Cedi Osman feels a new sense of responsibility heading into his second season

In a post-LeBron James era, Cedi Osman already seems to be well-aware that he is going to have more responsibility in the 2018-19 season than he had in his rookie campaign.

Following the Cavaliers’ 93-88 over Indiana in summer league action on Monday night, Osman, who had 25 points and six assists, said that the new responsibilities that await him are part of what make playing in summer league so important.

“To take responsibility I couldn’t take last year,” Osman said. “But hopefully this year, I’m going to have a chance to take that responsibility and that’s why playing in summer league is really important for me.”

In 2017-18, Osman averaged 3.9 points, two rebounds and 0.7 assists in 61 regular-season games, 12 of which he started. He saw time in only 14 of the Cavs’ 22 playoff games, however, and saw significant time in only Game 4 against Toronto. In that contest, he played 21 minutes and had five points, two assists and two rebounds.

Not being in the Cavs 2018 playoff plans however, has not deterred Osman, who says that he knows that his “shot is going to get better,” and that he and head coach Tyronn Lue have already talked about Osman needing to protect the ball better.

”I was a rookie,” Osman said of not seeing huge playoff minutes. “I was on the team playing for the championship and that was the fourth year in a row, and of course they know better than me, so my job was only to stay ready and doesn’t matter how much I play. When I got in, my job was to do my best.”

Osman quickly transformed into a social media darling and fan favorite during his rookie campaign — but he will likely be thrown into the fire almost immediately in his second season as the Cavs will have to find different ways to be successful, especially on the offensive end. In order for that to happen, Osman will need to keep that desire to improve as he takes a more front-and-center role.