5 Reasons Why the Cleveland Caveliers Should Not Trade Anderson Varejao

Anderson Varejão has been a fan favorite and unsung hero of the Cavaliers during his seven-year NBA career. He is the National Basketball Association's premier hustle player who has the ability to affect an entire game while posting mostly mediocre stats.

You've probably read a lot about the how the Cavaliers should trade away this player or that one but I think that Chris Grant should hold on to Varejão indefinitely for at least the next few years if they hope to make the playoffs sooner rather than later.

I have five reasons why.

He Has Come Back from an Injury Before

If you are like most basketball fans Anderson Varejão has probably been out of mind for a while, probably because your most recent memory of him comes from the fact that 31 games into the '10-'11 season he suffered a season ending ankle injury.

Now this may seem like a reason to be worried about his value as a player, and honestly it is.

But the thing that most people do not realize is that he has come back from a major injury before. During the '05-06' season he missed the first 32 games of the season with a dislocated right shoulder.

The interesting thing is that the season after he improved on both scoring and rebounding by 2.2 and 1.9 per game respectively. Could he repeat the improvement? It's not incredibly likely but with reports that his recovery is going well and with a potential extended lockout to increase recovery time it isn't completely outlandish.

He Can Lead Our New Younger Players by Example

Everyone is talking about how good of a leader Antawn Jamison was during last years horrendous season and how important he is going to be in working with the Cavs No. 4 overall pick Tristan Thompson at the power forward position. Yeah, he can learn from Jamison when it comes to character and the nuances of the position.

Not taking anything from Jamison, but Thompson can learn defense from the NBA All-Defense Second Team Varejão. Varejão is a player who plays with an unstoppable motor and tons grit. That kind of attitude is infectious to other players who are playing with him. Is it any wonder that the 26 game losing streak started around the time that he was injured?

He Is Quite Frankly Better Than Most Centers in the League

For this slide I had to pull out my calculator which helped me come to a very interesting conclusion. Last year before the injury, Anderson Varejão almost averaged a double double at the center position posting a respectable 9.1 ppg 9.7 rpg and 1.2 bpg. After pouring over stats on ESPN.com and doing some math I came to an interesting conclusion, last year starting centers averaged 10.1 ppg 7.3 rpg and 1.3 bpg. This is very impressive considering he is playing outside his natural position of power forward.

Those stats would have been welcomed by more than half the teams in a league where big men who can perform are in high demand, this cannot be overlooked. In fact Andy is one of the few players who really can affect superstar Anderson Varejao" target="_blank">Centers like Dwight Howard.

In the NBA Dictionary His Picture Should Be Next to the Word Tough

In April of 2011, Sports Illustrated voted Anderson Varejão NBA's best flopper. Now most people only know flopping from soccer when people aren't even touched fall over like they were just shot in the chest with a shotgun. The difference between soccer flopping and NBA flopping is that when you do it in the NBA typically you have a 200lb athlete barrel through your chest slamming you into the hardwood.

Now I am not defending flopping, but it is a rule, just like the rule that allows players like Kevin Durant to just jump into people while shooting three pointers trying to draw a foul.

He is also the Cavalier that is typically the target of opposing teams frustrations which leads to other players getting ejected. He plays hard, all the time. Just take a look at this video of Ray Allen elbowing him in the jewels.

That HAIR Man

Anderson Varejão, “The Wild Thing” is a perennial fan favorite, his grit and hustle play style is something that I think that a lot of Ohioans can relate to. The Wild Thing is the kind of player that proves that with determination and hard work anyone can become successful at whatever pursuit they may pursue.

If you can't tell by now, Anderson Varejão is my favorite basketball player and I would really like to see him stay with my favorite basketball team as well. Let me know what you think in the comments section.