Ranker NBAList RulesVote based only on career success with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Only picks made since the NBA/ABA merger (since 1977).
Cleveland Cavaliers first-round draft picks have shaped the franchise and been primarily responsible for the only championship in team history. It helps to have drafted one of the best basketball players of all time, LeBron James, but players like Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson also helped make the franchise what it is.
Not every Cavaliers draft pick has been a hit, though, with players like Anthony Bennett, DeSagana Diop, and Dajuan Wagner ranking among the biggest NBA draft busts in history.
So which of these players had the greatest impact on the Cavaliers? The stats below reflect only the players' time spent with Cleveland, and that's what you should base your vote on. Did this Cavaliers first-round draft pick help the franchise improve?
1
304Draft selection: 1 (2003)
Stats
849 games played, 27.2 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 7.3 apg, 1.6 spgAchievements
NBA champion (2016)
NBA Finals MVP (2016)
2× NBA Most Valuable Player (2009, 2010)
10× NBA All-Star (2005–2010, 2015-2018)
3× NBA All-Star Game MVP (2006, 2008, 2018)
8× All-NBA First Team (2006, 2008–2010, 2015-2018)
2× All-NBA Second Team (2005, 2007)
2× NBA All-Defensive First Team (2009, 2010)
NBA Rookie of the Year (2004)2
244Draft selection: 1 (2011)
Stats
381 games played, 21.6 ppg, 5.5 apg, 3.4 rpgAchievements
NBA champion (2016)
4× NBA All-Star (2013–2015, 2017)
NBA All-Star Game MVP (2014)
All-NBA Third Team (2015)
NBA Rookie of the Year (2012)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (2012)3
Draft selection: 20 (1996)
Stats
771 games played, 13.8 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 1.6 bpgAchievements
2× NBA All-Star (2003, 2005)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (1998)4
Draft selection: 8 (2018)
Stats
82 games played, 16.7 ppg, 3.0 apg, 2.9 rpg5
Draft selection: 4 (2011)
Stats
562 games played, 9.2 ppg, 8.6 rpgAchievements
NBA champion (2016)
NBA All-Rookie Second Team (2012)6
Draft selection: 1 (1986)
Stats
548 games played, 19.0 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 3.7 apgAchievements
5× NBA All-Star (1988, 1989, 1991–1993)
All-NBA Third Team (1992)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (1987)7
135Draft selection: 8 (1986)
Stats
228 games played, 19.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 4.7 apgAchievements
NBA All-Rookie First Team (1987)8
Draft selection: 11 (1991)
Stats
457 games played, 12.7 ppg, 4.9 apg, 1.4 spgAchievements
2× NBA All-Star (1996, 1997)
NBA All-Rookie Second Team (1992)9
Draft selection: 8 (2000)
Stats
Never played for Cavaliers10
Draft selection: 7 (1987)
Stats
52 games played, 7.3 ppg11
126Draft selection: 19 (2008)
Stats
223 games played, 9.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg12
105Draft selection: 11 (1999)
Stats
255 games played, 14.5 ppg, 8.2 apg, 4.2 rpgAchievements
NBA All-Rookie First Team (2000)13
Draft selection: 15 (1978)
Stats
271 games played, 19.3 ppg, 5.8 rpgAchievements
NBA All-Star (1981)14
Draft selection: 6 (2002)
Stats
102 games played, 9.4 ppg15
Selection: 16 (1997)
Stats
190 games played, 9.0 ppg, 7.6 apg, 2.0 spgAchievements
NBA All-Rookie First Team (1998)16
Draft selection: 22 (1993)
Stats
319 games played, 12.6 ppg, 5.4 rpg17
109Draft selection: 4 (2012)
Stats
164 games played, 14.3 ppg, 2.8 apg, 2.4 rpgAchievements
NBA All-Rookie First Team (2013)18
Draft selection: 20 (2001)
Stats
22 games played, 1.6 ppg19
Draft selection: 12 (1996)
Stats
177 games played, 6.7 ppg20
Draft selection: 13 (1997)
Stats
104 games played, 11.3 ppg, 3.6 apgAchievements
NBA All-Rookie Second Team (1998)21
66Draft selection: 17 (1995)
Stats
330 games played, 8.1 ppg, 3.7 apg22
Draft selection: 1 (2014)
Stats
Never played for Cavaliers23
55Sergey Karasev
Draft selection: 19 (2013)
Stats
22 games played, 1.7 ppg24
Draft selection: 22 (1980)
Stats
29 games played, 2.8 ppg25
Draft selection: 8 (2001)
Stats
193 games played, 1.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25