5 Trades Cleveland Cavaliers Can Use to Strengthen Hold on Eastern Conference
The Cleveland Cavaliers are doling out dollar after dollar and are heading down a track that could bring them to the highest payroll in NBA history. But that doesn't mean their only moves will come in free agency.
Cleveland still has some roster flexibility and can make trades to bolster what is already the best compilation of players in the Eastern Conference.
After agreeing to bring back Kevin Love (h/t ESPN's Brian Windhorst) and Iman Sumpert (h/t Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski), Cleveland has already spent big. It'll see payroll go that much more out of control once it re-signs Tristan Thompson and, of course, LeBron James. But the Cavs can still relieve some salary while firmly maintaining their position in the East.
The Los Angeles Clippers Trade
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Cavaliers receive: Jamal Crawford, Lester Hudson, Jordan Hamilton
Clippers receive: Brendan Haywood
Haywood is going to be involved in a bunch of these trades, so gear up.
He's slated to make $10.5 million next year, but his salary is fully non-guaranteed before August 1. That means he has lots of value for a team either trying to clear room under the cap or attempting to get under the luxury tax line. Once receiving him in a trade, it can just waive him and eliminate his salary from the books.
The Clippers, though, could presumably use him as a big salary to flip for a center, a position they desperately need to fill after DeAndre Jordan agreed to go to the Mavericks over the weekend (h/t Stein). Now, L.A. has only one big man, Blake Griffin, on the roster and doesn't have the flexibility to sign any meaningful players without convincing them to take significant discounts.
The Cavs, meanwhile, would receive Hamilton and Hudson, both of whom are non-guaranteed for 2015-16, and would likely waive both of them. The move would really be about bringing Crawford into town.
With J.R. Smith still on the open market, Crawford could fill his role and do it at a cheaper rate. The two-time Sixth Man of the Year is set to make $5.7 million during 2015-16, the final year of his contract before he becomes a free agent at age 36.
Crawford is coming off his worst season as a Clipper, but he's still capable of scoring in bunches and could be more efficient than the 39.6 percent he shot from the field this past season working on Cleveland's roster, which is far deeper than that of the Clippers. He had to carry a major burden inside L.A.'s thin bench unit this past season. That wouldn't be the case in Cleveland.
The Brooklyn Nets Trade
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Cavaliers receive: Joe Johnson
Nets receive: Brendan Haywood, Anderson Varejao
This is the first Haywood trade that started to float around the rumor mill, initially reported by ESPN's Brian Windhorst.
The Nets are doing everything they can to get under the luxury tax and avoid having to pay a repeater tax. Bringing in Varejao and Haywood, who they could waive because of that non-guaranteed contract, would get them there.
As Tim Bontemps of the New York Post wrote Monday, such a deal could save Brooklyn upwards of $60 million in luxury tax payments. That's huge savings for any team, let alone one who's been actively trying to slip below the tax line and who probably won't be all too competitive next year regardless of how much it spends the rest of the offseason.
Johnson has the second-highest 2015-16 salary in the NBA at $24.9 million (just barely behind Kobe Bryant's $25 million), but he hits the free-agent market next summer. Cleveland would only have to pay the bloated price for one season, and though Johnson takes tons of criticism for the amount of money he makes, he's still a solidly above-average shooting guard who can score with the ball, shoot, post up and create for others on occasion.
But these negotiations have reportedly gone "stagnant" because Brooklyn wants a third team (h/t ESPN's Chris Broussard).
Oh wait, why don't we just merge all the trades?
Solving Everyone's Problems
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Cavaliers receive: Joe Johnson
Clippers receive: Anderson Varejao
Nets receive: Jamal Crawford, C.J. Wilcox, Brendan Haywood, Lester Hudson, Jordan Hamilton
Ahh, here we go.
Let's start with the Clippers: They don't get Haywood to flip for a center, but they do receive a starting-caliber 5 who's capable of contributing on both sides of the floor.
Varejao isn't the best offensive fit next to Griffin, but the Clippers can't afford to be picky, and considering the lack of quality free-agent centers and the possibly scarce market for Haywood (in any other year, the Haywood contract would be more valuable than it is now, but the anticipated 2016 cap rise makes his non-guaranteed number not quite as sought out), Varejao might be the most talented center they can get.
That is, of course, if they don't mind dealing with constant injury issues or the worrisome three years remaining on his deal (though the final year of that contract is fully non-guaranteed, per Sheridan Hoops).
The Nets would actually be able to save more money in this deal than they would in the one that's straight up with the Cavs, since Crawford makes about $4 million less than Varejao next year and is only under contract for one more season. They could waive Haywood, Hudson and Hamilton for no cost while holding onto Wilcox, a second-year wing on a late-first-round rookie contract.
The Cavs, meanwhile, get exactly what they'd want in the straight-up deal with the Nets: Joe Johnson for Varejao and Haywood.
If the Clippers would be willing to eat Varejao's salary and take on some risk, this deal could actually make sense. But L.A. could ruin the prospects because of its desire to free up space for a run at big names in the summer of 2016.
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The Indiana Pacers Trade
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Cavaliers receive: Damjan Rudez, 2016 second-round pick
Pacers receive: Anderson Varejao
The Pacers just agreed to send Roy Hibbert to the Lakers (h/t ESPN's Stein and Ramona Shelburne), which leaves them with only one center: Ian Mahinmi, who's a perfectly capable backup but not the guy you want to trot out there for 30 minutes a night, 82 games a year. You probably need to find other options when you start to think, "Hmm, maybe they should just start Lavoy Allen at center."
Indiana isn't going full rebuild mode, but it is renovating its roster. Maybe defensive-minded coach Frank Vogel will see something in Varejao, who's a wonderful high-energy big when he's healthy but whose contract is obviously not optimal.
The Pacers are pretty comfortably under the cap, so salaries actually don't need to match to make a trade like this work.
Indiana could give up Damjan Rudez—who might not play much in Cleveland, but who is a legitimate stretch 4 to help space the floor—and a second-round pick to grease the deal. If the Cavs are looking to shed Varejao partly for monetary reasons, they should be excited about receiving a draft pick without much salary back.
Varejao just doesn't make enough sense on this roster to keep around for the price he's owed. Everyone seemed to realize during this year's playoff run that the Cavs have to move into next year with Timofey Mozgov and Thompson.
That means two of the three premiere bigs in Cleveland—with Love as the third, of course—aren't guys who stray from the rim on offense. If you're caught in that scenario, you don't want your fourth big fitting that description, either, and you certainly wouldn't prefer him to be pulling in almost an eight-figure salary.
The Golden State Warriors Trade
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Cavaliers receive: David Lee, protected first-round pick
Warriors receive: Brendan Haywood, Mike Miller
Do you want to create a trade that makes just about everyone involved miserable?
You do? Good! Let's do it!!
Lee wants out of Golden State because he doesn't play much. The Warriors would like to get rid of him because he's due $15.5 million next year, and it's simply insane to pay such a price to a bench player. But at the rate the Cavs are spending, doesn't owner Dan Gilbert have to make this deal to plop Lee on his bench if LeBron hears about it and decides he wants another new, shiny toy.
Of course, James may hate this possibility anyway, not because he has anything against Lee, but because his love for Mike Miller extends to realms most of us don't even understand.
Still, if the Cavs were to receive a first-round pick, even if it's highly protected (which may not even matter given Golden State's place in the NBA food chain), isn't taking on Lee's salary for one year something it has to consider?
The Cavs are already as deep as a coal mine. They'd be digging even farther if Lee were to join.
Follow Fred Katz on Twitter at @FredKatz.
All statistics are current as of July 7 and are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com unless noted otherwise.
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.jpg?w=600 "Offseason Moves for Every Team 👉")