Sources: Cavs eye wing at No. 4

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The Cleveland Cavaliers are going into Thursday night's draft hoping to land a starting wing with the No. 4 pick to play alongside last year's rookie of the year, Kyrie Irving.

According to sources, the Cavs have narrowed their list to three players: Florida's Bradley Beal, Kentucky's Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and North Carolina's Harrison Barnes.

The Cavs covet Beal, but are convinced that the Washington Wizards will select him with the No. 3 pick. They have had discussions about swapping picks with the Charlotte Bobcats at No. 2 to select Beal, but as of Thursday afternoon, they still didn't have a deal.

If the Cavs stay at No. 4 and Beal is off the board, their front office is torn between Kidd-Gilchrist and Barnes. While Barnes provides more punch offensively, the Cavs are intrigued by the defensive abilities and leadership qualities of Kidd-Gilchrist.

Kidd-Gilchrist and Irving were high school teammates and won a state championship together.

Sources say that as of Thursday, Kidd-Gilchrist had a slight lead over Barnes.

The Cavs also have shown interest in Dion Waiters and Terrence Ross, but sources say that interest doesn't extend to the No. 4 pick.

The Cavs have been trying to acquire another top 10 pick and would consider those players there if they can make a deal.

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Chad Ford | email

Senior Writer, NBA Insider

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• Senior NBA Writer for ESPN.com
• ESPN Insider NBA Draft Analyst since 2002
• Writes ESPN's NBA Draft Top 100 and Lottery Mock Draft