#2 Jalen Green – Guard – G-League
Much like his teammate Jonathan Kuminga, not many people know about Jalen Green since he also decided to skip playing collegiate basketball and played for the G-League Ignite team. Standing about 6’6” and being 19-years-old, Green is one of the youngest players in the 2021 NBA Draft class, but is arguably the most athletic player among them.
In the G-League, Jalen Green mainly acted as his team’s primary ball-handler, but he has the ability to play on or off-the-ball, which will likely result in him being a shooting guard in the NBA. Not only does the young guard play well above the rim, but he’s outside shooting is also something that has impressed a lot of scouts over the months.
In 15 G-League games, Jalen Green averaged 17.9 points per game and shot 36.5% from three-point range. He is a really good playmaker, but because of his high motor and score-first mentality, he can be turnover prone at times. This is an easy fix though, especially if he is not the one having the ball up the court every possession.
Everything about this kid screams “All-Star” and in today’s league where athleticism is ranked so highly, Jalen Green is going to be successful wherever he ends up. With Cleveland already having Collin Sexton and Darius Garland, there may not be an immediate “need” for a guy like Green, but passing up on him would be a huge mistake.
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An easy comparison for Jalen Green just based on size and athleticism is this past year’s #1 overall pick Anthony Edwards. Green is probably a better overall athlete than Edwards, but they both share that mindset that they can score against anybody they play and they are always aggressive in their pursuit to score.
Cleveland needs this kind of player in their system because this is the kind of player you can build around for years to come. Collin Sexton is a great player, but he is not a “star-level” player that can be the #1 option on a true championship contending team. Maybe Jalen Green will not evolve into this kind of player either, but as of right now, he has all the potential to wind up being the best player from this draft class.
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Every team is looking for freakish, athletic talents in the draft nowadays and with Jalen Green having the size, wingspan and explosive jump to play numerous positions, he is the guy the Cavaliers need. Figuring out positions and what not can come later, but letting Jalen Green go past the 3rd overall pick would be detrimental to the Cavaliers’ future success.
