rotation player, the one-dimensional sharpshooter James Jones, turned out to be the one counted on the most in the heart of the postseason (15.6 minutes, 4.4 points, 34.4 percent from three). Marion (25 minutes in six postseason games) announced this year would be his last, and he battled a variety of injuries, including a calf injury that reportedly kept him off the floor even in the Cavs depleted state. Mike Miller (65 minutes in nine games) was pretty beaten up himself, but he managed to log some significant Finals floor time in Game 5.
What can the Cavaliers do to increase their depth next season? First, it’s hard for anybody to finish the playoffs with what amounts to a 10-man roster. I say this because in addition to the Marion injury, Brendan Haywood was only on the roster to be possibly dealt this offseason prior to August 1. Haywood, Perkins, and Marion were all essentially unusable, and none of them will be back. That’s 20 percent of dead weight being removed from the roster along with what you hope to be the key 20 percent (Irving, Love, Varejao) being more healthy next go-around.
Then, there’s Joe Harris. Harris played in 51 regular season games, averaging 9.7 minutes, 2.7 points, and shooting just under 37 percent from three-point range (31-for-84). Harris was in the rotation early in the season out of necessity, and if you go back and look at the first few games of the season, he was taking turns guarding Derrick Rose, Jeff Teague, and Tony Parker and holding his own for the most part. Harris will be 24 before next season tips off. He was a four-year player at defensive-minded Virginia and buried 263 threes at a nearly 41 percent clip over his four years. His size (6-6 and 225 pounds) is good enough to battle nearly anybody in the backcourt. While I understand how difficult it would have been to trust a rookie with critical minutes in the playoffs, I can’t help but think that if he was utilized a little more in the regular season down the stretch, he would’ve been a viable option to knock down kick-out threes and spell Shumpert and Dellavedova with fresh legs, even if it was only 5-8 minutes per game.
I hope the Cavaliers value the 24th pick in the draft, because I believe there are role players available at that spot that can help the Cavaliers next year and beyond. If it is packaged in a trade, it should be for someone able to make an instant difference as a seventh or eighth rotation player on the right side of 30 and under team control for the near future. Otherwise, make the selection and bolster the team’s depth and youth. There are several players that will be able to help the Cavalier backcourt (Utah point guard Delon Wright, Virginia guard/forward Justin Anderson, Georgia State guard R.J. Hunter) or frontcourt (Arizona forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Louisville forward Montrezl Harrell) that should be available. Wright, Anderson, and Hunter would all provide instant offensive boost off the bench, while Wright and Anderson have potential to make an impact on the other end. Hollis-Jefferson has the chance to be an elite defender, and Harrell has a Tristan-esque motor and a knack for interior play-making.
In addition to taking care of their own house (by bringing back Thompson, Shumpert, and at least one of Smith and Dellavedova, along with James and Love), the Cavs should be able to choose wisely with the help of James’ recruiting efforts on the veteran minimum market. James Jones seems like an easy choice for a return due to his relationship with James and his role in the playoffs. Mo Williams has reportedly expressed interest in returning to the Cavs, and for the right price, I think it’s a great idea. Williams did shoot a shade under 40 percent between Minnesota and Charlotte this year. Mo averaged 14 points and six assists in just over 29 minutes per contest. It’s a larger role than Williams should likely have entering his age-33 season with his defensive issues. In a third or fourth guard role off the bench, Williams and his career 37.9 percent three point (34.2 last season, 36.9 the year before in Portland) clip can help a bench unit in a big way. Mo’s a good ball handler, is willing to share the basketball, and is an elite free throw shooter.
Of course, I also wrote this back in February before Mo was dealt to Charlotte.
“Think back to 2009 and 2010. Think back to the player and fan favorite Mo Williams was. Sure, that Mo is not the player that the Cavaliers would be getting nor is it exactly the player that they need. Mo’s been taking over 11 shots per game on that putrid Minnesota team, so he can be counted on to keep putting shots up if he catches fire, but he would definitely not be getting that type of workload as the ninth man in the rotation.”
If the Cavs bring back everyone except Marion, Perkins, and Haywood, they’ll have room for one more player ((Possibly their 53rd pick, but not likely as I expect that to either be moved or used on an overseas selection.) in addition to the 24th pick and a Williams-type minimum free agent signing with their taxpayer MLE. Looking at the roster and assuming the Cavaliers don’t draft a big man, they should look to take on a fifth big man that is somewhat useful in case Varejao suffers another injury.
Building a bench in the NBA is all about casting a wide net and having one or two of those investments on the back end of the bench pay off when you need it. Just ask the Warriors.
- Hey there, Andrew Bogut. [↩]
16 Comments
I fully expect GM David Griffin to be active this summer tinkering with the team for next season.
And you didn’t even mention trading the Haywood contract, which they could to bring in a $7-13m player. So 1st-rounder, mid-level taxpayer exemption for someone like Gotti, and a quality rotation player that some team’s looking to unload for salary relief with BH’s crazy contract.
Okay, you mentioned trading the contract, just not the potential quality return.
Some guy on CBS radio said he would not be at all suprised if Wade ended up here. And another wouldnt be suprised ifnLove wasnt signed and packaged with a draft pick
Agree about wishing Joe Harris was able to handle a few playoff minutes, but when he was playing Blatt was under fire for not sticking to a rotation. The reduced rotation with the trade additions set the team on its push to the #2 seed, and when Harris did come in after that he looked pretyy overwhelmed.
And just disagree about a Mo Williams fit. First, Kyrie’s annual injuries imply that his back up will at some point leap frog his position as a scoring option up to maybe #3. Kyrie fractured his knee cap with almost incidental contact. He’s fractured his hand hitting a wall in frustration, fractured his nose, and on and on. If your back up is going against a premier opposing PG, it would be nice if he was a good defender, or a reliable scorer under pressure, or good ball handler. We disagree about his ball-handling (I remember it as surprisingly mediocre and bad when teams pressed) but he’s neither of the other two. I’d much rather have an all-around average, steady guy a la Ramon Sessions than “smoke bad opponents” Williams because he will probably play crucial minutes in a season when pressure to win a ring will be felt by all.
If we can get Sessions, great, but he is under contract next year with Washington for $2.2 million. I don’t see why they’d give him up. Sessions is also not a good defender. Mo is better than going back to the battle with just Delly, no?
I’m a fan of drafting Delon Wright if he’s there. Outside of that, I’m not sure what they can do better.
yeah, I just meant a jack of all/master of none player like Sessions, not Sessions himself. And I recognize that even these guys are in demand because it’s a PG league. And maybe I’m wrong in that with hand-checking rule changes even a 5 years older Mo has some of his deficiencies neutralized. But this year’s team went as far as it did because almost to a man each guy played to his potential under playoff pressure. Mo has clearly proven that he does not. We saw his alligator arms and his overwhelmed face and there’s nothing to indicare he’s changed.
Norris Cole with the MLE. Cavs almost had him twice in a pair of three team deals before trade deadline but both times the Heat nixed the deals when they found out the Cavs were involved.
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I’ve seen Norris Cole’s name tossed around. Honestly, besides being a Cleveland State alum, I don’t get the appeal of Norris Cole. He’s not a good enough ball-handler to run a pick-n-roll and he can’t score without help. His shooting percentages have never been good. He’s a solid defender, but not much else.
Mo Williams’ defense will kill the Cavs. It’s almost pointless to have him out there on D. I’d be OK with him as a 15th-man option only. You can go get Jamaal Crawford if you want a guy who can get hot and not play D.
Sometimes, being a solid defender is all you need. (ahem, Delly, ahem)
I’m not saying he isn’t a useful player in the NBA, but I don’t see how he fits what the Cavs need. In my opinion, the Cavs could use 1) A playmaker who can initiate offense (this is something David Griffin also said) 2) A shooter who can also guard the perimeter 3) A functional big man to replace Andy when he goes down with his annual injury. I just wouldn’t want to clog up a roster spot with Norris Cole given who is expected to return to the Cavs.
I think the problem is that the Cavs can’t even afford Jamal Crawford. They have a max of 3.4M to spend on a free agent using the taxpayer MLE, otherwise they only have veteran minimum deals. Even Mo Williams in his flawed imperfection was paid $3.75M by the Wolves/Hornets last season. He’s about the level of veteran player the Cavs can afford.
I’m really hoping that if they can limit Andy’s minutes (15-20 a night, tops), he can seriously reduce the occurance of injury. Sure would be a deep front line rotation.
Absolutely. That would be perfect. I honestly can’t even imagine how cool it would be to have a healthy Varejao in the playoffs. It seems so foreign.