Cleveland Cavaliers’ Draft History (2006-2015)

Alan Draper profile picture
Sports Editor

Over the past 10 NBA Drafts (2006-2015), the Cleveland Cavaliers have made 22 selections, yielding just one All-Star in Kyrie Irving.

The following table details the Cavaliers’ track record by tiers, noting the number of All-Stars and starters selected, along with players who either never made the league or were out in five years or less:

Tier Picks All-Star All-Star Appearances Starter* Not in NBA
1-5 5 1 (20%) 3 3 (60%) 1 (20%)
6-10 0 0 0 0 0
11-15 0 0 0 0 0
16-20 3 0 0 2 (66.7%) 0
21-25 1 0 0 0 0
26-30 1 0 0 0 1 (100%)
31-40 4 0 0 0 3 (75%)
41-50 2 0 0 1 (50%) 0
51-60 6 0 0 0 5 (83.3%)
Total 22 1 (4.5%) 3 6 (27.3%) 10 (45.5%)

*Starter criteria determined as an average of 50 or more starts, over at least 40 percent of the player’s career.

The following is the league average over the same tiers:

Tier All-Star Starter Not in NBA
1-5 12 (24%) 30 (60%) 3 (6%)
6-10 8 (16%) 30 (60%) 7 (14%)
11-15 2 (4%) 12 (24%) 8 (16%)
16-20 3 (6%) 10 (20%) 8 (16%)
21-25 2 (4%) 8 (16%) 15 (30%)
26-30 1 (2%) 5 (10%) 20 (40%)
31-40 1 (2%) 11 (11%) 52 (52%)
41-50 2 (2%) 8 (8%) 70 (70%)
51-60 1 (1%) 1 (1%) 87 (87%)
Total 32 (5.3%) 115 (19.7%) 270 (45.0%)

The Cavaliers have picked often in the top five, selecting well with Irving and not so well with Anthony Bennett.  While they haven’t found many All-Stars, Andrew Wiggins may eventually reach that status (with the Minnesota Timberwolves).  Cleveland gave up quickly on Danny Green, whose success as a starter came with the San Antonio Spurs.

Note that players are included with the team through any draft-day trades.  Some teams pick well but let an eventual starter leave for another, but that’s beyond the scope of this article.  Recently drafted players have yet to officially pass the “at least five years” test, but were considered as such if on a team’s roster by the end of the 2015-16 season.

Additionally, recent picks who have yet to join the NBA may still do so, but for this analysis are considered “out.”

Pick History 2006-2015

All-Stars: Kyrie Irving (2011-1) — three appearances

Starters: J.J. Hickson (2008-19), Danny Green (2009-46), Irving, Tristan Thompson (2011-4), Tyler Zeller (2012-17), Andrew Wiggins (2014-1)

Rotation Players: Shannon Brown (2006-25), Daniel Gibson (2006-42), Sasha Kaun (2008-56), Dion Waiters (2012-4), Sergey Karasev (2013-19), Rakeem Christmas (2015-36)

Out in Five Years or Less: Ejike Ugboaja (2006-55), Darnell Jackson (2008-52), Christian Eyenga (2009-30), Emir Preldzic (2009-57), Milan Macvan (2011-54), Anthony Bennett (2013-1), Carrick Felix (2013-33), Joe Harris (2014-33), Cedi Osman (2015-31), Sir’Dominic Pointer (2015-53)

Alan is an expert gambling writer who works as one of the chief editors for Basketball Insiders. He has been covering online gambling and sports betting for over 8 years, having written for the likes of Sportlens, Compare.bet, The Sports Daily, 90min, and TopRatedCasinos.co.uk. His particular specialisms include US online casinos and gambling regulations, and soccer and basketball betting. Based in London, Alan holds an MA in English Literature and is a passionate supporter of Chelsea FC.