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http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...iers-survive-with-smoke-and-mirrors-at-center
Size and shooting are two things every basketball team can't get enough of.
While the Cleveland Cavaliers helped shore up their outside marksmanship this offseason, another big man (or two) would be a welcome addition.
While power forward is locked down with Kevin Love, Tristan Thompson and Shawn Marion (at times), center remains a glaring weakness on the roster.
With so much talent stacked at other positions, can the Cavs really begin the season with their center situation as is, or is adding another player necessary for Cleveland to be a legitimate title contender?
Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press
What the Cavaliers Have
Anderson Varejao headlines an underwhelming group at the 5 spot.
Varejao is a very capable starter—when healthy, that is. Even without his injury concerns, depth would be an issue.
Brendan Haywood and Alex Kirk are the only other centers on the Cavaliers roster. Haywood missed all of last season with a fractured foot and isn't expected to be ready for the start of training camp says Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Kirk went undrafted this summer before joining the Cavs' summer league team.
Starting with the positive, Varejao is an excellent fit next to ball-dominant players like LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love and Dion Waiters. Varejao's strengths have always been rebounding the ball, doing the dirty work and playing defense. After sticking with the Cavaliers the past four years, he should be just fine with whatever role Cleveland chooses, so long as the team ends their recent losing ways.
While he's been great on the floor, Varejao has spent even more time on the trainer's table the last four seasons. He's missed a total of 166 games with various injuries while playing in just 146. With no strong backup behind him, Varejao would be forced into heavy minutes yet again. Cleveland needs to preserve the soon-to-be 32 year old as much as possible.
Haywood was brought on board because of his $10 million non-guaranteed contract for next season. Anything he gives them on the court is strictly a bonus.
Rocky Widner/Getty Images
Now 34 and coming off a missed season, what can Haywood realistically contribute? The last time he played consistently in 2012-13 with the Charlotte Bobcats, Haywood averaged just 3.5 points and 4.8 rebounds in 19 minutes of play. If there's one bright spot, it's that Haywood has been a strong rim protector when healthy. He owns a lifetime average of 1.4 blocks per game.
Kirk is a big unknown.
An undrafted rookie from New Mexico, Kirk averaged 10.0 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in three years with the Lobos. Cleveland liked his size and defensive ability enough to invite Kirk to the summer league. Through inconsistent playing time and with just one start, Kirk put up 5.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.4 blocks per 15.4 minutes in his five games.
At 7'0" and nearly 250 pounds, Kirk does give the Cavs some much-needed size inside. He was a shot-blocking extraordinaire while in college, collecting 2.7 rejections a game this past season.
Kirk is a fine young player and all, but the thought of him as the primary backup to Varejao should Haywood miss time is a bit terrifying. While he would have fit in perfectly the last four years with a rebuilding squad, this is a team with serious championship aspirations.
Heaven forbid should something happen to Varejao, could Cleveland still claim a title giving big minutes to an undrafted rookie? Love and Thompson could fill in for stretches, but they should primarily be entrenched at their natural position of power forward.
The Cavaliers need some better insurance behind Varejao, bad.
Available Help
Cleveland can either look to the free-agent pool or trade block to acquire some additional help.
One early rumor from ESPN's Brian Windhorst states that the Cavs have been pursuing Denver Nuggets center Timofey Mozgov.
The move makes a lot of sense, as Mozgov already knows coach David Blatt from Blatt's time coaching the Russian national team.
He has excellent size at 7'1" and is coming off a career year for the Nuggets. Per 36 minutes of play, Mozgov put up 15.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. Denver has some depth in the frontcourt with Kenneth Faried, JaVale McGee, J.J. Hickson and 2014 first-round pick Jusuf Nurkic.
Cleveland could certainly offer some of their non-guaranteed contracts (John Lucas III, Erik Murphy) and a draft pick to entice Denver into making a deal.
When looking at the list of free agents, some veteran names are available.
The best big is probably Emeka Okafor, although he's still recovering from a herniated disk that caused him to miss the 2013-14 season.
Ned Dishman/Getty Images
Marc Stein of ESPN had this to say about the nine-year vet:
Roughly half of the league, I'm told, has registered interest this summer in Okafor, despite the fact that the 31-year-old free agent missed all of the 2013-14 season while recovering from a serious neck ailment.
The list of pursuers for the defensive-minded center, according to NBA front office sources, includes LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers as well as LeBron's old friends in Miami.
But I'm likewise told that Okafor is unlikely to sign anywhere until midseason as he continues to recover from his herniated disk.
Okafor would be a great signing, but he brings a variety of risks.
What kind of player will he be coming off so much missed time? Can Cleveland afford to wait months into the season without a reliable backup to Varejao?
Some lower-risk yet lower-reward players include Kenyon Martin, Elton Brand and Andray Blatche. Andrew Bynum is also a free age...wait, what? That didn't go so well last time? Never mind then.
Whatever route they choose to go, GM David Griffin needs to acquire another big through whatever means necessary.
Importance of the Center Position
The Cavs have James, Love and Irving. They could bring Brad Daugherty out of retirement and still be OK, right?
Despite all of their star power, Cleveland shouldn't overlook what's a crucial position in the NBA.
Teams need to be able to control the paint, whether it be rebounding, scoring high-percentage baskets or protecting the rim.
Eric Gay/Associated Press
Successful teams like the Spurs always possess a strong frontcourt.
Defense is especially important.
Consider this: 11 of the top 12 defensive frontcourts last season came from teams that made the playoffs, via Hoopstats.com. Of the bottom seven teams, only one (the Los Angles Clippers) reached the postseason.
The same trend holds true for defensive rebounding. Those who kept their opponents off the glass were typically the most successful, with six of the top seven squads reaching the playoffs. The three teams at the bottom of the list (Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks) were a combined 61-185 in 2013-14.
There's something to be said for having big men that can do some scoring as well.
The two Finals teams last season, the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat, both ranked in the top five of frontcourt field-goal percentage. All of the top eight teams in this category advanced to the postseason. Eight of the bottom 10 did not.
Even with their dominance of the Eastern Conference the past four years, the Miami Heat had a major weakness at center. They struggled in the playoffs when facing teams with strong, talented frontcourts.
The Dallas Mavericks beat up on the Heat and claimed the 2011 title by using Dirk Nowitzki and Tyson Chandler. Roy Hibbert and David West forced Miami to seven games in the 2013 Eastern Conference Finals. Tim Duncan and Boris Diaw bullied the Heat's bigs to win this year's Finals in just five games.
Miami was so desperate for help inside that they experimented with a revolving door of players like Joel Anthony, Juwan Howard, Erick Dampier, Jamaal Magloire, Dexter Pittman, Ronny Turiaf, Eddy Curry and Greg Oden. Finally, the Heat had to raise the white flag and move Chris Bosh to center instead.
Nathaniel S. Butler/Getty Images
Miami never found a reliable big man next to Bosh
For all of Miami's star power, they failed to balance their roster and were stuck with an Achilles' heel at center.
The Cavaliers should learn from this mistake.
Varejao is great. His backups, not so much.
Cleveland doesn't necessarily need another star player at center, but they definitely can't stand pat with the roster as is.
The Cavs are in for a special year. They shouldn't let one position drag them down.
Size and shooting are two things every basketball team can't get enough of.
While the Cleveland Cavaliers helped shore up their outside marksmanship this offseason, another big man (or two) would be a welcome addition.
While power forward is locked down with Kevin Love, Tristan Thompson and Shawn Marion (at times), center remains a glaring weakness on the roster.
With so much talent stacked at other positions, can the Cavs really begin the season with their center situation as is, or is adding another player necessary for Cleveland to be a legitimate title contender?
What the Cavaliers Have
Anderson Varejao headlines an underwhelming group at the 5 spot.
Varejao is a very capable starter—when healthy, that is. Even without his injury concerns, depth would be an issue.
Brendan Haywood and Alex Kirk are the only other centers on the Cavaliers roster. Haywood missed all of last season with a fractured foot and isn't expected to be ready for the start of training camp says Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Kirk went undrafted this summer before joining the Cavs' summer league team.
Starting with the positive, Varejao is an excellent fit next to ball-dominant players like LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love and Dion Waiters. Varejao's strengths have always been rebounding the ball, doing the dirty work and playing defense. After sticking with the Cavaliers the past four years, he should be just fine with whatever role Cleveland chooses, so long as the team ends their recent losing ways.
While he's been great on the floor, Varejao has spent even more time on the trainer's table the last four seasons. He's missed a total of 166 games with various injuries while playing in just 146. With no strong backup behind him, Varejao would be forced into heavy minutes yet again. Cleveland needs to preserve the soon-to-be 32 year old as much as possible.
Haywood was brought on board because of his $10 million non-guaranteed contract for next season. Anything he gives them on the court is strictly a bonus.
Now 34 and coming off a missed season, what can Haywood realistically contribute? The last time he played consistently in 2012-13 with the Charlotte Bobcats, Haywood averaged just 3.5 points and 4.8 rebounds in 19 minutes of play. If there's one bright spot, it's that Haywood has been a strong rim protector when healthy. He owns a lifetime average of 1.4 blocks per game.
Kirk is a big unknown.
An undrafted rookie from New Mexico, Kirk averaged 10.0 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in three years with the Lobos. Cleveland liked his size and defensive ability enough to invite Kirk to the summer league. Through inconsistent playing time and with just one start, Kirk put up 5.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 0.4 blocks per 15.4 minutes in his five games.
At 7'0" and nearly 250 pounds, Kirk does give the Cavs some much-needed size inside. He was a shot-blocking extraordinaire while in college, collecting 2.7 rejections a game this past season.
Kirk is a fine young player and all, but the thought of him as the primary backup to Varejao should Haywood miss time is a bit terrifying. While he would have fit in perfectly the last four years with a rebuilding squad, this is a team with serious championship aspirations.
Heaven forbid should something happen to Varejao, could Cleveland still claim a title giving big minutes to an undrafted rookie? Love and Thompson could fill in for stretches, but they should primarily be entrenched at their natural position of power forward.
The Cavaliers need some better insurance behind Varejao, bad.
Available Help
Cleveland can either look to the free-agent pool or trade block to acquire some additional help.
One early rumor from ESPN's Brian Windhorst states that the Cavs have been pursuing Denver Nuggets center Timofey Mozgov.
The move makes a lot of sense, as Mozgov already knows coach David Blatt from Blatt's time coaching the Russian national team.
He has excellent size at 7'1" and is coming off a career year for the Nuggets. Per 36 minutes of play, Mozgov put up 15.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. Denver has some depth in the frontcourt with Kenneth Faried, JaVale McGee, J.J. Hickson and 2014 first-round pick Jusuf Nurkic.
Cleveland could certainly offer some of their non-guaranteed contracts (John Lucas III, Erik Murphy) and a draft pick to entice Denver into making a deal.
When looking at the list of free agents, some veteran names are available.
The best big is probably Emeka Okafor, although he's still recovering from a herniated disk that caused him to miss the 2013-14 season.
Marc Stein of ESPN had this to say about the nine-year vet:
Roughly half of the league, I'm told, has registered interest this summer in Okafor, despite the fact that the 31-year-old free agent missed all of the 2013-14 season while recovering from a serious neck ailment.
The list of pursuers for the defensive-minded center, according to NBA front office sources, includes LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers as well as LeBron's old friends in Miami.
But I'm likewise told that Okafor is unlikely to sign anywhere until midseason as he continues to recover from his herniated disk.
Okafor would be a great signing, but he brings a variety of risks.
What kind of player will he be coming off so much missed time? Can Cleveland afford to wait months into the season without a reliable backup to Varejao?
Some lower-risk yet lower-reward players include Kenyon Martin, Elton Brand and Andray Blatche. Andrew Bynum is also a free age...wait, what? That didn't go so well last time? Never mind then.
Whatever route they choose to go, GM David Griffin needs to acquire another big through whatever means necessary.
Importance of the Center Position
The Cavs have James, Love and Irving. They could bring Brad Daugherty out of retirement and still be OK, right?
Despite all of their star power, Cleveland shouldn't overlook what's a crucial position in the NBA.
Teams need to be able to control the paint, whether it be rebounding, scoring high-percentage baskets or protecting the rim.
Successful teams like the Spurs always possess a strong frontcourt.
Defense is especially important.
Consider this: 11 of the top 12 defensive frontcourts last season came from teams that made the playoffs, via Hoopstats.com. Of the bottom seven teams, only one (the Los Angles Clippers) reached the postseason.
The same trend holds true for defensive rebounding. Those who kept their opponents off the glass were typically the most successful, with six of the top seven squads reaching the playoffs. The three teams at the bottom of the list (Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks) were a combined 61-185 in 2013-14.
There's something to be said for having big men that can do some scoring as well.
The two Finals teams last season, the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat, both ranked in the top five of frontcourt field-goal percentage. All of the top eight teams in this category advanced to the postseason. Eight of the bottom 10 did not.
Even with their dominance of the Eastern Conference the past four years, the Miami Heat had a major weakness at center. They struggled in the playoffs when facing teams with strong, talented frontcourts.
The Dallas Mavericks beat up on the Heat and claimed the 2011 title by using Dirk Nowitzki and Tyson Chandler. Roy Hibbert and David West forced Miami to seven games in the 2013 Eastern Conference Finals. Tim Duncan and Boris Diaw bullied the Heat's bigs to win this year's Finals in just five games.
Miami was so desperate for help inside that they experimented with a revolving door of players like Joel Anthony, Juwan Howard, Erick Dampier, Jamaal Magloire, Dexter Pittman, Ronny Turiaf, Eddy Curry and Greg Oden. Finally, the Heat had to raise the white flag and move Chris Bosh to center instead.
Miami never found a reliable big man next to Bosh
For all of Miami's star power, they failed to balance their roster and were stuck with an Achilles' heel at center.
The Cavaliers should learn from this mistake.
Varejao is great. His backups, not so much.
Cleveland doesn't necessarily need another star player at center, but they definitely can't stand pat with the roster as is.
The Cavs are in for a special year. They shouldn't let one position drag them down.