Paul George isn’t worth a Kyrie Irving trade, or is he?

The idea of trading Kyrie Irving to acquire Paul George is blasphemous to Cleveland Cavaliers fans. However, it’s not necessarily a bad idea on paper.

In the past week, fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers were treated to rumors about a trade package centered around Kyrie Irving that would have brought Eric Bledsoe and Paul George to the Land.

Yesterday, Mitch Lawrence of SiriusXMNBA Radio mentioned a trade that would have brought George Hill and George to Cleveland. That trade was centered around Irving too.

Cavs fans may be in an uproar about these rumors, especially if there is any truth to them.

The first thing to think as a fan is that if the Cavs have to give up Irving to get George, it’s not worth it. In fact, I wrote an article earlier this week about why it would be a mistake to trade Irving.

This isn’t so much because one player is better than the other but because Irving is younger, under contract for a longer time, has proven to be a fit for the team and has been pegged as the heir to James’ throne. There’s also a little tidbit about Irving’s statistical correlation with four players pegged for the Hall of Fame or already in it (Larry Bird, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Dirk Nowitzki).

However, there are four interesting factors to consider when thinking about the Cavs’ sudden willingness to trade Irving.

(1) The Cavs are trying to replace Irving with players who a better all-around point guards. Both Bledsoe and Hill play more under control than Irving and are better defenders. In that sense, the Cavs aren’t trying to make a trade just for the sake of change. They’re actually trying to improve the team.

(2) The “GM LeBron” jokes will be over if Irving is traded because that’s clearly against his wishes. In fact, one of the primary reasons James returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014 was the opportunity to play with Irving, who he knew before the latter was drafted.

(3) Owner Dan Gilbert is clearly uncomfortable with the Cavs’ core and feeling a need to alter the Big Three may have been one philosophical difference Gilbert and former general manager David Griffin had.

(4) Love’s trade value is so low that the Cavs have been forced to consider trade Irving to improve the team.

To be fair, the combination of Bledsoe and George or Hill and George will bring more talent to the Cavs, even if they trade Irving.

In addition, according to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, George has made it known that he would stay in Cleveland for as long as James does. As a result, the Cavs may be comfortable with the idea that he could opt-out of his contract at the end of the season.

The Cavs may also be in a better position to trade for Anthony, depending on if David Griffin is hired as the team’s president of basketball operations. With the rebuild on if Chicago, there’s a possibility that Dwyane Wade will eventually ask for a buyout.

The only issue is that Wade and Anthony’s contributions would come primarily on the offensive side; that’s also what makes adding them and keeping both Irving and Love so concerning.

Out of the Cavs’ five best players, only one would be considered a two-way player.

As a result, a trade centered around Irving that allows Cleveland to acquire a terrific two-way player in George and an all-around point guard like Bledsoe or Hill to the team isn’t a bad idea, in theory.

It’s just not a trade that will be received with much fanfare.

Irving has become a beloved figure in Cleveland due to his sensational ball-handling and finishing ability. He’s also earned the respect of James for his propensity for high-level performances in the clutch, especially after “The Shot”.

Would a starting lineup of Bledsoe (or Hill), George, James, Anthony and Love be enough against the Golden State Warriors? Wade, J.R. Smith and Tristan Thompson would likely fill out the remainder of head coach Tyronn Lue’s playoff rotation and truth be told, the lineup looks decent.

In theory, the Cleveland Cavaliers will have an offense with great spacing and big-time threats in transition. Defensively, they’ll have players who can consistently defend Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant one-on-one and should a player like Anthony or Love have troubles on the defensive end, Smith or Thompson can come in and improve the Cavs’ defensive efficacy with their mobility on the perimeter.

Even without Irving, chemistry shouldn’t be an issue as Bledsoe, Anthony, Wade, Smith and Thompson are all good friends with James. George and Love have been friendly with James as well and with Irving playing elsewhere, George would be second-in-command behind James rather than third banana.

All things considered, if the trade went down, it would be one the Cavs and their fans could accept,

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