The Index · Live

Saliou NiangCleveland Cavaliers · #14

Forward · 6'8", 210 lb · Italy

Saliou Niang is a forward the Cleveland Cavaliers selected 58th overall (second round) in the 2025 NBA draft out of Italy. A young second-round pick — projected role, ratings and outlook.

Cleveland Cavaliers roster More Forwards

MVP race · #382Forward rank · #142Balladex Impact · 26

⚖ Quick compare

Analysis by Beau Thoutt · Balladex

◆ Rated

Cleveland Cavaliers · #14 · Forward

Saliou Niang

Season avg— · no NBA seasons yet — prospect

Career avg— · career line pending debut

Live win probabilityBulls 56%

Balladex model · projected 120–119 · 100.2 pace

Tonight's projectionmodel

4.5pts

3.6reb

1.4ast

44%win

Tonight's matchup · who he'll mainly guardhead-to-head

Saliou Niang

Cleveland Cavaliers · Forward

Isaac Okoro

Chicago Bulls · Strong defender

Category breakout

Head-to-head history

Home/away splits from recent games; live grades from the DNA model.

LADDER#382 in the Balladex MVP raceIMPACTBalladex Impact 26 — Role player tierINDEXSaliou Niang · Cleveland CavaliersLADDER#382 in the Balladex MVP raceIMPACTBalladex Impact 26 — Role player tierINDEXSaliou Niang · Cleveland Cavaliers

Scouting report

Saliou Niang — the report card

Read his whole game at a glance, then dive into any skill. Grades from the DNA model + real production.

Depth wing prospect · Impact 26

Saliou Niang is a forward the Cleveland Cavaliers selected 58th overall (second round) in the 2025 NBA draft out of Italy. A young second-round pick —

Offense

Defense

Feel / IQ

Playmaking

Below average creator

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Scoring

Below average scorer

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Rebounding

Below average on the glass

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3PT / spacing

Below average spacing

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Perimeter D

Below average on the perimeter

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Paint / rim D

Below average at the rim

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Clutch

Below average late

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Athleticism

Below average tools

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Basketball IQ

Reads the game

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Durability

Availability

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Act II

Where Saliou Niang stands

Live ladders from the Balladex models, and what he's chasing. Rankings recompute nightly from real production, accolades, and search demand.

The laddersmodel · recomputes nightly

Nikola Jokić Denver Nuggets▬

44%

Giannis Antetokounmpo Miami Heat▬

23%

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Oklahoma City Thunder▬

19%

Luka Doncic Los Angeles Lakers▬

Kyrie Irving Dallas Mavericks▬

✦ Balladex Consensus: #382 of 384 — a blend of the Impact index, current production, career résumé and live search demand. Recomputes as the data does.

Futures & chases

—MVP odds

26Impact index

54Star score

Career scoring average0.0 ppg

Seasons in the index0

Accolades on file1

#58 2025 Draft pick (R2)

Stat explorer

Saliou Niang — every number, three levels deep

Headline → metric → the raw history behind it. Real career data; tracking-only metrics labeled.

Scoring

0.0 PPG

drill in ↓

Playmaking

0.0 APG

drill in ↓

Rebounding

0.0 RPG

drill in ↓

Shooting

— 3P%

drill in ↓

The engine

How the model sees Saliou Niang

Projection = per-minute rate × projected minutes. Rates are recency- and health-weighted, aged along a per-stat curve, and adjusted for live usage/role. No black box — every number shows its work.

Projected next season confidence

Bands widen as confidence drops. Derived live from the real 0-season history below.

What moves the points line vs last season

Everything it reads

📊

0 seasons of per-minute rates

every box line, minutes-normalized

real

⚖

Recency × games-played weight

recent, healthy seasons anchor the baseline

auto

📈

Weighted least-squares trend

his own trajectory, read season over season

+dev

🕰

Per-stat aging curves

age — — applied per stat

curve

🔌

Live role context

usage & role shifts fold in when the feed is present

+ctx

🏥

Durability signal

GP last 3: — → games & confidence

health

The real history it trains onsource: Basketball-Reference · verified

Saliou Niang career stats, season by season

Source: Basketball-Reference. Backtested against completed player-seasons in the index. The same engine powers Tonight's projection, EraLab, and the role simulator — one model, asked different questions. Illustrative.

Act III

The Lab

Every number, live and interactive. Real career data; models labeled.

Gold = MVP / Championship season · hover any bar. Real per-game data; per-36 & totals derived.

EraLab · the stat time machinenovel

Re-express a season in today's pace-and-space.

—raw PPG

→

—in 2026 pace

why

Player DNA + compssimilarity model

Closest comps

Nick Martinelli 100%Trey Kaufman-Renn 100%Malique Lewis 99%Brooks Barnhizer 98%Lachlan Olbrich 98%

⚖ Overlay a rival →

Scoring map · clickable zonesShotChart

Team-tinted. Modeled where tracking data is absent.

Role simulatorpowered by GM engine

Change the roster around him — his projection updates live.

If a key teammate misses 20 games →

Projected line shifts to — usage , assists rise as primary initiator. Title odds . Illustrative.

Context

Are the Cleveland Cavaliers built to win?

Team projection rolled up from the roster + last-season baselines — and what it means for his role.

52–30proj record

#5conf seed

+4.4net rtg

118.4off rtg

114def rtg

96%playoff odds

Roster delta · what changed

Aggressive hedge & help — Hedges hard on ball screens and rotates aggressive help from the weak side. Core trending improving. Defensive anchors: Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley.

How his role moves

Projected 52–30, 5th in the East. Real team projection from the roster + last-season baselines. His usage, minutes and creation load move with roster health.

Balladex Impact

26 of 99

Role player tier.

Rarity

◆ Rated

Collectible tier.

Résumé

1 accolades

#58 2025 Draft pick (R2)

Act IV

The Ballad of Saliou Niang

Birth to now — the making of a legend, narrated and scored.

The beginning

Saliou Niang is a 2025 second-round forward for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Turning pro

Drafted 58th overall, 2025 as a Forward.

true

Saliou Niang was a second-round pick (58th overall) in the 2025 NBA draft, headed to the Cleveland Cavaliers out of Italy.

Chapter

As a second-round pick with a limited NBA sample so far, this page carries Balladex projections rather than a full stat line.

Where things stand

A second-round forward carving out a role.

▶

Niang's story

The documentary, narrated

Highlights

▶ Highlights landing soon

Off the court

Measurables

Active

Height: 6'8"
Weight: 210 lb
Draft: 58th overall, 2025
Born: Italy
Jersey: #14

Beyond the game

Niang joins the Cleveland Cavaliers as a 2025 second-round pick out of Italy.

The person

A 2025 second-round forward out of Italy.

Developing

Second round

Italy

FAQ

Saliou Niang — frequently asked

The questions people ask most about Saliou Niang, answered.

Where was Saliou Niang drafted?

Saliou Niang was selected 58th overall (second round) by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2025 NBA draft, out of Italy.

Does Niang have NBA stats yet?

The identity and draft facts are real; the ratings and outlook are Balladex projections, since he has a limited NBA sample.

Saliou Niang career stats & accolades are real, and team projections and recent-game home/away splits are computed from real production. DNA ratings, grades, tonight's projection, ladders, live win probability and simulator outputs are Balladex model output. Not affiliated with the NBA.

Saliou NiangCleveland Cavaliers · #14

Saliou Niang — the report card

Where Saliou Niang stands

Saliou Niang — every number, three levels deep

How the model sees Saliou Niang

Saliou Niang career stats, season by season

The Lab

Are the Cleveland Cavaliers built to win?

The Ballad of Saliou Niang

The beginning

Turning pro

true

Chapter

Where things stand

Off the court

Saliou Niang — frequently asked

More Cleveland Cavaliers players

Other Forwards to compare