Why a Cedi Osman reunion with the Cleveland Cavaliers just makes sense

The captain of the Turkish national team, Cedi Osman, has been balling out in EuroBasket.

Just three years since the Cleveland Cavaliers' staple left for the San Antonio Spurs, and two years since he was last in the NBA, Osman is proving that he deserves a second shot in the league.

Back on Sept. 14, Osman led Turkey in scoring with 23 points as they fell to Germany, 88-83, in the EuroBasket final. He shot an impressive 7-of-13 from the field and 6-of-9 from deep as the team attempted to pull off the upset.

While they ultimately came up short, throughout the entirety of the tournament, Osman was one of the bright spots for Turkey.

In the quarterfinal round of the tournament, he suffered an injury against Poland. That injury put his appearance in both the semifinal and final rounds up in the air. However, he played through the pain and showed that he can rise to the occasion.

Against Greece in the semifinal, Osman knocked down seven shots from the field and two from three-point range for 17 points. He also added on three rebounds and assists, and contributed two steals defensively.

Obviously, Osman wouldn't let the injury hinder Turkey's chance to keep climbing to the final.

“We still had one more game. Personally, I felt pain, I wasn’t at 100%, but I didn’t want to leave my team alone as the captain," Osman said to Meridian sport. "I had to play, even if I wasn’t fully ready. In games like this, you have to play, there’s no other option."

This isn't something new though for the 30-year-old, who concluded his final two seasons in the NBA playing over 70 games in each season.

In his final season with Cavaliers before being shipped to San Antonio, he put up 8.7 PTS, 1.4 AST and 2.3 TRB a matchup on 20 minutes a game. The best part? He was nearly unstoppable from the field shooting 45% nearly seven attempts a match.

At the conclusion of the 2023-24 season, he capped off his time in the NBA with his best shooting marks at 48% from the field and 39% from three-point range.

That type of shooting has not waivered in his game since he left the league.

Through the 2024-25 season he played 32 games with Panathinaikos of the EuroLeague, putting up respectable numbers of 7.9 PPG and 2.4 TRPG while keeping up with his consistent shooting numbers from years past. He shot 44% from the field and 37% from beyond the arc.

With the native of Ohrid, North Macedonia, still being in basketball shape and being a critical member of both his national team and Panathinaikos, a return to the NBA could be in the picture.

Any playoff team, especially the Cavaliers, could use his production on both sides of the ball as a depth piece.

The organization will be without two critical members of its rotation to begin the 2025-26 season, guard Darius Garland and guard/forward Max Strus. Both have been starters for the past few years, and without them, guard Sam Merrill and forward Deandre Hunter will be thrusted into big-time minutes.

The movement of those two pieces forward in the lineup thins out what was once a very deep team. By bringing in a guy like Osman who knows the system, Cleveland could combat the hiccups that would come from having to play heavy minutes in youngsters such as Tyrese Proctor and Jaylin Tyson.

The playstyle of Osman also fits what Cleveland is currently doing: spacing the floor, knocking down shots and playing aggressive on both ends.

Osman is certainly thriving overseas right now and seeing continued success, but there must be part of him that would love to be a part of a championship team in the NBA.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are a front runner to hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy this coming year, the only question is whether or not Osman would want to be back in The Land.