What trades CAN the Cleveland Cavaliers make this summer & which ones DON’T WORK because of the cap

What trades CAN the Cleveland Cavaliers make this summer & which ones DON’T WORK because of the cap

So Jason, as we approach the dog days of summer, the fake trade machines are in full swing. Kobe Alman said yesterday at his end of season press conference that he doesn’t believe a major change is coming. This is a man that put together this version of the core 4. He was the one that had the initial vision. He traded all the assets to get Donovan Mitchell. He extended Darius, Donovan, Evan, and Jarrett. So, I can see how he thinks it is the practical and smart move to keep the core that he envisioned together. I know a lot of fans disagree with that. And we’re going to talk about some uh hypothetical trades that they’ve made their way around the interweb of late that have sparked and we’re going to explain why most of these are completely unrealistic. Not just based on the player for player trades, but because none of them work under the second eight. But Jason, real quick, in one minute or less, if the Cavs decide to run it back with the core four, if Kobe Alwin decides not to make a major change, and I know you just said you’d all be in favor of moving Jared Allen just because you want to shake things up, but if the decision is we are running it back with the majority of this roster, would Kobe be crazy? Would he have some validity behind that reasoning? Or how would you look at the decision from the Cavaliers to basically run it back for a third year? that I here’s I don’t know if I’m gonna answer that directly how you but I to me they made the decision to run it back when they traded for DeAndre Hunter that was when they locked in remember when they signed Jared to the extension they did it just in time to where they could still move him if they needed to at the deadline and instead they pivoted the other way obviously they had an incredible regular season and when they move when they traded for DeAndre Hunter we talked about how it got them out of the tax for this year so it kicked that can down the road But it established them, it fortified them as a second apron team next year. And that is where it sort of got locked in to me that they were probably going to keep this team intact. I wrote that after they lost the Pacers series. The die has been cast. The die was cast for this team when DeAndre Hunter showed up. Um, so I you can argue if it’s the right or wrong move. I wouldn’t trade Jarrett just to shake things up. It has to be a move that makes sense. And that’s part of the reason I think why he’s going to be back is I don’t know. I haven’t seen it yet. You know, it’s it’s easy for me to say I don’t know how you can bring Jared back. And I I I mean that, but at the same time, I don’t know that there’s like Boston, what a great move. And at the time, I kind of scratched my head and said, does it make him better or not? And what a dumb thing to say because the Marcus Smart for Porzingis move made them infinitely better. And it was a it was a smart move at the right at the exact right time. I don’t know that that move exists right now for the Cavs. I haven’t seen it yet. No one’s shown it to me yet where, you know, two sides got to line up on a trade. And just because you may like a player doesn’t mean that team wants to trade them. Um, you know, the Lakers desperately need a center. Does Ruy Hachimura alone make the Cavs that much better than Jared Allen? I don’t I don’t know. You know, I mean, it it makes Evan the center, uh, which is I think they’re at their best when he’s at the five, but I don’t know that it makes them infinitely better as a team. doesn’t unlock a new level like you know the Porzingis Marcus Smart trade did for Boston. So that’s why I don’t know if I answered that right or not but once they made the Hunter trade it sort of locked in who they are and who they’re going to be uh for the for this year and for next year. So Jason, I’m not sure you were on the show the day I proposed my favorite trade thus far that I think makes sense for both teams. Works under the cap and it’s the one deal I’ve seen that I if this was offered I would pull the trigger. But Jared Allen to Houston for Tari East and Jabari Smith Jr. both of those guys long athletic wings entering the final year of their contracts. Steven Adams is an unrestricted free agent. We saw in the playoffs against Golden State, he used to went to the two big lineup. You could switch Jared Allen in for Stephen Adams, which is an upgrade. Gives you a little more flexibility with Shenon. And it gives Houston an opportunity to lock a center in under a very reasonable contract as they continue to build around their young core without having to break break the bank for either Jabari Smith or Tar East. And that would give the Cavs two athletic wings that can play the three, the four. Jabari Smith could even play a little bit of the five. that that’s a deal I like that works under the cap because it’s uh $18.5 million coming to Cleveland and $20 million heading to Houston. Yeah, I was on the show that day. I remember you mentioning that. That’s not bad. Um, I don’t know if Houston I don’t know if Houston what their interest level would be in in Jared. See, I’m part of me thinks a non-shooting big is not going to demand a lot in a trade and at the same time put some of the physicality issues aside. I do think that there are teams that like Jarrett 100%. His contract is good. It’s a good contract. It’s not it’s not immovable. Um, so it really I think it’s going to come down to tasterers choice uh with some of these teams and who likes him and who doesn’t. It’s funny. Jared makes 20 million this year and then his extension kicks in for 30 million the next couple years. Yeah. Jared at 30 million if the extension was one year earlier is a lot easier to trade and a lot easier to put together packages that make sense for both sides than it is at 20 million. and Darius Garland, the other player that a lot of people have thrown at the trade rumors, is at 40 million. And it’s hard to find a trade partner that wants a point guard that has the assets to combine to get to 40 million for Darius. So, it’s funny that both of these extensions, they’re at the low end and the high end of the spectrum. But Jason, the first deal I want to throw out to you came from Bill Simmons and Ryan Rasillo. And I’m going to present this to you. I want your opinion and then I will then I will explain the the backside of this because we’re going to talk about it on UCSS as well today. But this made all the noise on social media yesterday in a vacuum because this does not work under the current cap. This deal that I’m going to tell you about from Bill Simmons and Ryan Orillo, let me reemphasize, does not work under the cap. Everybody’s talking about it anyway. It does not work. It could work if the Cavs make 13 other moves beforehand, and I’ll explain those to you in a sec. But in a vacuum, Jason, where this would work, if Milwaukee called Cleveland and said Giannis from Moley, straight up, what would you say? Okay, so here’s a complicated I hate doing these because it’s not ever going to happen. There’s no I love doing these with you because I know you hate them. Oh, it drives me crazy. Like this is fantasy world. This of course Giannis is a top three, five player in the league. Yes, he would make that deal. Okay. In a vacuum. Yes. like whatever vacuum you want and and and there is one thing that I do think needs discuss here and like because I know I saw something about Darius for Drew Holiday and everyone’s like oh my god that that one makes no sense either. We saw Jared for Draymond Green that also does not work under the cap. But here’s an important point that I do think needs at least pointed out every the thing the push back I saw in Holiday was like oh my god why would you trade Darius for a 35-year-old point guard? I get it. I understand what you’re saying, but I do think you need to stop looking at this as we have this young core that’s gonna have all this time to grow together and you need to look at this as you have two years y to win. So if you have to trade a young guy with a bright future for an older veteran, I’m not saying do Garland for holiday. It’s not what I’m saying. But I don’t think that you need I I think we’re past the point of just outright dismissing moves because a guy’s getting older in his career. That’s what ideally this team needs somebody who’s a little bit older, who’s been around a little bit, you know, go back to the championship era. RJ and Channing were like the veteran dudes who’d been around for a while and and Mike Miller and James Jones and Shawn Marion. Like Steve could use some some veterans outside of just Tristan and Max. some guys who have been through some wars and have seen a thing or two. That’s not s that’s not so much a bad thing. So, I think we need to get past this. Why would you break up this? Because I don’t know. And that’s the one area where I think I disagree with Kobe was like he said we have this bright we have this long runway and we’re going to contend this year and next year and the year after. I’m like, “Well, hold on. Like, I don’t know what magic beans you’ve got in your pocket, but and and maybe they just continue to knock out of the park drafting, developing, and and they turn into the Warriors who they just find these guys and maybe that maybe that’s how this goes. But unless that’s it, you have two years to win with this group and that’s it. So, stop looking at trades as why would we trade a 23 year old for a 33 year old?” uh because you have to maximize these next two years if you’re trying to win a championship. Now, having getting that out of the way, yes, of course, you would trade Evan Mobley for Giannis straight up one for one in a and if this is Major League Baseball and there was no salary cap or anything else, but I also think having, you know, let’s live in that same vacuum. Milwaukee can get so much more for Giannis from other teams than what Cleveland can offer. Like, let’s start there and then let’s add into the fact who owns the Milwaukee Bucks. Jimmy, why is Jimmy going to help bring Cleveland a championship that doesn’t have to do with the Browns? Why? Why would he do that? People already don’t like him. Yeah. You think he’s going to help the Cavs win another title so people can come back at him and say, “You incompetent buffoon.” Like, they’ve now got two and you can’t even get out of your own way and you’re still paying Deshun Watson. And and like it’s it’s I mean, they would thank him in a mocking way of, “Hey, thanks Jimmy for Giannis. Haha.” I don’t see any world where Jimmy Hasslam helps the Cavs win a championship. Why would he? So, I mean, what are we talking about here? The owner is not going to be on board with it. The team can get plenty more. Look at Houston, Oklahoma City, and San Antonio is look at the packages they can put together versus Evan Mobley straight up for Giannis one for one in a deal that doesn’t even work. Yeah. So, what are we doing here? So, let me let me explain to people why that deal doesn’t work. Because a I love Russell and Simmons. I think they do a really good job on basketball podcast, but you can’t throw a deal out there with those names that you know is going to get aggregated. That doesn’t even work. Moy’s projected salary next year, Jason, 46.4 million. Giannis’s projected salary next year, 54.1 million. Because the Cavs are a second apron team, they cannot take on a single penny more than they’re sending out. And unless my math is incorrect, 54 million is a lot more than 46 a.5 million. Yeah. So you’re out of there. The Cavs can’t aggregate salaries to match. So they can’t put Moy plus somebody, right? If they really want to get creative, the Cavs would have to get to about 20 million under the cap before making a deal, which means unloading a Cororo and Wade to a team with cap space. First off, how many teams want to take two years with Isaac Aor at $11 million when you can’t really have an asset to attach to him because the Cavs don’t have assets to attach at the moment. There is no value on that AOR contract. None. Literally negative value. So, you have to give another pick some seconds, whatever. I don’t see a team doing that. Then you have to find a team to do the same thing for Dean Wade, who I think has more value at six and a half million on his contract as opposed to Isaac with 11. So, those two things have to happen before you could even get into a financial spot to make that deal. And then, let’s say that did happen, right, Jason? Let’s say you did make those two deals, got under the cap, were able to trade Moy for Giannis straight up. Then, you would have about $1.2 million to sign six players to fill out your roster because you can’t legally play a basketball game with eight guys on your roster. So, you need six spots to fill with $1 million. Tristan Thompson’s making a league minimum right now. A veterans minimum. Six Tristan Thompsons would be about $9 million. You have to do that for $1 million. That means you’re literally signing guys like me and you. And I don’t think that’s even possible under the CB. I think there’s literally a minimum. So, we could slice and dice them out how you want. Giannis for Moley is not happening. Giannis for Gar. Giannis for Garland and Allen. There’s once again three different pathways you have to turn down first to put Cleveland in a situation to where you can make a deal like that. But once again, if you’re Milwaukee, would you rather have the number two overall pick in this draft? Two young pieces, another draft pick or two, or two guys that Cleveland and Cleveland fans can’t wait to ship out of here like for one of the three best players in the world. I don’t see that deal happening. The Drew Holiday deal for Darius Garland was proposed by Bobby Marks on Ken and Lima show a couple weeks ago. Maybe it was last week. And in a vacuum, once again, Jason, this one does technically work under the cap. You have that two-year window, but Drew Holiday this year was not the Drew Holiday of last year. And a guy with his body, the injury history, his play style, I love Drew Holiday. I don’t know how much more he has left. Yeah, I think that contract could be an albatross for Boston. And I’m not sure how much value he has. And even though Darius Garland has his own flaws, and I think Drew is a better fit next to Donovan, in terms of just being a traditional point guard, more defensive capabilities, yada yada, I’m not confident he can stand and last 82 games plus a playoff run. Again, he was hurt in this playoffs. And then the Draymond deal, Draymond for Jared Allen, this one was proposed by John Hollinger, your coworker, Jason. This one to me makes no sense. First off, it doesn’t work under the cap. Can’t happen. Second off, we want Evan Mobley to take this next step forward. Right, Jason? Yeah. Do you know what hurts Evan Moy’s development? Draymond, another guy on the court that wants to do exactly what Evan does and probably does it better as currently constructed than Evan, which means Evan gets relegated to being a corner three-point shooter, which stunts his growth. And if you want to say, well, oh, no, Evan would get those opportunities, not not Draymond. You’re going to put Draymond in the corner and let him just shoot the That’s what you want. You want the guy looks like he’s shooting jump shots with a backpack on to be the guy spacing the floor in the corner for all these drives, cuts, and stuff that the Cavaliers love to run. No. Like, yeah, it’s an attitude adjustment. Yeah, he’s a dog. He’s a great defender and him and Moy in the in the front court together defensively would be awesome. I there are some some positives here, but that would just put a giant stunt on Evan Moley’s growth. And I think if there’s anything the Cavs do with any move this summer, it cannot be in any way, shape, or form a prohibitive from Evan Mobley developing into the guy they need him to be. So, those are just a couple of the trades that we’ve seen floated out that got some attention that I just think are absolutely blasphemous. It’s the silly season. There’s going to be hundred more of these. Uh ultimately, you know, yes, ideally I do think that they should move on from Jarrett, but I don’t the I I don’t hate the move that you threw out with Houston. U but I don’t there’s not a ton of pathways to move these guys and and we’ve known that for a while. This isn’t a surprise. So, hope for better luck next year in the playoffs and see what they can

The Cleveland Cavaliers are a second apron team right now which makes figuring out any kind of trades this offseason incredibly difficult.

Jason Lloyd and Mikey McNuggets dive into which deals can work, which deals can’t work, and why.

At the end, it’s up to you to decide if the Cavs best course of action is to just keep the Core 4 together of if its worth trading off pieces for the sake of switching things up.

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