Cleveland Cavaliers: 3 players who could be available for new pick

3. Jaxson Hayes

They say everything is bigger in Texas. Texas Longhorn Jaxson Hayes certainly fits that mantra. The lengthy post player stands at 6’11” and competes like a contemporary, rim-protecting NBA big. His shooting percentage is 74.4 percent, a figure so high you wonder if someone somewhere is fudging numbers. Hayes also averages 2.4 blocks per game. The interior defense and high shooting percentage remind you of maybe a Clint Capela or DeAndre Jordan.

Unlike Jordan, Hayes is reliable from the foul line hitting 72.6 percent of his free throws. And like those two big men, he’s supremely athletic. Look at how he plucks the ball halfway up the backboard and demolishes this dunk.

His stat line is respectable for a freshman, 10.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and the aforementioned 2.4 blocks per game. Most importantly, he comes from the big-man making factory in Texas. It’s the school that produced LaMarcus Aldridge. Recently, it turned Jarrett Allen, another lengthy, 6’11”, 230-pound big man who entered the league with his fair share of questions.

Now, he’s a key cog in the resurgence of the Brooklyn Nets after being selected 22nd in the 2017 draft. Could Hayes traverse an almost identical route in Cleveland?