LeBron’s teammate at SVSM thinks the King needs more help

LeBron James’ high school teammate believes the Cleveland Cavaliers need to add Jimmy Butler or Paul George.

Romeo Travis, one of St. Vincent – St. Mary’s “Fab Five” in the days LeBron James was drawing NBA crowds to high school basketball games, believes that his former teammate needs to add Jimmy Butler or Paul George to his Cleveland Cavaliers team in the offseason.

I asked Travis, who currently plays for Strasbourg IG in the EuroLeague (along with potential lottery pick Frank Ntilikina), who the Cavs should get after he said on Twitter that James needed more help in the 2017 NBA Finals.

It’s always interesting, and potentially useful, to get a perspective on an individual’s situation from someone who knows them personally. Travis has known James for more than 15 years. He’s also been on a team with James, and though it isn’t an exact parallel to what it’s like being his teammate in the NBA, he has a unique perspective on what he’s seeing from James.

There’s no way that James’ greatness in these NBA Finals can be overlooked.

He’s played 41.4 minutes per game after four games, averaging 31.8 points, 10.5 assists, 11.8 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.0 block per game against the best team in NBA. He’s also been shooting 54.0 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from the line.

While Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love have played superb basketball over the past two games, the Warriors are equipped with both the greatest shooter in the NBA and a four-time scoring champion. They also have a guy who can score 60 points with 11 dribbles. That the Warriors thrive off of ball-movement and they swing the ball around getting everyone involved just adds to the trouble the Cavs have in defeating the Warriors.

James’ all-around dominance, Irving’s scoring ability (he’s been averaging 39.0 points per game over his last two contests) and Love’s general versatility have been on full display in the Finals.  So have the Cleveland Cavaliers defensive obstacles (mostly due to age and lack of athleticism) and inability to sustain or build a lead without James on the floor.

With that said, Deron Williams and Kyle Korver will be free agents this summer. The Cleveland Cavaliers could be looking to add a shooting guard through the 2017 NBA Draft and small forward Cedi Osman will be coming over to the NBA next season. Those players can sign two-way contracts with the team as the 16th and 17th players on the roster or end up impressing in the summer.

Love, and Iman Shumpert, are going to find their names involved in a lot of trade scenarios this summer. Love has boosted his trade value exponentially and while he’s averaging 18.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.0 block per game in the playoffs, if there are players better than Love who they can acquire in a trade why not try to acquire them.

Both Paul George and Jimmy Butler are better players than Love. They’re better scorers, better isolation players (which has been incredibly important for James in every Finals series he’s played in), better defender, more athletic and in the absence of Love, the Cavs may play James more in the post (where he’s most effective).

In these deals, because of what a team would lose defensively on the wing by trading George or Butler, Shumpert could be a valuable piece in a potential deal.

Must Read: 3 trades the Cavs can make for Paul George

Shumpert’s salary, which will rise to $10.3 million in the 2017-2018 season, combined with Love’s $22.6 million salary for 2017-2018, will give the Cavs the potential to take back the contract of Monta Ellis in a deal for George. That would give the Pacers two valuable players for two players that could be gone at the end of the season. The Los Angeles Lakers could be a more sensible trade partner for the Pacers though, depending on how much they value the youth, potential and scoring ability of D’Angelo Russell and Jordan Clarkson.

Ultimately, a George largely depends on if the Pacers are ready to embrace a rebuild. If the Cavs were to pull it off though, the clash between Irving and Stephen Curry, Paul George and Kevin Durant, and James and Draymond Green would be the very definition of a “Clash of the Titans”.

If the Chicago Bulls wanted to get out from the $23 million they owe to Dwyane Wade next year, and Butler becomes disgruntled during the season, again, the Cavs could try to put together a trade package for the Windy City wings. Replacing George with Butler removes some of the three-point threat but gives them a tenacious defender on the wing.

Must Read: Jimmy Butler would be a better trade target than Paul George

In the second units, both Ellis and Wade will be trusted to score as James rested.

Still, there’s reason to believe that trading for George could lead to James leaving the Cavs in 2018 if the former plans to go to Los Angeles after his current contract expires. If he really wants to, he won’t guarantee to a contract extension prior to a trade and while George is in his prime, there’s no reason to believe he won’t go to the Lakers in 2018 – a team he’s “hell-bent” on joining, according to USA Today’s Sam Amick.

If James wanted even more than that, the Cavs could always opt to chase a Big 4 with Carmelo Anthony in the summer as well, whether they add George or not. However, that would cause the Cavs to come in with a completely different team than the one that’s gotten to the Finals for the last three seasons, as Richard Jefferson, Channing Frye and Tristan Thompson would have to be traded as well.

Rotation 1: Irving, James, George, Anthony, Smith, Korver, Ellis

Rotation 2: Irving, James, Butler, Anthony, Smith, Korver, Wade

Rotation 3: Irving, James, George, Thompson, Smith, Korver, Ellis

Rotation 4: Irving, James, Butler, Thompson, Smith, Korver, Wade

Rotations 5: Irving, James, Love, Thompson, Smith, Korver, Jefferson

Which is your preferred rotation?

Keep in mind that the Cleveland Cavaliers can sign center Ekpe Udoh, who is a fairly similar center to Thompson, in free agency.

Related Story: Will the Warriors blow a 3-1 lead again?

*All stats courtesy of www.basketball-reference.com