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SteemSports Editor:
Everybody is unsure of LeBron's motive this coming off-season. He hasn't even given a hint about where will he sign this summer. He’s just very focus in reaching the finals this season. He was only thinking about the championship run with the Cavs this year and will make a decision after the Finals, depending on the results. We don’t know yet what will happen or will the Cavs even reach the finals? That’s not a sure thing. There will be stronger opponents this year than last season. Nobody knows what he’s going to do but the Cavaliers should be prepared for the worse-case-scenario. Cleveland made a pretty job in the trade-deadline getting young talents in Jordan Clarkson, Rodney Hood and Larry Nance Jr. and also a veteran guard George Hill. They also retained Brooklyn’s pick which is projected to be in the Top 10. Now we will discuss what other moves should they make if LeBron leaves, what are the additions they should need and what’s the next step they should do.
Cleveland should tank next season if LeBron decided to leave. They have a lot of young talents to develop. They had Brooklyn’s pick that will be a top ten prospect this year. Especially, there is a lot of promising prospects this upcoming draft. The Cavs should build around him and develop him with the other young guys while tanking. The Draft Lottery rules are about to change but losing teams are still most likely to have the benefits in drafting higher prospect, so they will not get any incentive in winning, and should just focus on developing their young talents.
The Cavaliers should also clear cap space. Lebron’s exit will be a huge relief for the Cleveland Cavaliers financially. But still, they would have to pay a lot of money to JR Smith and Tristan Thompson. They are both not playing well this season. JR is not shooting well from the field and Tristan is not the dominant offensive rebounder he usually is. As both players slowing down, they are not even worth half of what the team is paying them. The Cavs still owe Smith and Thompson a combined 66 million dollars through the 2019-2020 season. The best move to do is to deal them away or discuss a buyout in order to clear some cap space for the 2018-2019 off season. Dealing them away will be a tough job for the front office as their value becomes lower and lower and no team will want to take their huge contract.
Trade Kevin Love. Without LeBron, he will be the only all-star left that will carry the team. But Cleveland will be tanking and Kevin Love would not "love" that. He will force his way out and join a contender. Cleveland still owes him 24.1 million for the upcoming season and 25.6 million for the 2019-2020 if he decides to pick up his player option, but it’s unlikely that he will extend his stay at Cleveland if they tank. So while his value is still high, Cavs should deal him with several draft picks. I’m sure he’s worthy of that. This move will help the Cavaliers for their rebuilding process.
Lastly, Cleveland should sign one or two top-notch free agents in 2019. There are plenty of interesting names in the 2019 free agency including Jimmy Butler, Klay Thompson and Kawhi Leonard. With their young talents developing, a top ten pick this season and several picks acquired if they successfully trade Kevin Love and a lot of cap space after moving Tristan Thompson and JR Smith out of Cleveland, they would be on top position to land one or two superstars and bring the Cavaliers again on top of the Eastern Conference.
