With the 14th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers went with Ochai Agbaji, a 6-foot-6 wing from the University of Kansas.
Agbaji may not have been as well-known or hyped as some other prospects towards the end of the lottery portion of the draft, but he is an interesting prospect.
He weighs about 217 pounds and has lots of athleticism, shooting ability and defensive potential, which appears to make him a nice fit, at least in theory, for the Cavs.
Across social media, Cavs fans were generally happy and even excited about the addition of Agbaji.
Man the Cavs could have a SQUAD. All they needed was a wing that could shoot it & defend…they got a perfect 3 & D guy in Ochai Agbaji and he’s one of the best humans you can find
— Braiden Turner (@bturner23) June 24, 2022
Now that I’m cooled off, Ochai Agbaji always made sense for the Cavs and he’ll be a good fit. Go Cavs. #LetEmKnow
— Mack Perry (@DevaronPerry) June 24, 2022
And there it is. Ochai Agbaji is a lottery pick! Goes to the Cavs at 14. Wing is the Cavs' biggest position of need, so don't be surprised if Ochai finds a role there as a rookie
— RCT (@rockchalktalk) June 24, 2022
Ochai Agbaji fits a huge need for the Cavs. He can come in and immediately be a scoring threat off the bench. He can play defense and is a pretty darn good 3pt shooter. Considering the Cavs' needs and that they were at the tail end of the lottery, this is a good pick.
— Andrew (@TheAndrewJRyan) June 24, 2022
Really like the Ochai Agbaji pick for the Cavs 🏀
— Billy Heyen (@BillyHeyen) June 24, 2022
Agbaji Could Be The Ideal Fit For Cleveland
Coming off their play-in tournament disappointment at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks, it was clear that the young Cavs needed viable wings, better 3-point shooting and improved perimeter defense.
If Agbaji pans out and is as good as advertised, he could give them all of that in one package.
He can certainly score, as he averaged 18.8 points a game this season, and his shooting ability is impressive.
Agbaji can hit outside shots either off the dribble or in catch-and-shoot situations, and he made 40.7 of his attempts from 3-point range this year for the Jawhawks.
With his explosiveness and high vertical leap, he is also lethal in transition and can finish strong at the rim by throwing down dunks, and he is a threat to convert alley-oop dunks when aided by a backdoor pick.
Defensively, Agbaji can switch and guard players at multiple positions, and his impressive 6-foot-10 wingspan allows him to cover space and wreak havoc on the perimeter.
Ochai Agbaji could be perhaps the biggest plug and play prospect available for the Cavs around pick 14. Checkout the full breakdown here: https://t.co/KySwZfbZwF and don’t forget to subscribe! #LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/8ikE4nWEwN
— Mack Perry (@DevaronPerry) June 23, 2022
The fact that he stayed in college for a full four years may make him a more NBA-ready and mature prospect than many of his peers.
He helped lead the Jayhawks to the national championship this year, as they overcame a big deficit versus the University of North Carolina Tar Heels in the title game.
Agbaji ended up being named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament, and many feel he played well in crunch time to help his team win it all.
Agbaji Is The Latest Addition To A Promising Cavs Team
When LeBron James left Cleveland for the second time in 2018, the team was bereft of viable young talent, especially since Kyrie Irving had departed himself a year earlier.
Many perhaps expected the Cavs to get stuck in mediocrity for years, just as they did in between the Mark Price–Brad Daugherty era and James’ arrival in The Land in 2003.
Instead, they have done an admirable job of building through the draft.
They first took Collin Sexton with the eighth pick in the 2008 draft, a pick they acquired in the Irving trade, and since then, they have selected Darius Garland, Isaac Okoro and Evan Mobley in the first round of subsequent drafts.
It has left the wing position as the only real positional need for the Cavs, other than perhaps backup point guard.
Agbaji is poised to become part of a core that could allow Cleveland to contend for the NBA championship several years from now and give fans in Northeast Ohio plenty of entertainment in the meantime.
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