Cassius Stanley Goes No. 54 to Indiana Pacers

Perhaps the most crazy thing about Cassius Stanley being drafted in the second-round of the 2020 NBA Draft was the fact that Duke Basketball did not have a 1st Round selection this year. In every draft since 2008, the Duke Blue Devils have had at least one player drafted in the 1st Round, but that streak came to an end this year. Another crazy stat is that Duke, Kentucky, Kansas and UNC all were shut out of the NBA Draft lottery for the first time since 2000. 

Even though he was drafted near the end of the draft, Cassius Stanley is a player who has a tremendous amount of upside due to his athletic abilities. The 6’6” win broke the Duke Basketball record for vertical leap and is capable of dunking the ball from anywhere on the court at any moment in a game. In a press conference after the draft, Pacers General Manager, Chad Buchanan, talked about Stanley’s athletic abilities stating, “Cassius, I think, is among the tops in this draft when it comes to pure athleticism.” 

The Duke Basketball product will not be asked to come into the Pacers organization right away and make an impact, but will take time to develop and focus more skill wise and use his athletic abilities to make him an impactful two-way player. Stanley’s two areas of focus will be on turning the ball over, which he did a lot of at Duke, and his defensive effort. There is no doubt he can be a better defender than he was given his lateral quickness and ability to catch anyone on the court at any moment. Being able to learn from Victor Oladipo and TJ Warren will prove to be very useful for the Pacers in the development of Cassius Stanley. 

Without a doubt, Cassius Stanley is probably the most athletic player in this draft class, but because of a lot of unknowns about his game, he slipped deep into the second round. Some draft grades had him as high as cracking into the Top 40 and with him on the board at pick No. 54 for the Pacers, it was a no-brainer to go ahead and select him. With the transition and fast break abilities of a player like Russell Westbrook in the body of someone like Derrick Jones Jr, Cassius Stanley will be a player that could see the court his rookie year, but is more of a develop over time prospect. Overall, Cassius Stanley at pick No. 54 for the Pacers is a steal if he can develop the way he is projected to.