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With the 54th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers selected Milan Macvan, a Serbian who played for Maccabi Tel Aviv under head coach David Blatt. Since that draft, Macvan has gone on to play for KK Partizan in Serbia and Galatasaray S.K. in Turkey. Now, the Cavs may be looking to finally bring him over to the NBA.
Cavs expected to start talks with Serbian F/C Milan Macvan, a 2011 2nd-round pick. Macvan played in Turkey, has played for Maccabi Tel Aviv.
— Sam Amico (@SamAmicoFSO) July 1, 2014
Macvan is listed as a 6'9" power forward with three-point range. This is how DraftExpress described him after the Nike Hoops Summit back in 2009:
"At first glance, the big man doesn't look like he has the physical tools to play in the NBA, standing somewhere around 6'9" with a big body sporting plenty of baby fat, and unimpressive athleticism. On the court, he makes up for this with his solid wingspan, an incredible basketball IQ, and the fact that he's just stronger and thicker than anybody else on the court. From early in the game, Macvan displayed his impressive instincts on the offensive glass, and the ability to take up a great deal of space and time the rebound perfectly."
As a big man with a high basketball IQ, he sounds like the kind of player who would fit well in the system that Blatt will look to implement with the Cavs. However, according to David Pick of EuroBasket.com, Macvan and Blatt may not have the greatest relationship after their mutual time at Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Obviously NOT aware of history with Coach Blatt RT @ShamsCharania: Cavaliers and Milan Macvan expected to start negotiations.
— David Pick (@IAmDPick) July 1, 2014
Maccabi signed Milan Macvan to five-year contract. Partnership lasted a few months. The Serbian, I'm told, never returning to Blatt.
— David Pick (@IAmDPick) July 1, 2014
Interesting. A few weeks ago, Pick mentioned that David Griffin spoke to Macvan about Blatt. So the team must be aware of any feelings that Macvan may have toward his former coach.
Heard Cavs GM David Griffin asked Milan Macvan a couple Qs on David Blatt. Serbian PF was @ camp in CLE, played for Maccabi.
— David Pick (@IAmDPick) June 12, 2014
It may not matter anyway. According to Shams Charania of RealGM (whose tweet Pick was responding to above), the Cavs had been expected to negotiate with Macvan, but he is not really interested at the moment.
Cavaliers and 2011 pick Milan Macvan expected to start negotiations, but Macvan now solely focused on overseas deal, source tells RealGM.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2014
That may be for the best. If Macvan were to come over, he would add to what is a bit of a logjam in the Cavs' frontcourt, which includes Tristan Thompson, Anthony Bennett, Tyler Zeller, Dwight Powell and Anderson Varejao. The team is also hoping to bring back Spencer Hawes, and hopefully add a rim protector. If Macvan is going to fit, Griffin will likely have to make some moves.
And convince him that things will be better with Blatt this time around.