Cavaliers officially announce Cedi Osman signing

The Cleveland Cavaliers have officially announced the signing of Cedi Osman, the 31st pick of the 2015 NBA Draft, to a three-year, $8.3 million contract.

First things first: that picture is absolutely fascinating. It looks like it’s either an oil painting, or they photoshopped an NBA 2K version of Cedi’s face onto somebody else’s body. I’m not quite sure what filters they applied to create this picture, but it’s got me mesmerized.

On a more serious note, I’m fascinated to figure out what kind of role Osman will play in his rookie year. The Cavaliers are stocked with wings, with J.R. Smith, LeBron James, Iman Shumpert, Kyle Korver and Richard Jefferson all battling for minutes. The Cavs could stash Osman in Canton to make sure he gets playing time, but with Cedi making just under 3 million dollars per year (and costing exponentially more due to tax), I’d be surprised if the team doesn’t at least try to make sure he gets rotational minutes.

Osman’s ability to earn time with the Cavaliers will probably be based on two things: Tyronn Lue’s patience while he figures it out and his inconsistent three-point stroke. If he can get close to 35 to 37 percent from NBA three-point range, I’d be stunned if he can’t earn consistent minutes as a switch-y defender, transition bucket getter and smart off-ball cutter. He’s not an elite athlete, but he’s a good one, and at 6’8, his young legs and size present a combination the Cavaliers haven’t had in a while.

We’ll see if he can make an impact early on and make LeBron James forget that the team could’ve had Jamal Crawford in his stead.