NBA: 10 candidates for breakout seasons in 2019-20

10. Collin Sexton, Cleveland Cavaliers

Collin Sexton‘s rookie campaign was certainly a tale of two halves.

As the eighth overall pick, much was naturally anticipated of Sexton given the rebuilding nature of the Cavaliers. Unfortunately, Sexton’s transition from college to the pro game took longer than ideally expected.

Through his first 53 games, the 6’2″ Sexton averaged 14.3 points in 29.6 minutes per game, clearly more than reasonable returns for a first year guard. However, his 40.3 percent shooting clip from the field, which featured just 2.4 attempts per game from 3-point range.

Additionally, the Cavaliers were 11.6 points per 100 possessions worse off when Sexton was on the floor during this 53-game span.

This however flipped dramatically as of Feb. 5, with Sexton clearly adjusting to the pace and demands of the league. Over the final 29 games of his rookie campaign, Sexton averaged 21.1 points in 35.6 minutes per game while shooting at a much improved 47.0 percent clip from the field.

Furthermore, Sexton increased his 3-point proficiency mightily during this span, averaging 5.8 attempts per game while nailing these at an excellent 41.7 percent clip.

Naturally, entering his second season can bring about its own challenges for Sexton. With a new starting backcourt partner in No. 5 overall pick Darius Garland, a new head coach in John Beilein and hopefully a full season from five-time All-Star Kevin Love, there are bound to be some adjustments that need to be to be made.

However with the strides made in the back end of his rookie campaign, Sexton has every chance to produce a genuine breakout season that should get people around the league to sit up and take notice.