NBA Draft Rumors: Could Cavaliers Take Alex Len First Overall?

Here's an interesting piece of information about Maryland's Alex Len, courtesy of Chad Ford of ESPN:

If he could work out, I think he'd have a shot at going No. 1. However, from what I'm told, he's still in the mix with the Cavs for that top spot anyway. It's hard to imagine him falling out of the top 10.

It looks like the Cavs are really doing their due diligence in considering all options for the first overall selection on June 27th. However, Len presents problems for a multitude of reasons. First of all, if you're going to take an injured guy who you can't fully work out at number one overall, why wouldn't you take Nerlens Noel? Of course, Len's injury is considered far less serious than Noel's is, but the point remains.

Secondly, while Noel is considered to be a defensive dynamo and a lot of Len's draft value depends on his projectable frame and considerable offensive potential, the point still remains that Noel nearly produced the same offensive output as Len this season while being one year younger and suffering from the same lack of strong guard play. I'm a definite fan of Len's potential skillset, but the fact of the matter is that he struggled at times in the ACC this year, while Noel only got better as his season progressed until his devastating knee injury (for proof, check out Len's 14 game stretch in ACC play where he averaged 9.4 points per game from January 26 until March 15).

The Cavs truly are covering all of their bases, and making sure they select the right player. We'd already heard three names suggested now as a potential top pick (with Noel, Ben McLemore and Otto Porter), but now it looks like we can add in Len to that list. I still believe that when the draft comes around Nerlens Noel will be wearing the wine and gold, but the picture at least looks a little bit murkier today than it did yesterday.