Cleveland Cavs (2016 NBA Champions)

[buckeyesin07]

Yeah...that'll go real well.

tsteele beat me to it. Also, him tanking while playing alongside the best player in the world? Not exactly a good look, and certainly hurts his bottom line going forward.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

tsteele beat me to it. Also, him tanking while playing alongside the best player in the world? Not exactly a good look, and certainly hurts his bottom line going forward.

Go ahead and try it if you're Cleveland. Your window is closing after this year......so sure. Take that gamble. Play a pissy PG. I'm sure it's the missing ingredient to beating GS.

 

[AuTX Buckeye]

Also don't forget Kyrie's injury history ... no guarantee he'll get injured but also nothing in his past says he's gonna stay healthy either...

bottom line he's healthy and if you make the right move maybe LBJ stays or atleast you get max value for building for the future without LBJ

 

[tsteele316]

Go ahead and try it if you're Cleveland. Your window is closing after this year......so sure. Take that gamble. Play a pissy PG. I'm sure it's the missing ingredient to beating GS.

him playing like a pissy point guard only hurts his pocketbook. no motivation for him to sulk and play like shit. it doesn't get him out of town quicker, and doesn't get him his supermax contract.

 

[BuckeyeMafia]

Not only that, but, in order to get the supermax, I do believe he has to be first team all NBA, which is going to be a tall order if he's Lebron's second fiddle. So, him tanking if he stays in cleveland only hurts his pocketbook. So really, Cleveland can sit on him for a year and a half if they so choose.

He has to make an All-NBA team. There are three. Still a tall order with Westbrook, Harden, and Curry in front of him.

Kyrie would destroy his own brand by playing like shit. He'll sit through two more unhappy years in Cleveland long before he tanks his own play. Don't forget, mending bridges is still an option here. If he, LeBron, and new GM Koby Altman can all sit down in a room together and LeBron can promise him a bigger spotlight, we can move on.

Much of this was caused by letting David Griffin go. It's apparent now that Griffin was the one managing Kyrie's ego before, and now there's no one to keep him grounded.

If that doesn't work out, cleveland.com has presented plenty of other trade options for us. I think this haul from Denver is intriguing:

 

[LordJeffBuck]

Don't forget, mending bridges is still an option here.

The problem with mended bridges is that they tend to fall apart eventually anyway. If this bridge un-mends in July after the Cavs win another title, no big deal. If it happens in May during the Eastern Conference finals, then we've got a problem. Best to trade Kyrie now and you don't have to worry about that time bomb ticking.

I do like that Denver trade. I've also seen some potential trades with Milwaukee that make some sense. And of course Phoenix. I think that the Cavs will get a nice haul for Kyrie, and should end up being a more balanced (and maybe even better) team.

 

[BuckeyeMafia]

The one problem with losing Kyrie is losing his ability to get buckets against tough half-court playoff defenses. We'd need Kevin Love to re-establish himself and take on that role. We can also diminish the need for that role by becoming a hard-nosed defensive team. I think the Phoenix, Milwaukee, and Denver trades all do that.

I would be worried about Middleton and Bledsoe staying healthy, but that may be a risk worth taking. We know we can't beat Golden State scoring 110 points per game.

 

[AuTX Buckeye]

Per Sam Amico: Kryie will be traded and there is no hope of "making nice".

 

[jwinslow]

Anyone have a "you can see the curved Earth from your seat" song?

 

[LordJeffBuck]

Some people have too much time on their hands. Like waaaaay too much time....

 

[BuckeyeMafia]

Gilbert, Altman now seem to indicate that Irving will stick around. Hopefully this is a ruse to drive the price up.

A lot to break down in this trade update, as well. The Cavs seem to like the idea of a trade centered around Irving and Andrew Wiggins. I want nothing to do with it until Wiggins proves that he's a capable defender.

The Suns, meanwhile, are reportedly unwilling to trade Jackson. If I were the Cavs, I wouldn't accept a deal without Jackson. And honestly, what are the Suns thinking? Jackson's value will only go down as the season starts. Our hopes of what a player can be are rarely met when we find out what the player actually is (see Wiggins, Andrew).

 

[exhawg]

Gilbert, Altman now seem to indicate that Irving will stick around. Hopefully this is a ruse to drive the price up.

A lot to break down in this trade update, as well. The Cavs seem to like the idea of a trade centered around Irving and Andrew Wiggins. I want nothing to do with it until Wiggins proves that he's a capable defender.

The Suns, meanwhile, are reportedly unwilling to trade Jackson. If I were the Cavs, I wouldn't accept a deal without Jackson. And honestly, what are the Suns thinking? Jackson's value will only go down as the season starts. Our hopes of what a player can be are rarely met when we find out what the player actually is (see Wiggins, Andrew).

I'm assuming Bledsoe is part of any Suns deal. If Jackson is off the table I'm assuming Booker is as well, but the Cavs need 2 good young players for Kyrie. Someone needs to let them know Kyrie is willing to take enough shots for any 2 players on their team. BTW Jackson can't be traded until 30 days after he signed his contract. I don't like any deal with the Wolves. I don't think they have a PG to return to the Cavs anyway and Wiggins only plays well against the Cavs.

The Cavs need guys that can shoot and defend. I honestly have no idea what move would be best. I can see the Cavs being a better matchup against the Warriors if they have 4-5 good to great defenders on the floor at all times. If they could only brainwash Shump into being a 40%+ 3 pt shooter that accepts being a 3 and D guy. I'd still like to find a way to bring DWill2 back this season if they can open up and extra roster spot.

 

[HabaneroBuck]

Our hopes of what a player can be are rarely met when we find out what the player actually is (see Wiggins, Andrew).

A 21-year-old (now 22) who has missed one game in three years, averaged 23.6 last year, and shot 45-46% is what to you? He is easily the equal of Kyrie in terms of established value for a number one pick. Other than the fact that he now has Towns and Butler on his roster, he would project as a 30 ppg guy in two years.

 

[cdiddy70]

I'd take Wiggins and Teague.
Even though Teague wouldn't be eligible until 12/15.

No Josh Jackson is a non-starter on the Phoenix deal.

I like the assets Denver has.

I loathe proposals I've seen with the Knicks, Heat, Spurs.

 

[LordJeffBuck]

A 21-year-old (now 22) who has missed one game in three years, averaged 23.6 last year, and shot 45-46% is what to you? He is easily the equal of Kyrie in terms of established value for a number one pick. Other than the fact that he now has Towns and Butler on his roster, he would project as a 30 ppg guy in two years.

Andrew Wiggins was recently rated as the worst defensive player in the NBA. The absolute worst: LINK

Possession by possession, there are a few defenders who are as bad as Wiggins. When Wiggins contests a shot, opponents have a 56.1 effective field goal percentage; when they are unguarded, they have a 56.4 eFG percentage. Fundamentally, getting a shot up against Andrew Wiggins is the same as getting an open shot.

But the truly destructive part of Wiggins’s defense is how much of it there was.... Wiggins is omnipresent in his awfulness. He defended the 10th most shots in the league, by far the most by a below-average defender. Most teams do their best to hide their weak defenders, but opponents seek Wiggins out like no other defender in the league.

Here's some more: LINK

That is incredible to think about. Wiggins’ defensive intensity is about the same as that when a player uses a folding chair as a defender at practice. You almost have to try to be that bad....

But Wiggins is a great offensive player, right? Wiggins played the most minutes in the NBA last season, and he averaged just 4.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. By comparison, Carmelo Anthony, who is widely regarded as the most one-dimensional player in the league, averaged 5.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. And Melo, no defensive stalwart, at least wasn't the worst defender in the NBA (he was second worst among small forwards, behind Wiggins).

And one more thing.... If a guy is going to average 19 shots per game, he should probably be better than .452/.356 from the field.

Wiggins is the most overrated player in the NBA. He shoots and shoots and shoots some more - not very well, but at least he tries in that department - and he literally does nothing else on the court. No defense, no rebounding, no distributing to teammates. Nothing.

And a lot of people question his intensity and basketball IQ, so you can also scratch "intangibles" off the list of positive attributes.

I don't care if Wiggins and young and durable. I want nothing to do with him.