Predicting Anthony Bennett’s role with Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers shocked the world when they passed on everyone and selected Anthony Bennett out of UNLV with the first overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. Bennett was an explosive scorer in his lone season with the Rebels, but will need to avoid the “tweener” label to have a successful professional career.

Mike Brown has experience with handling No.1 draft picks. In his last stint with the Cavs, they landed LeBron James. However, Bennett, and nobody else for that matter, is LeBron. Brown will be faced with the task of finding the best way to utilize Bennett’s unique skill set in hopes of making a postseason run this season.

At 6-foot-8, 240 lbs, Bennett is strong enough and broad enough to play the power forward position. If that is the position that Brown decides he will be most effective, he will more than likely be relegated to bench duty. Tristan Thompson has shown promise early on in his NBA career, and may be poised for a breakout season. In addition, Anderson Varejao is back this season after missing last year due to injury.

Small forward may be the position that Bennett begins his career at. He still possesses the ability to shoot the ball from the perimeter, but his physical game differs from many of the 3 men in today’s game. Will Bennett be able to stay in front of perimeter players defensively? With Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, Anderson Varejao, and Tristan Thompson, how much will Cleveland count on Bennett’s scoring ability? These are all questions that Mike Brown will be forced to answer.