The Cleveland Cavaliers hope to strike gold with both their first-round draft picks. It’ll be more of a challenge with their second selection.
The protagonist in Disney’s new cash grab … eh, I mean live-action film … Aladdin spends a chunk of the film seeking a “diamond in the rough.” The Cleveland Cavaliers seek to do the same with the 26th overall pick in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft.
Really, any selection is a practice in identifying a “diamond” among a lot future mediocre NBA talent. But it’s especially challenging late in the first round.
Cleveland has struck gold before. The Cavs nabbed Joe Harris with the 33rd pick in the second round of the NBA Draft. He’s an NBA 3-Point Contest champion with 10.4 career win shares.
Allen Crabbe was a solid pick with 31st selection of Round 2 in 2013. He, like, Harris ended up in Brooklyn. The Cavaliers selected Jae Crowder around the same spot in 2012 before shipping him off to Dallas.
All of these are great bang-for-your-buck selections. But when it comes to the real diamonds, it’s been a while since Cleveland discovered one late. Their best late-round selections include two All-Star big men and a franchise pioneer.
Here are the top three biggest steals in Cleveland Cavaliers draft history.