When the Cleveland Cavaliers traded for Jarrett Allen in January, the franchise had seemingly found its center of the future.
The 23-year-old is part of the Cavs’ young core, which include the team’s last three lottery picks, Collin Sexton, Darius Garland and Isaac Okoro. A scout, however, reportedly believes that only Allen is a starting-caliber player out of this group.
“But they also don’t have any franchise pillars on this roster, and they’re going to face decisions on extensions for Sexton and Jarrett Allen sooner than later,” wrote Jason Lloyd of The Athletic. “One scout told me this year he sees one sure-fire starter among the Cavs’ young core: Allen. That’s it.”
It is still unclear if the front office intends to move towards the next years of the rebuild with all of these players on the roster. There are skeptics around the league wondering if this collection of prospects can eventually lead the team to playoff contention.
But Allen has already shown that he can keep up with the big men of the league. So far in his four-year career, he is averaging 10.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. He has also been an efficient from the field, scoring on a 61.1 percent shooting clip.
