Cleveland Cavaliers: Ranking their last 6 NBA Draft Lottery picks
By Tony Pesta
With the pivotal 2019 NBA Draft quickly approaching, let’s evaluate the Cleveland Cavaliers’ last few lottery selections.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have found themselves in the NBA Draft Lottery multiple times this decade. With a total of six selections already made in the lottery, the Cavs will once again draft in the top 14 this year.
Since LeBron James left in the summer of 2010, the Cavaliers have been consistently drafting in the lottery. Outside of the first three seasons in which James returned (2014-17), the Cavs have drafted at least one player in the lottery of every draft during this decade.
Of these selections, Cleveland has picked in the top 10 all six times and has obtained the No. 1 overall pick three times. No other team in the league has earned the No. 1 pick more than once this decade other than the Philadelphia 76ers, who did it twice in a row from 2016-17.
Obviously, the success rate with these selections varies wildly. The Cavaliers have drafted some players that would go on to be key members of a championship-winning team, while others were out of the league in only a few years.
With a very pivotal draft coming up for the Cavaliers, this is a perfect time to look back at their picks this decade. Here is a ranking for Cleveland’s last six lottery picks.