The prospect of the Cavaliers landing another #1 overall pick would sicken the rest of the NBA. After losing Lebron, this is the only way the Cavaliers can win. In a small market like Cleveland and in a league dominated by free agency the draft remains the only path to viability.
General manager Koby Altman has proven his ability to manage a roster and the prospect of building a new team via free-agency is fools gold. Zion Williamson could instantly make the Cavaliers competitive in his first year and after adding another piece in the 2020 draft and freeing themselves of veteran contracts signed in the Lebron era, the Cavaliers would have a clear route to relevancy.
Now if you are wondering if this is another piece defending tanking, take a look at this and you’ll see that tanking often doesn’t work out. But how about tanking when you are merely one step away from the bottom when you are already trading places for the top lottery draw? At press time the Cavaliers have a record of 11-40 and the New York Knicks have one less win at 10-41. The Phoenix Suns also have only 11 wins so the Cavaliers appear to be locked into the top 3 picks in this year’s draft. Given that the Eastern conference is much improved over years past, potentially due to the fact that Lebron is now in the west, the Cavaliers will likely end up with a great chance of getting the #1 overall pick. So as we start February and march towards the sping and the playoffs, why not focus on next year? Why not give the majority of playing time to young players like Colin Sexton so that they can develop and the organization can figure out if the point-guard from Alabama can be a cornerstone or just another player.
The fact of the matter is that the hangover period and the post-lebroapocalyptic era of the Cavaliers is not going to be an easy pit from which to climb out. Zion to the Cavaliers could only be a starting point on a longer road back to competitive basketball. Let’s hope the trek to Zion goes as planned this offseason, but if the Cavs can’t land the freshman phenom it will only delay the inevitable rebuild that Lebron often leaves in the wake of his quest for greatness.