With the Cavs recent struggles, it is clear that the team needs to make a move before the trade deadline in order to have a good chance at competing for the NBA championship whether is it against the reigning champions or the upcoming teams in the east such as the Celtics, Raptors or even the rising Miami Heat. Currently, LeBron James is having one of his best statistic seasons of his career yet the Cavs are still struggling, all of which highlights the need to make some additions to the team in the trade market especially if the consensus is LeBron will leave if the Cavs don’t win the NBA championship this season. The Cavs should be worried if there is a chance at LeBron leaving as he is what brings a market to Cleveland, do you think Dwyane Wade, Kevin Love or even Isaiah Thomas would remain content on being on the roster if LeBron wasn’t there? I don’t think so. With all of this in mind lets look at some options that could bolster the Cavs roster to help get the team over the line in order to get them the best possible chance at securing the NBA championship.
- Demarcus Cousins
With the Pelicans inconsistent play due to Anthony Davis being in and out of the line-up, big man Demarcus Cousins has been having an MVP caliber season, who has been putting up big numbers to allow the Pelicans to hold onto the 8th seed in the Western Conference. Due to Cousins being a free agent in the summer the Pelicans will have to decide whether they are confident in their ability to resign the big man although this is where the Cavs have the opportunity to strike by dangling the Nets pick in front of them
- Paul George
This one is interesting as Paul George is someone who the Cavs don’t necessarily need but its more of a situation where its an upgrade over what they have and if you have the ability to get that upgrade then why not go ahead and improve the team. Paul George would be seen as an upgrade to allow the Cavs to handle switches on the perimeter more efficiently with George’s large frame and quick feet allow the Cavs defense to enviably improve on what is at the moment some of the worse defense in the league. George’s ability to create off the dribble and make the 3 also would make the addition of George extremely beneficial due to the lack of creators besides LeBron and Isaiah on the floor. - DeAndre Jordan
The Cavs have inherently shown that protecting the paint isn’t a strong suit for the team especially when the big man in the middle on defence is Kevin Love, who can on occasion hold his own in the post but ultimately isn’t a great rim protector and it has shown with teams blowing by the perimeter defenders to what is an unprotected paint leading to easy baskets. Jordan is somewhat a Ben Wallace mold in that he can protect the paint, grab rebounds and get things done close to the rim although Jordan isn’t perhaps as quick as Wallace was on the perimeter, however, Jordan still holds his own. - Kent Bazemore
It is no secret the Atlanta Hawks are tanking after they essentially blew the franchise up after trading away both Dwight Howard, Kyle Korver and letting Paul Millsap walk in free agency, with that in mind the Cavs could sway the Hawks with their own first round pick (not nets pick) in order to acquire Bazemore. The addition of Bazemore would bring the Cavs an athletic 3 and D player that will immediately make an impact whether it is off the bench or in the starting line-up. With the struggles of J.R Smith recently, the addition of Bazemore would help strengthen the wing spot by bringing consistency to the table as you never really know what you are going to get out of J.R Smith.