Breaking Down Cleveland Cavaliers' Shooting Guard Position for 2014-15 Season
Heading into the Cleveland Cavaliers' 2014-15 season, every starting position appears to be locked down except one.
While Kyrie Irving, LeBron James, Kevin Love and Anderson Varejao are nearly guaranteed to represent four-fifths of the starting lineup, who'll get the nod at shooting guard?
Cleveland runs four deep at the 2-guard spot. Dion Waiters is by far the most talented, but has primarily come off the bench in his young career. Newly-signed Mike Miller is a former Sixth Man of the Year winner, but may be a better fit with the Cavaliers starters. Veteran James Jones and rookie Joe Harris round out the group.
Overall, this is a much deeper and improved version of what we saw a season ago.
So, who should start, who should play a reserve role and what can we realistically expect from the Cavs' scoring guard position this year?
Last Season's Results
The Cavaliers shooting guard spot was handled primary by Waiters, C.J. Miles, Jarrett Jack and Matthew Dellavedova in 2013-14.
While Waiters and Delly return, Miles signed a four-year deal with the Indiana Pacers and Jarrett Jack was traded to the Brooklyn Nets.
Miles was a solid wing player in his two seasons but battled injuries and an inconsistent shot that ultimately led to his switching of addresses. Jack signed a four-year deal with the Cavaliers last summer but never played to the level he reached with the Golden State Warriors just a season before. Just to clear his contract from their books ended up costing the Cavs a 2016 first-round draft pick.
All four players were a revolving door at shooting guard, with three getting a share of the starting duties.
Waiters was the first to try out.
Mike Brown's experimentation with him next to Irving lasted a whopping nine games before Waiters was sent to the bench in favor of Miles. Waiters wanted the ball in his hands, as did Irving. Miles preferred to score off catch-and-shoot opportunities, thus providing a better fit next to Irving.
Miles held down the position for the next few months, struggling in December (7.0 points on 30.4 percent shooting from deep) before putting together his best month in January (12.6 points on 46.5 percent).
Despite his individual success, the Cavs still stunk.
Following a 117-86 beatdown to the New York Knicks that left them sitting at 16-30 on Jan. 30, Brown made the switch to Jack in the starting lineup.
While the team began showing signs of life, it certainly wasn't because of Jack.
When he signed with Cleveland, Jack must have forgot his jump shot in Oakland. As a starter, Jack averaged just 9.9 points on 42.0 percent shooting from the field and a miserable 29.4 percent from three.
A late-season injury to Kyrie Irving, coupled with a benching of Jack, once again provided Waiters with a starting opportunity. Without Irving around to dominate the ball, Waiters had free rein of the offense. He responded with averages of 18.3 points and 3.5 assists as a starter for the year.
Here's where the Cavs shooting guards ranked collectively in seven key categories, via Hoopsstats.com.
| Cavs SGs | PTS | AST | STLS | TO | FG% | 3P% | PA |
| Stat | 22.0 | 5.9 | 1.5 | 3.2 | 41.9 | 36.1 | 21.6 |
| Rank | 12 | 3 | 19 | 27 | 26 | 18 | 22 |
Honestly, this wasn't a bad collection of talent at one position. Injuries hurt Miles, and poor rotations plagued Waiters. Jack really had no excuse. Dellavedova was a solid defender and distributor off the bench and, during one brief stretch, started because he was the only Cavalier who was hustling (true story).
To grade this group's performance is tricky. Like the lazy student who's actually really smart but doesn't exude enough effort, we're stuck thinking about what might have been.
Grade: C+
To Be Decided
Since Miles and Jack are now gone, what role will their replacements play?
We can assume Dellavedova will take on the backup point guard job full-time with the lack of depth behind Irving. This leaves Waiters, Miller, Jones and Harris as the team's shooting guards.
First, will Cleveland even want that many?
Harris seemed like a solid selection at the time when the Cavaliers took him with their 2014 second-round pick. GM David Griffin wanted an off-ball guard to run around, come off screens and knock down open shots created by Irving.
While the Cavs originally planned to be patient with Harris, they may send him to the D-League now to open up more minutes for veteran players. Harris could be a good shooter in the NBA. Miller and Jones already are.
It's worth noting that both Miller (6'8", 218 pounds) and Jones (6'8", 215 pounds) can play small forward as well. Waiters is the only Cavalier that should be considered an exclusive 2-guard.
That is, assuming the roster stays the same.
Ray Allen remains a possibility for the Cavs. At 39 years of age, Allen still has not made up his mind whether to retire or return to the NBA for a 19th pro season.
Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe reported back in July that Allen was leaning towards the latter, with the Cavaliers atop his list:
"NBA source tells Globe that Ray Allen is leaning toward returning for 19th season and joining LeBron James with #cavaliers
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) July 24, 2014"
With vets Miller and James on board to rain down threes, do the Cavs really need Allen?
Probably not, although someone with his knowledge and experience certainly wouldn't hurt.
As Sports Illustrated's Chris Johnson points out, Allen is still quite productive despite his 40th birthday approaching:
"Even if Allen’s not lacing clutch treys in playoff crunch time, his presence alone opens up opportunities for other scorers because defenses can’t leave him open. Further, despite a decline in his counting statistics, Allen still shot the ball well last season. His effective field goal percentage, which puts extra weight on three-point shots, was the eighth highest of his career, and he still drained threes from one corner at an impressive clip.
"
At this point, Allen would be like crushed Oreos on top of the Cavs' hot fudge sundae of offense. At first it seems like a great idea, but would it really be necessary?
Right now, Cleveland's focus needs to be on their own contracted players, including selecting a starter from the bunch.
This Year's Rotation
Before deciding on a starter, it's important to come up with a healthy minute distribution between the candidates.
Don't expect Harris to see much playing time, if any at all. The Cavaliers are in win-now mode and will prefer to rely on their vets over a rookie. The best thing Cleveland can do is give Harris a good run with the Canton Charge and let him develop his game down there. After all, Jones is only on a one-year deal, while Miller has a player option for next season.
Waiters, whether he starts or serves as the team's sixth man, needs to receive the bulk of the minutes.
His stats the past two years won't scream "star", but that's precisely what Waiters could become. Few players in the league are as adept as Waiters when splitting defenders and getting to the basket. While he's yet to prove he can score in the flow of an offense, Waiters has excelled when asked to create on his own.
Miller has been both a starter and Sixth Man of the Year. Last season with the Memphis Grizzlies, he averaged 7.1 points and 2.5 rebounds on 45.9 percent shooting from three. Miller played in all 82 games, collecting 20.8 minutes a night as a reserve.
He should still get 15-20 minutes a game for the Cavs, no matter what role coach David Blatt chooses.
Jones got buried on the Miami Heat's bench a year ago but still proved his accuracy from deep. His 51.9 percent three-point shooting would have been tops in the NBA with enough playing time. For his career, Jones is an excellent 40.3 percent marksman.
Jones' playing time will largely depend on those around him. If Miller struggles with his shot, Blatt shouldn't be hesitant to insert Jones into the game instead. His minutes could range from a DNP-Coach's Decision to 20 a night.
So, who starts?
If Blatt goes off talent alone, it will be Waiters. If he prefers fit, then Miller should receive the nod.
As unpopular a decision as it may be with Waiters and some Cleveland fans, the 2012 fourth overall pick's best option should be as the team's sixth man.
Waiters has struggled sharing the ball with Irving. How's he going to improve alongside James and Love, the No. 3 and No. 4 scorers in the league last year? There are just not enough shots to go around in the starting five. Waiters has yet to prove he can play off the ball and has been a pretty average outside shooter in his young career (34.2 percent from three).
Cleveland's bench will lack a true playmaker if Waiters starts. When Irving and James need a breather, Waiters would be the perfect choice to come in the game and keep the offense humming. The Cavaliers could still keep Waiters' minute total around 30-35, even off the bench, a la James Harden's third season with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Miller, on the other hand, would fit in beautifully with the starting five.
At this stage in his career, stats matter very little compared to wins. Even if he's not getting a high number of shots up, his presence alone would help stretch the floor and open up driving lanes for James and Irving. Cleveland could still keep his minute total low, thus preserving Miller for the postseason and giving Waiters his opportunity to shine.
With three stars (including the league's best player) in the starting lineup, the Cavs need to think of fit instead of star power at shooting guard.
Whatever the Cavaliers choose to do, the 2-guard position should be well taken care of this season.
Greg Swartz has covered the Cleveland Cavaliers for Bleacher Report since 2010. Connect with him on Twitter for more basketball news and conversation.
All stats provided by Basketball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.
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