Cue up one of the great late 80's dance songs! Look at all these rumors surroundin' me every day.
There are no shortage of NBA trade rumors involving the Cleveland Cavaliers that have popped up on Friday. Let's take a look at what we've seen:
George Hill
Sources: In effort to bolster backcourt, Cleveland emerges as interested suitor for Sacramento's George Hill. Story: https://t.co/weWWGfM43d
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 19, 2018
Yahoo's Shams Charania was the first to report of the Cavs' interest in the 31-year-old Kings guard. The belief is that Hill could potentially slide into a dual-guard role, starting at either backcourt position or playing as a reserve. In 37 games this season, Hill has averaged 10.5 points, three rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 45.6 percent from 3-point range. He averaged 16.9 points and 4.1 assists for Utah a season ago.
USA TODAY/HoopsHype's Bryan Kalbrosky speculates that the most likely scenario for this deal would be to pair Channing Frye and Iman Shumpert for Hill, who is in the first year of a 3-year, $57 million dollar contract.
The New York Times' Marc Stein then added this tweet:
The Cavaliers are pursuing separate deala for DeAndre Jordan and George Hill in advance of the Feb. 8 trade deadline, according to league sources
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) January 20, 2018
DeAndre Jordan
This is no surprise. The Cavs have been linked to the Clippers big man pretty much all season. The good part about Jordan is he can rebound and defend. The 29-year-old is averaging 11.8 points and 14.9 rebounds per game. He is signed through next season.
The bad news on Jordan is, of course, free throws. He's shooting at around a 60% clip, meaning you can't have him on the floor in late-game situations for fear of a Hack-a-Shaq approach by opposing teams.
It appears that Jordan is not the only L.A. Clipper on the Cavs' radar:
The Cavaliers have allso registered trade interest in the Clippers’ Lou Williams, according to league sources, with Cleveland vets such as Tristan Thompson and J.R. Smith featuring in various trade proposals.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) January 20, 2018
Cavs definitely have asked about @TeamLou23, as @TheSteinLine reported. But told this week that talks so far have stalled on Clips’ request 4 Brooklyn pick.
— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) January 20, 2018
Lou Williams
Now this is really getting serious. Williams is having an All-Star caliber season for the Clips, averaging 23 points and 5 assists per game. He's shooting 41% from 3-point range. Williams is 31-years-old and in the final year of his contract.
Kalbrosky believes that since Williams is on an expiring contract and could expect a max deal during the offseason, it might actually make sense for Los Angeles to trade him to a team that would be more interested in re-signing him for a longer deal for win-now value. He also speculates since the Cavaliers are linked to multiple guards like Hill and Williams, it might mean they are not convinced that Isaiah Thomas is the right player in the backcourt on their roster.
The question is: What will it take to pull off these series of trades? Almost certainly, the Cavs would have to part with the first-round draft pick from the Brooklyn Nets. Frye, Smith, Shumpert, and Thompson would all be candidates to be moved to make the salaries work. Thomas could potentially be dealt.
The NBA's trading deadline is earlier this year, February 8. Get ready for a wild 20 days between now and then.
