Predict Cade rookie stats

[Moses ShamMoses]

Realistic view: 16 pts, 4 rebs, 3 assists, 1 steal, 43% FG, 36% 3P, 80% FT

Optimistic view: 20 pts, 6 rebs, 5 assists, 1 steal, 48% FG, 39% 3P, 80% FT

[BDM22]

So there’s some people predicting a Lebron-esque rookie season.

I think 16 or so points with 5rebounds is possible. The assists may take time, and his shooting will be inconsistent.

It can be a strong rookie campaign, but people saying 20/6/6 need to realize they’re projecting a top 10 rookie campaign of all time, at least in the modern era where you didn’t have 22 year old rookie superstars.

I do think that if Lebron were a rookie with today's rules his numbers would have been more inflated. Probably closer to the 25/8/8 range.

I'd put Cade at around 15/5/5 but it's really up in the air to me. I'm still not quite sure how Casey will approach having a #1 pick on the roster. Especially after Killian's situation last year. I wouldn't be shocked if Casey rolls out Cojo and Grant as the primary offensive options to start the year. I suspect Cade will start kinda slow numbers-wise and will get a lot better in the second half of the season as Casey (hopefully) loosens the leash.

[Manocad]

So there’s some people predicting a Lebron-esque rookie season.

I think 16 or so points with 5rebounds is possible. The assists may take time, and his shooting will be inconsistent.

It can be a strong rookie campaign, but people saying 20/6/6 need to realize they’re projecting a top 10 rookie campaign of all time, at least in the modern era where you didn’t have 22 year old rookie superstars.

I do think that if Lebron were a rookie with today's rules his numbers would have been more inflated. Probably closer to the 25/8/8 range.

I'd put Cade at around 15/5/5 but it's really up in the air to me. I'm still not quite sure how Casey will approach having a #1 pick on the roster. Especially after Killian's situation last year. I wouldn't be shocked if Casey rolls out Cojo and Grant as the primary offensive options to start the year. I suspect Cade will start kinda slow numbers-wise and will get a lot better in the second half of the season as Casey (hopefully) loosens the leash.

Regardless of the few "plan to compete" comments put out there (which can mean anything, not necessarily "chase a playoff spot" and are simply something other than "We plan on losing a lot" which they can't/wouldn't say), I doubt Weaver feels this upcoming season is playoffs or bust thus would be fine still losing a bunch of games as long as the kids are getting their minutes in order to properly develop. That being said, I'd expect Cade to get pretty heavy minutes right off the bat and plenty of opportunity to show what he can do. There's no harm in that as long as his conditioning/durability isn't put at risk or he's constantly left out there if he's floundering thus potentially damaging his confidence. If those risks are mitigated, Casey may as well give him a green light to score at will (or attempt to). Within the flow of the game, obviously. In simple terms, I doubt Cade is going to be given the message "You're not our #1 option so don't try to be; make sure Grant/Bey/whomever are getting theirs first."

[tmorgan]

Yeah, I think 15/5/5 sounds about right.

If Green goes to Houston, he’s gotta be the favorite for the stat-heavy ROY voting. I expect Cade to have a more positive impact on winning, though.

[FloridaMan78]

It depends.

Will Casey give him the green light like Dallas did with Luka?
Luka was pretty inefficient but they let him go.

If Casey does that with Cade
20/5/5 40% 35% 80% 3 TO

If not
16/4/4 45% 38% 80% 2.5 TO

[zeebneeb]

What happened last year has absolutely no bearing on Cades minutes this year. The team is aching for gate revenue, and to get fans back in general, they are already advertising the pick in their season ticket packages.

Cade will 100%, guaranteed, be playing at least 30mpg next season, and he will be a day 1 starter.

Money talks, BS walks.

[bstein14]

Part of it will also depend on the approach we take as a franchise bringing him along.

Do we allow him to take tons of shots, high usage, not worry about efficiency and TO's and realize we're still a year away from competing for a playoff spot.

Or are we bringing him in to play the right way and take what is given within the offense and be a piece to the puzzle rather than the main guy.

Lebron got 20.9 PPG on horrible efficiency as a rookie.... he really couldn't shoot well and shot a lot. eFG .438%
Tatum got 13.9 PPG on really good efficiency as a rookie... he really picked and chose good shots. eFG .538%

[FloridaMan78]

Part of it will also depend on the approach we take as a franchise bringing him along.

Do we allow him to take tons of shots, high usage, not worry about efficiency and TO's and realize we're still a year away from competing for a playoff spot.

Or are we bringing him in to play the right way and take what is given within the offense and be a piece to the puzzle rather than the main guy.

Lebron got 20.9 PPG on horrible efficiency as a rookie.... he really couldn't shoot well and shot a lot. eFG .438%
Tatum got 13.9 PPG on really good efficiency as a rookie... he really picked and chose good shots. eFG .538%

I would imagine Casey talking with his old boss Rick Carlisle and getting his opinion at least. Carlisle would run the same play over and over again until the opposing team stopped it. He did that here and did it with Luka a lot. I wonder if Carlisle would do anything different with his development if he had the chance.

Cade and Luka’s game being so similar, Cade admitted he molded his game like his.

I think it would be a benefit to get Carlisle’s inside perspective to that.

[440BB]

Part of it will also depend on the approach we take as a franchise bringing him along.

Do we allow him to take tons of shots, high usage, not worry about efficiency and TO's and realize we're still a year away from competing for a playoff spot.

Or are we bringing him in to play the right way and take what is given within the offense and be a piece to the puzzle rather than the main guy.

Lebron got 20.9 PPG on horrible efficiency as a rookie.... he really couldn't shoot well and shot a lot. eFG .438%
Tatum got 13.9 PPG on really good efficiency as a rookie... he really picked and chose good shots. eFG .538%

After the acknowledging they made a mistake with Hayes to start last season, I expect them to be gradual in their approach, making sure Cunningham adjusts to the NBA game with confidence. He may show he's ready for major minutes pretty early on from what I've seen.

I think they have a plan that Cade just enhances, maybe accelerates. I hope they stick to it, based on what they've done so far. I prefer everybody earning their minutes, even those considered elite from the start. The Hayes lesson should have been a learning experience. My hope is for a multi year contender to start making noise in 2023, so I'm fine with watching them build a strong foundation the right way. I expect they'll keep us entertained in the meantime.

[tmorgan]

But the Hayes approach was a legit success. He firebombed our first handful of games and set the tone for the season, which lead to Cade. No complaints here, although I really want to see Killian get it together quickly. He’s special in a number of ways, but if he’s one-handed and shot averse, he’s going to end up special in Europe.

[rmfc]

20+ PPG, 4+ assists, 4+ rebounds, 1 steal