Rip City Project
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Portland Trail Blazers: Three trades to bring in an ideal small forward

By Stevie Cozens

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - FEBRUARY 28: Cedi Osman #16 of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at the Smoothie King Center on February 28, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - FEBRUARY 28: Cedi Osman #16 of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at the Smoothie King Center on February 28, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
(Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

Portland Trail Blazers small forward target – Cedi Osman

Cedi Osman of the Cleveland Cavaliers is a 25-year old small forward. He is six-foot-seven with a six-foot-eleven wingspan.

Osman was drafted 31st in the second round of the 2015 Draft and then was stashed in Europe for two years before signing a contract with the Cavs.

He only played a minimal role in the last year that LeBron James was in town, but after LeBron joined the Lakers, Osman has started at the small forward position in 140 out of 141 games.

Though he hasn’t set the world on fire, Osman is just 25, and in a strong development system, he could flourish.

As an offensive player, Osman shot an excellent 38 percent on a good volume of 4.9 attempts a game. He isn’t a great finisher at the rim at only 60 percent, but he gets there at a decent rate at around 32 percent of his shots.

Osman is a great passer too. He has finished in the 77th and 70th percentiles as a passer at the forward position in the last two years.

Defensively, Osman still needs a lot of work. He has great positional size with his height and wingspan but needs to work on his lateral movement and defensive IQ. At 230 pounds, he has the size to defend fours, but in this switch-heavy NBA, he needs to competently defend the quicker threes and maybe even some twos.

On the Blazers, Osman would fit in nicely as a secondary playmaker and spot-up shooter. He can create a little bit of offense for himself and some for others too.

Though they have Osman as a development piece for the Cavs, they remain unclear on who their future building pieces are. If they wanted to clear cap space, then a trade for Trevor Ariza would make sense. They could get off four years in future salary in Osman and then use their space in future years to get more assets.