Tyrese Haliburton to Cavs in ESPN mock draft

A mock draft appearing on ESPN has the Cleveland Cavaliers selecting the Iowa State Cyclones guard fifth overall.

There have been plenty of mock drafts published recently and a variety of players have been mocked to the Cleveland Cavaliers at fifth overall. Tyrese Haliburton is not a name that has been popular to the Cavs, but a mock draft appearing on ESPN has Cleveland selecting the Iowa State Cyclones guard. This mock is based off of what teams should do, not what they might do. ESPN draft expert Kevin Pelton explains the reasoning for Haliburton to the Cavs.

“Yes, the Cavaliers have taken guards in the lottery the past two years. Without clarity that Collin Sexton is a point guard or Darius Garland is a long-term starter, Cleveland shouldn’t be afraid to take another if Haliburton is still on the board. His skill set looks particularly complementary to Sexton’s.“

Kevin Pelton on Tyrese Haliburton to the Cavs

If someone wanted to play “spot the lie” with this statement it will be pretty hard to find one. There are questions in Cleveland about what Collin Sexton is and whether or not he is a starter. Hypothetically Cleveland could draft Tyrese Haliburton, move Sexton to the bench, and have Darius Garland as the starting point guard. This could be a way to maximize the abilities of the players already on the roster while taking someone who could be a long term fit.

Of course this before any trades that they team makes in the future. The Cavs could end up trading Kevin Love or Andre Drummond. This would create a need in the front court that would need to be addressed. Of course this is all hypothetical, for now it is just about adding talent. The strategy Cleveland needs to embrace is taking the best player available. If the Cavs determine that to be Tyrese Haliburton they should select him fifth overall. If not, they should look elsewhere.