Irving Best Player In Draft ... And That's What Cavs Need

This column was first published on LandLoyalty.com on February 23, 2011.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I’ll admit that I’m a huge Duke Blue Devils fan. I’ll try and place my bias aside for the purpose of this article, but as I’ve watched more and more college basketball this season, it becomes more and more clear to me that I want the Cavaliers to select Duke freshman Kyrie Irving if they get the top pick.

A 6-foot-2 point guard that played in just eight games this season because of a toe injury, Irving averaged 17.4 points and 5.1 assists per game during his abbreviated freshman campaign. There is uncertainty as to whether or not he will return in March (and as a Duke fan, I sure hope he does), but even if his college career is over, I’ve seen enough that I’m ready to appoint him as my pick.

I know the old proverb that you never take a “small” over a “big”. Ohio State freshman Jared Sullinger just doesn’t do it for me. Arizona’s Derrick Williams is a nice player, but he’s not a true big in that he plays along the perimeter.

Hype surrounds freshmen like Perry Jones (Baylor – 14.3 points per game) and Terrence Jones (Kentucky – 17.9 points and 9.1 rebounds per game). NBADraft.net compares Perry Jones to Tracy McGrady, while the same site sees Terrence Jones as a Lamar Odom or Marvin Williams type. Are McGrady or Odom guys you want to build your team around? I don’t think so.

Kyrie Irving? They have him as a Chris Paul/Mike Conley mix. With all due respect to the former Buckeye lead guard, I think Irving is a much better player. I’d be willing to bet he’s closer to Chris Paul.

And betting is what the NBA Draft is all about – it’s one big gamble. You never know for sure, but if I’m Cavaliers GM Chris Grant and I have the top overall pick, I’m betting my job status on Irving over any other player in this draft class.

The NBA is in an era of great point guards with Paul, Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook and Deron Williams, among others. I would say there are few great big men in the league these days outside of Dwight Howard, and I don’t think there’s another one in this draft.

Sullinger is a power forward, and those guys, in my opinion, are a dime a dozen. Teams that have good to great power forwards like Kevin Love, a type of player that Sullinger could turn into, are the types of teams that go 13-43 heading into the All-Star break and rank last in their conference. Blake Griffin is sensational, and the Clippers had a .375 winning percentage in their first 56 games.

Paul and Williams certainly have better supporting casts around them than Love or Griffin do, but those guys have their teams in the playoff hunt. Irving puts the Cavs in the playoff hunt quicker than Sullinger.

I don’t think fans should put a lot of stock into college statistics as it’s a completely different game at the professional level. We’ve seen college stars enter the NBA and fall flat on their face (as a Duke fan, pretty much everyone I’ve loved during their days in Durham).

But Irving is the exception. I’d bet on it.