The Cleveland Cavaliers made a couple of bold moves this offseason – to say the least – first getting the services of LeBron James and then trading for Kevin Love. While the first move was a blessing, the second was a front office decision where the Cavs gave up the first pick in the 2015 NBA Draft in a package for Love. However, as we cross the halfway point of the season, it appears that Love hasn’t been a great for the Cavs while Wiggins has emerged as the clear frontrunner for the NBA Rookie of the Year Award.
Would the Cavs have been better off just keeping Wiggins? Here are three reasons why the answer is a resounding ‘yes’.
Wiggins is a 19 year old phenom
This is the cornerstone of the argument that the Cavs would have been better with Wiggins: The number one pick in the NBA draft has been very good. He hasn’t been great, but he’s certainly been very good, averaging 15.1 points per game and 4.3 rebounds per game. Keep in mind that at Minnesota, Wiggins has to manufacture offense himself. He does not have two or three other stars on the same court. He has Ricky Rubio to feed him the ball from the point guard spot, but beyond that, he’s really on his own.
Imagine how well Wiggins would have been able to blend into a Cleveland offense with Kyrie Irving and LeBron James to feed him the ball. Dion Waiters has been shipped to Oklahoma City, so it’s quite conceivable that if Cleveland had kept Wiggins, Waiters might have still had a place on the team, and the Cavaliers could have been in a position to play small ball with their lineup, choosing to beat teams not with size, but quickness.
When you look at his numbers, Wiggins has been careful with the ball as his assist-turnover ratio is basically even. He gets a steal per game on defense and he’s been a very solid NBA player, who can grow into his role and his talent with time. Remember that he came out of college after just one season, so he’s extremely young but he’s still holding up on his own. Wiggins is steadily getting better, as a matter of fact. He’s scored at least 17 points in every January game but one.
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Kevin Love continues struggling
It is true that this could have happened with a different coach, but the fact of the matter is that under current coach David Blatt, Cleveland has failed to use Kevin Love well. Yes, Love was recently injured and has had to miss a few games, but before that injury, Love was not having the season many expected from him. He currently averages 17.6 points and 10.4 rebounds per game, which looks really good, but his career averages are 19 and 12. Before the season, those averages were slightly higher.
Love has endured a comedown this season and Blatt is not getting the most out of him. Cleveland’s offense was supposed to be a runaway freight train, but the Cavs aren’t even averaging 101 points per game. That’s been a big disappointment. Wiggins probably would not have done worse, and he very possibly would have done better.
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The deterioration of Dion Waiters
The reality of Cleveland’s situation being subpar without Wiggins was affirmed by the fact that the team felt it had to trade Dion Waiters to Oklahoma City to join the Thunder. Had the Cavs been getting what they wanted out of the season and had they felt they had the right pieces in place, they would not have dealt Waiters.
The inability of this team to get to at least 10 games over .500 and stay there is in part a reflection of a dysfunctional lineup and roster this season. Waiters’ presence in it (before the trade), not just Wiggins’ absence, shows what this team has missed with Wiggins in Minnesota.
