Cavs might be the new worst Front Office in the league

While I agree that they are not the picks I would have gone with, I'm not going to say a smart GM would have taken Jonas quite yet. Jonas hasn't even played yet, either. He could just be okay, too. And Waiters could turn out great.

Again, like you all, I personally would prefer Kyrie, Jonas, TRob/Barnes combo, but I don't think you can make any definitive judgments at this time.

 

I was taken aback when they picked Dion over Barnes

 

If I were a Cavs fan I would be pretty pissed right now, knowing that we could have had Jonas Valančiūnas and Thomas Robinson to team with Irving instead of Tristan Thompson and Dion Waiters.

I think Robinson and Valančiūnas could complement each other very well offensively. Defensively, they'd need some work. But still, if you have two guys who can (potentially) score while posting up, you're on you're way to making an impact in the league.

Thompson was a great hustle player at UT, and he can be useful in the right situation. But he was a reach. So was Waiters.

 

Valanciuas- Robinson-Irving would have been really good.

 

Obviously the would-have-been #4 (Tristan Thompson) trade for Rudy "Durant level" Gay not going through is what killed them.

 

Brian Windhorst did an excellent piece on ESPN about the Cavaliers' draft strategy, that clearly stated the Cavaliers had Waiters over Barnes, that they'd been scouting him extensively and had a personal connection with the Syracuse coaching staff. I think that it's very clear that Waiters was the #4 prospect on Cleveland's big board, and they had some reliable intel that there was nowhere they could trade down to where they could still get their man.

My working assumption is that Sacramento was only interested in Thomas Robinson, and that if he was off the board it would trigger a trade with Houston, who would pick up Andre Drummond, assuming that Beal/MKG go 3/4. Lillard goes 6, Waiters goes 7 and Barnes goes 8. Detroit trades down to get John Henson, potentially shipping their pick to someone who wants Austin Rivers, which causes the Hornets to move their pick for someone who wants Jeremy Lamb, etc.

Agents play these games all the time, and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It's just a fact, and it happens to even some of the best GMs. Nic Batum refused to work out for anyone but the Spurs, but the Trailblazers got a heck of a player. Robert Swift's agent managed to hoodwink Danny Ainge, and were the Sonics not even more enamored with his lack of workouts, Garnett isn't a Celtic. Arn Tellum steered Kobe Bryant from the Nets in even more forceful language. He's been pretty decent. It's just another layer of crap that GMs have to wade through.

Again, while I personally don't agree with the scouting department of the Cavs, there was definitely a method in their drafting process for getting the guys they want, even if those guys might not turn out to be the right ones.

 

The Cavs could have had a core of Kyrie Irving-Harrison Barnes-Jonas Valanciunas. You take the promising, defensive Center over the undersized Power Forward every day of the week.

I'm not even a Cavaliers fan and even I'm upset about their previous 2 drafts.

 

exactly, i dont feel bad for the Cavs FO. I feel bad for the Clevand fans, and Kyrie Irving. You have 2 insanely high draft choices, and you take a RAW undersized PF, and a non-athletic undersized 2 guard( who reminds me more of DeShawn Stevenson.. than D-Wade)

This is why LeBron left that team. I hope Kyrie doesnt do it, for the sake of the Cavs fans

 

Well there is a reason why lebron left.

 

There's not a single thing wrong with that Tristan Thompson pick... especially in that incredibly mediocre draft.

Dion Waiters is a question mark right now, I would have taken Barnes there, but it's way too early to tell.

 

Is it true Dion Waiters never started a game in college?

Edit- Lol, it's true! 71 college games, 0 starts.

http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/dion-waiters-1/gamelog/2011/

http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/dion-waiters-1/gamelog/2012/

 

No, I don't think there's anything wrong with that. But I also think people overrate Valanciunas.

Andre Drummond is a better C prospect IMO.

 

He was playing starters minutes in 2012 though. That's the part that counts.

 

Called it.

 

Uhhh what?! I agree with Waiters being super overrated and horrible pick, but he played in the Big East. Before all the conference realignment occurs, this is arguably the most competitive college bball conference in the nation along with the ACC.

 

Last year instead of Thompson, Jonas Valanciunas would be a great pickup instead. They would have a PG and a Center for the future but instead, they went ahead and drafted an undersized PF who would probably end up like another Tyrus Thomas. Drafting an undersized PF that high up in the draft would most likely come out a bust considering a Center with more upside and more talent was still on the board.

This season, they drafted Waiters who I think isn't that bad but because they drafted him that high up would probably be another bad pick on their part. To me, I believe that if you're that high up in the draft especially top 4, you would pick the best talent available and trust me, Waiters is not the best talent left available. It would of make much more sense if they would of draft Harrison Barnes who has the sizes, skills and potential to be a really good SF in the NBA.

Barnes's stock did drop a little from last season but he is still a top 5 talent. He has the potential to be a really good player in this league. If the Cavs really did wanted Waiters, they could of traded down anyway and still be able to draft him and have a chance to add on more pieces. I also think Austin Rivers is better than Waiters. Dion Waiters may be a good slasher but I think Austin Rivers is a better overall scorer than Waiters and I really think Waiters have a problem with his weight issue. Its worst because he's a guard and a young rookie which makes it even more of a red flag.

I much rather draft Damian Lillard over Waiters and have him play the SG position. But overall, aside from Kyrie, the Cavs didn't do a good job in drafting their young talent. If Kyrie wasn't as much of a sure thing to go first in the lottery, they probably wouldn't even drafted him in the first place. But that's why they are the Cavs. They just got lucky to have two number 1 overall pick within 9 years and in both of those years, a Lebron and Kyrie came out.

 

That is nice but instead they got a good PG in Kyrie and an undersized PF in Tristan and Waiters