CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland Cavaliers, who finished No. 5 in the 2020 NBA Draft, had their closeup with swingman Isaac Okoro last week.
Okoro spoke about the workout in person during a zoom interview with media members on Wednesday. League sources confirmed the timing of Cleveland.com.
Along with the Cavaliers, Okoro, considered the best wing defender in the draft, has worked for both the Golden State Warriors and the Minnesota Timberwolves – sitting on top of the draft board.
Okoro has also visited a handful of organizations, including the New York Knicks, the Chicago Bulls, the San Antonio Spurs, the Washington Wizards, the Phoenix Suns and the Atlanta Huxs, in the course of what happened in the earlier drafting process than expected. The draft, once again moved to June and then October due to the COVID-19 epidemic scheduled for October, will be held virtually on November 18th.
“I think the thing that sets me apart from everyone else in the draft is that I have the will to win, the will to come and play my role to help the team win,” Okoro said. “Coming right now is a defensive presence, he’s able to defend the other team’s best player and turn them off.”
In his workout with the Caves last week, which took place on the Ub Burn campus where Okoro became a one-year star and has continued his training, Okoro believes he has displayed an underrated offensive package.
“I think the crime of thinking they are one of my weaknesses, but they stopped knowing that it really is one of my strengths,” Okoro said, acknowledging criticism of his low shooting percentage.
In his one year at Ub Burn, Oro Coro shot 28.6% below the 3-point range and 70% below the foul line. He has spent the last few months sharpening all aspects of his game – ball-handling, shooting and defensive slides – but the hours of zimming up his shooting form with assistant coach Ira Bowman have begun to pay off.
“During the season, I think I’ve hit a lot of flat balls and now I’m getting used to it,” Okoro said. “I would say during the college league season (my shot) was probably a C-plus. I feel like I’m working every day and it’s probably around B-plus or A. “
When asked about his best NBA status, Okoro said small forward, which would make him the ideal fit for the wing-needy caves. For the past two years, Cleveland has used first-round picks on defenders Colin Sexton, Darius Garland and Capin Porter Jr. Okoro. They are from the Atlanta area and have played against each other in high school.
“We’re both rivals, so it would be honestly wonderful to have two rivals in the same team,” Okoro said.
According to several sources, Okoro is one of the No. 5 players in the mix. There are others, too, as Cave takes proper care of what is labeled the weaker class.
From the beginning, the Caves believed that individual workouts would be an important part of the process. Once travel restrictions were lifted by the league, the Cavs made several stops across the country. On Oct. 27, they went with Dayton’s OB Toppin. He also met with Israeli swingman Danny Avadija – who is working in Atlanta, but will not divulge any other details of his workouts with the team – combo guards RJ Hampton and U.S.C. in Los Angeles. No big men Onyaka Okongwu.
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