2010 Summer League Rosters: Cleveland Cavaliers

July 17th, 2010

Jerome Dyson

There was a time when averaging 20/5/5 at UConn meant a guarantee to be drafted. Not so for Dyson. For all the scoring numbers, Dyson is far from a complete scorer; for all the assist numbers, Dyson is far from a point guard. And at 6’3, he’ll struggle to be a shooting guard as well.

Much of his production comes from the fast break, where he is unbelievably good. He can snake his way to the basket with blistering speed, and finish with athleticism despite his small size. In the half court, however, he can’t get to the basket as readily. This is due in no small part to his jump shot, which doesn’t really exist. And while Dyson has the athletic tools for perimeter defence, he lapses.

If he goes to the D-League – and he should, because he’s going to be on the cusp of a call-up – then he could put up similar numbers to that. But without a jump shot, his ridiculously tremendous upside potential is limited.

Christian Eyenga

When he was drafted at #30 in 2009, Eyenga was playing in the Spanish third division for DKV Joventut’s feeder team, CB Prat Juventud. This season, aged 20, Eyenga made it up to the big club. In 29 AC games for the team, Eyenga averaged 3.9 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in 12.6 minutes per game, shooting 50% from the floor and 35% from three. Now that LeBron James has left, it’s probably quite comforting to know that a first rounder was used on such an impact player.

(Sarcasm aside, Eyenga is starting to get somewhere. For a 20 year old in the ACB, where 20 year olds don’t usually play, that’s not bad.)

Marquis Gilstrap

Gilstrap was covered in the Bobcats summer league roster round-up. In 5 games for Charlotte, Gilstrap shot only 2-13. Additionally, since the conclusion of the Orlando summer pro league, Gilstrap has signed in Turkey for next season with Turk Telekom Ankara, alongside Larry Owens. I think that means that’s it for Lamayn Wilson and Ricky Davis.

Danny Green

Green barely played in his rookie season, playing only 115 minutes over 20 games. He should benefit next season from the void at small forward that Cleveland now has.

Manny Harris

Harris was both the benefactor and the victim of quite how bad Michigan were last year. They had Manny Harris, they had DeShawn Sims, and then they had absolutely nothing else. The offence involved passing it around the perimeter for 30 seconds, trying to find an open three point shooter, yet the team had no good three point shooters. If they couldn’t get one, they’d give it to Harris and ask him to create off the dribble. And while he was OK at that, he’s not great. Harris puts up numbers; he’s willing to rebound, gambles for steals, is athletic and scores in transition, but he’s a bit small and doesn’t have a good outside jump shot.

J.J. Hickson

Decent scorer, decent rebounder, decent defender, decent athlete….a decent all-around NBA player, and after only two years. But where’s this stardom coming from?

Aaron Jackson

Jackson, formerly of Duquesne, has not made the NBA yet. Yet maybe he should. In the last year, his first professional season, Jackson played his way into SerieA, almost impossible for an American rookie to do. Jackson is a big point guard who rebounds, shoots, drives, passes, defends, rebounds and creates for both himself and others; he stands out at no one particular facet, perhaps, yet he does everything well. And is 6’4. And a point guard. What’s not to like?

Nathan Jawai

Nathan Jawai has just completed a two year minimum salary contract, and might have just completed his NBA career. In those two years, Jawai was a member of four teams, however briefly, and played only 431 minutes. The guy with supposed Shaq-like qualities demonstrated only propensities for fouls and turnovers, and while he is big and powerful, he struggled to finish that which wasn’t a dunk. Jawai has a chance of getting another contract – after all, Randolph Morris and Patrick O’Bryant did, and they’d showed even less by this time. Cleveland might be a good spot for Jawai to get one, too, with the departures of both Shaq and Z. But he has a ways to go yet.

Pooh Jeter

Pooh Jeter makes a summer league roster every year because he’s very talented. He then doesn’t make the NBA because he’s very small. At 5’11, he’s a talented and versatile scorer, with a rangy jump shot and some craft inside the arc, and he’s a good ball handler. Jeter is just as much of a scorer than a passer, but at least he keeps the turnovers down and runs the pick-and-roll. As girls know, and as I’m relieved to hear, size isn’t quite everything. (Although boy, does it help.)

Maciej Lampe

Lampe is a different player to the one that left the NBA. While he used to think he was Dirk Nowitzki, he now seems to acknowledge he’s more like Marcus Fizer. Lampe still occasionally floats to the perimeter to take a three, which he’s still not that good at, but he plays primarily in the post now, and is an effective and efficient scorer in there. In the EuroCup last year, Lampe averaged 16.7 points and 8.5 rebounds in 30 minutes per game, shooting 55% from two point range (and 22% from three). He can also pass out of the post, although his defence is pretty disinterested. The Fizer comparison probably doesn’t sound flattering, but Fizer was pretty good before he tore his knee up. And Lampe is bigger.

Rashad McCants

Rather than trying to describe the Rashad McCants situation, I’ll let this article do it. The article tries really hard to make McCants seem like a sympathetic figure, a man whose not faultless but who never got a fair chance. But it really doesn’t invoke much sympathy.

Tasmin Mitchell

Mitchell just graduated from LSU, where he averaged 16.8 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, but shot only 43% from the field. That was 10% below his mark the season before, and it’s because of how mightily LSU struggled last season. The Tigers went only 2-14 in conference play and 11-19 overall; their woeful offence meant Mitchell had to shoulder more of the burden, to the detriment of his efficiency.

To put things into context, here are LSU’s scoring leaders from last season, alongside their minutes per game and their scoring efficiency.

– Tasmin Mitchell: 37.3 mpg, 16.8 ppg, .51% TS
– Bo Spencer: 36.2 mpg, 14.5 ppg, .46% TS
– Storm Warren: 26.7, 11.8 ppg, .57% TS
– Dennis Harris: 14.3 mpg, 4.6 ppg, .53% TS
– Zach Kinsley: 16.0 mpg, 3.4 ppg, .48% TS
– Aaron Dotson: 18.6 mpg, 3.2 ppg, .36% TS
– Chris Bass: 24.0 mpg, 2.3 ppg, .38% TS

Doesn’t get much worse than that. Chris Bass in particular is a demonstration of the Mike Bizoukas Theorem.

This obviously hurt Mitchell’s production, which hurt his draft stock. Mitchell is a willing and capable passer, but it doesn’t help when he has no one to pass to. Mitchell also is not a particularly good outside shooter, which isn’t helped by the team having no one else worth defending out there (save for Spencer and his 28% 3pt on 7 attempts per game.) And as a 6’7 face-up power forward, Mitchell’s NBA prospects were already disadvantaged enough. I guess DeShawn Sims had it comparatively easy.

David Monds

D-League veteran Monds made the Lakers training camp roster last season, based on his summer league performances. The strong 6’8 power forward demonstrated a fine mid-range jump shot in that competition, as well as the ability to drive the ball from about 12 feet away. In the ensuing season, Monds went to Greece to play for Kolossos in Greece, where unfortunately he only averaged 5.9 points and 4.5 rebounds in 18 minutes per game. That’s more representative of Monds than last year’s summer league was; Monds is a solid player, but not an NBA one.

Jared Reiner

Reiner was covered in the Pistons summer league roster round-up from about two hours ago. In two games for Detroit, he recorded 0 points, 1 rebound and 7 fouls.