NBA Trade News: Cavaliers Get Even Better

Today, sources such as Yahoo Sports have reported a deal which would allow Wizards forward Antawn Jamison to join LeBron James in his quest for his first NBA title. This deal changes the rest of the season and could have a big impact on the playoffs.

Let’s break it down…

Wizards receive: Zydrunas Ilgauskas , Al Thorton, and Cavaliers 1st round pick

Cavaliers receive: Antawn Jamison and Sebastian Telfair

Clippers receive: Drew Gooden

Now, who won this deal?

Wizards : The Wizards get two positives out of this deal. One is ending the Agent Zero era by sending Jamison and Caron Butler away in one week. However, the main positive is Zydrunas Ilgauskas' expiring $11.5 million contract, which gives the Wizards some money to spend in the 2010 free agent class. Also, they get another positive in getting a solid Al Thorton, who I believe with more playing time could improve his numbers and become a solid bench guy. The first round pick of the Cavs is bound to be a high one, but it is still a first-rounder, and many good players will still be on the board.

Clippers : I thought that this deal was a good deal for the Clippers. They do give up Al Thorton, a younger player who had some promise and was loved by Clippers fans, but they pick up Drew Gooden’s $4.5 million expiring contract. Now, that is not a ton of money to be taken off the books, but it allows the Clippers to go after a big name free agent in this year's stacked class. Overall, I think the Clippers didn’t give up too much and they got some good cap space.

Cavaliers : I saved the best team for last and they have just gotten even better. This time, they get away with a complete steal of one of the top players in the NBA as a sidekick to Lebron “The King” James. Also, not only does this help their cause in convincing LeBron to resign with the Cavs in the summer, but it also gives the Cavaliers another piece to the NBA championship puzzle. Finally, the Cavs got Jamison for a 1 st round pick and Zydrunas “Z” Ilgauskas, who may be bought out and brought back as a Cavaliers player in a month, which is a great deal for them. I do give a ton of credit to GM Danny Ferry who has turned a not great core in Cleveland into Shaq, Jamison, Williams, and others who can win a championship.

VERDICT: Overall, it’s quite clear the Cavs easily won this deal and have inched closer to being the team to beat in the NBA.