Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown revealed that he plans to play No. 1 overall pick Anthony Bennett "strictly at the 4" for the time being, according to Bob Finnan of The News-Herald.
Mike Brown: Anthony Bennett is ‘strictly a 4,’ for now
The Cavs have a hole at the small forward position, but coach Mike Brown says that No. 1 overall pick Anthony Bennett will be used exclusively at the power forward spot next season.
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Brown says that Bennett could possibly be used as a small forward at some point in the future, but that would happen “way, way, way down the road.” The Cavs do have a bit of a hole at the 3, so it would have made some sense for Brown to try Bennett at that position. The UNLV product is a versatile scorer, but it’s apparent that the Cavs aren’t comfortable using Bennett as a small forward just yet.
While playing Bennett exclusively at the 4 could create a bit of a logjam at the position, Brown has a plan:
"I got it figured," Brown said. "His ability to score in a lot of different ways is intriguing. His explosiveness is intriguing. His standing reach is higher than lot of guys playing power forward in the league, including Kevin Love. He's got long arms. There's a desire to want to be better. He has a lot of upside."
Tristan Thompson started at the 4 all of last season, and after a slow start, he came on strong. Thompson finished the year with averages of 11.7 points and 9.4 rebounds, so he likely has that starting spot on lock for next year. However, as Brown explains, there will be ways to find minutes for Bennett despite the fact that the Cavs also signed Earl Clark this offseason and have several other options at the 4.
Bennett is still recovering from surgery to repair a torn labrum, but he’s expected to be ready for the start of training camp.
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