The Cleveland Cavaliers had one of their best seasons in a while this year, but they were not able to capitalize on it in the end. The goal now is to find ways to get better in the offseason, while also building the chemistry they have with the current group. There are some players on the Cavs who didn’t get much of an opportunity to play last year, and hopefully, next season, they can show what they can do.
Shaq shouted out that person on his podcast, as he randomly made a segment called “What the f— are you doing”
“To the Cleveland Cavaliers general manager, what the f— are you doing? Why is Emoni Bates in the f—— G-League? What the f— is going on? This motherf—– can play,” Shaq said. “The last game you put him in, he had seven threes. Don’t you think you need that for a f—— championship? Whoever you are, the general manager of Cleveland, what the f— are you doing?”
“If I’m a coach I want all the scorers I can. That motherf—– can play. He’s been in the G-League for what, two years?”
Bates saw the love that Shaq was showing him and responded to the clip.
“All love OG SHAQ appreciate the love [emoji] work gone show [emoji],” Bates wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Will the Cavs give Emoni Bates more minutes next season?
Bates will be entering his third year with the Cavs, and he has shown in his young career that he has the skills to give some quality minutes on the team. Bates played in only 10 games during the season, and during his rookie year, he played in only 15 games. For the most part, he’s been in the G-League working on his game, and the hope is that he can show that consistency on the court.
Head coach Kenny Atkinson has seen the growth in Bates and spoke highly of him at the end of the regular season.
“He’s gotten better from the beginning of the season,” Atkinson said. “Beginning of the season, he was trying to find his way. When you have a guy who can long-range shoot like him, there’s a place for him in this league.”
Bates was once seen as one of the best prospects in college basketball, but as time went on and he reclassified, he began to drop in the draft. Nonetheless, Bates still has the skills to produce in the league, and all he needs is the chance.
