Cavaliers Look to Combat Poor Season, LeBron Memories with Draft

Each 2011 NBA mock draft has Kyrie Irving going No. 1 to the Cavaliers. However, the Cavaliers have one other top pick at No. 4, which is where mock draft predictions become complicated. Will Cleveland keep the pick and take another top college prospect, or trade the pick to get an established player? That decision, as much as the No. 1 pick, may determine if the Cavaliers have as big of a draft as fans hope for.

Yahoo! Sports' Jonathan Givony predicts that the Cavaliers will stick with the No. 4 selection and take Enes Kanter from Kentucky. This would mainly be because Lithuanian star Jonas Valanciunas may not come to the NBA until 2012, which may be too long of a wait for Cleveland.

Cleveland needs to move fast now that a golden opportunity is in its lap. After a horrific year where the memories of LeBron James hung over the city throughout, the Cavs can finally start over with new young prospects. If the team picks the right two, then it could find itself back in the playoff hunt faster than most think.

Of course, it may take many more years for the Cavaliers to get back to the heights of the James era. Now that the Eastern Conference might be dominated by the Heat and Bulls for some time, it will be difficult for the Cavaliers to match that level of play. There is no James-like game changer who could make that impact in this draft, yet having two top 5 picks could be the next best thing.

Irving is the closest player to a sure thing in this field, but although most every mock draft has him going first, he is still a question mark. He played only a handful of games in his Duke career due to injury, which means he practically jumped from high school to the NBA for most intents. Since James did that, it will only add to the constant comparisons once Irving reaches Cleveland.

Someone like Kanter, Valanciunas, Jan Vesely, Kemba Walker or Jimmer Fredette can take the pressure off of Irving at first. Ultimately, the Cavaliers hope to have a star duo of players, which the team never had with James.

But if Cleveland can't find a second potential superstar in the draft to match Irving, it can still deal the pick to find other help. Whether they trade the selection for another pick, or a professional young player, the Cavaliers have to make the choice carefully.

If Cleveland picks right, it could have the duo that will ultimately help sweep the memories of James away. But if the decisions don't pan out, then the Cavaliers will be even worse off in the long term than ever.

No mock draft can accurately predict the aftermath of such important picks. But the predictions will turn into reality for the Cavaliers, and every other NBA team, starting at 7 p.m. ET Thursday on ESPN.

Sources

Yahoo Sports- "NBA mock draft 4.0"