Cavs pining for Brandon Rush?

[TheOUTLAW]

It seems to be common knowledge that the Cavs are interested in Rush. In fact, it seems that everyone is saying the Cavs want to trade up so that they'd definitely be able to secure Rush in front of some other teams that have an interest. So the question is, is this true? Leading into drafts I tend to not believe whatever the commonly held belief to be. IMO the Cavs have been rather close to the vest about who they've scouted and who they've worked out. I just can't see how they would be so careless about what their true interest would be. What do you think?

[calibanPK]

From DraftExpress:

"Rush has spent some time working on his body since the season ended, that much is evident. His upper body looks quite a bit more toned these days, although his lower body still needs some work. His wingspan is fantastic, likely somewhere in the 7-foot range, and he really knows how to use it to its fullest to get his shot off with his high release point.

Rush’s strength and size makes shooting from behind the NBA 3-point line a piece of cake in this setting. He looked effortless knocking down shot after shot, and only needed a glimpse of daylight to spot up while being defended in a fairly competitive pickup game by Bobby Simmons. He also defended him extremely well on the other side of the ball, using his length and height to contest his shots effectively, and not being afraid to fight back when the much stronger veteran took him down to the paint and posted him up.

In terms of weaknesses, Rush’s ball-handling skills are clearly a work in progress—the ball slows him down and he struggles a bit to beat guys off the dribble. The obvious lack of aggression he showed at times offensively at Kansas wasn’t something you could really measure in this type of setting. Still, teams are going to like the things that he brings to the table—size, athleticism, length, perimeter shooting, and excellent defensive ability—the combination of which is pretty hard to find in an NBA swingman, and could make him a very safe pick starting in the late lottery. There were rumblings here in Chicago that Phoenix in particular at #15 has taken a liking to him.

Less than a year removed from the ACL surgery that forced him to return to Kansas last season and indirectly helped him win a national championship, Rush’s athleticism is slowly returning to the level it was prior to his injury. It wouldn’t be surprising if he looked a lot more explosive in his rookie season than he did in his final year in college, ala Carl Landry, as it often takes up to 18 months to fully recover from the surgery (which many players now return much stronger from.)"

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Brandon-Rush-78/

My thoughts:
Seems to be a solid athletic player with a nice jumper. Shannon Brown anyone? Im pretty sure that hes 10x the player Shannon is(was--he's done in this league already imo), but i'm just worried that Rush may turn into another Shannon. He's bigger and seems tougher than Shannon though.

Solid defender at the SG/SF slot, would be nice to give Lebron a rest on the defensive end.

Biggest concern is the ACL injury. How much of the surgery will affect his game??

Could work out, could not...who knows. He's a big question mark for me.

[Smooth32]

I hope not. I'm not sold on Rush being a good player at the NBA level... I just don't see it.

[TheOUTLAW]

It's the ACL injury that is making Rush a possibility for the Cavs. That being said he played well last year and he wasn't completely healed. His working out is a good sign as well. I'm not sure about him but please don't scare me with the Shannon Brown talk. Nothing worse than a shooting guard that can't shoot. I do know that we need someon that can handle the ball however.

[eyejayem]

He can score and defend. Good. Former top 3 lottery. Good. Bigger and stronger. Good.

ACL injury. Bad. Proved he can play and play hard since injury. Really Good. Playing against NBA players with ease. Really Good. Shoot open shot. Good. Phoenix wants him. Bad.

So with rumors swirling about AL Harrington and supposedly GS wanting extra compensation and all of sudden Cle is looking for a 2nd rd pick but thats probably also because GS wont take either of next year's 2nd rders. So Clev buys 2 from seattle or trade current expirings for picks so they can give one to GS and have a 2nd rd pick.

Al Harrington and #14 for Anderson Varajao , #19, and the higher of the 2 picks we get.

[NW]

Harrington makes more than Varajao. Going to need another player for that to work.

[rjgraca]

Brandon Rush is just the first rumor of interest to bubble up to the top along with the GS rumor.

I suspect that we will get more and different rumors as the draft approachs. GS is not the only team that might be willing to swap Draft picks.

GS fans seem to like Harrington and he doesn't excite me at all with his SF type game (tweener).

As for Rush, he's a safe pick and that might be what CAVs GM (Ferry) might be looking for.

[RJM]

He'd be great for Cleveland...dude was my favorite player in college outside of Derrick Rose. The only real complete shooting guard coming out this year.

[KCBen]

I agree it would have been great to get Rush. He is the complete package when it comes to SG. Tall (6'6"), well built (210-pounds), very athletic, very good shooter, good passer, run the court extremely well, GREAT on the ball defender, and is just an all-around winner. His only weakness I would say is that he is a so-so ball handler. A lot of that has to do with a childhood broken left arm that makes dribbling with that arm is a little odd at times. I think Rush will be a VERY GOOD NBA player.