Who should the Cleveland Cavaliers waive to make room for Dwyane Wade?

Who should the Cleveland Cavaliers waive in order to make room for Dwyane Wade?

The Cleveland Cavaliers don’t have to trade anyone in order to make room for Dwyane Wade on the regular season roster but with 20 players on the training camp roster and 16 players with a fully guaranteed contract in 2017-2018, the Cavs have four players on their training camp roster that have to be cut (John Holland is on the training camp roster but signed a two-way contract with the Cavs in September). One of those players has to have a guaranteed contract and one of those players can sign on with the Cavs on a two-way contract.

Channing Frye, Richard Jefferson, Iman Shumpert, Jose Calderon, Kendrick Perkins, Edy Tavares, Ante Zizic and Kay Felder are the seven Cavs who have been thought to be on the roster bubble at some point during the offseason. Frye, Jefferson, Shumpert, Calderon and Zizic have guaranteed contracts.

For Frye, Jefferson and Shumpert, veterans who have been members of the organization for multiple years, their names have been involved in traded rumors all summer as the Cavs presumably tried to clear cap or roster space.

In addition, Frye and Jefferson have certainly lost their spots in the rotation while Shumpert’s significance has taken a real hit with the depth and talent they have on the wing. All are three-point threats but Frye and Jefferson are valued for their basketball IQ while Shumpert is valued more for his on-defense. In the locker room, Frye and Jefferson have enhanced the camaraderie between Kevin Love and LeBron James and are always keen on making new Cavs feel comfortable. Shumpert is a passionate player whose intensity provides an emotional boost for the team as well as the crowd.

Calderon and Perkins are two veterans who experience and basketball IQ should allow them to make steady contributions. Calderon, who has over 4,900 assists in his 12-year career, thrives as a facilitator and he could be one of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ most consistent three-point threats with a career three-point percentage of 40.9. Perkins has over 4,500 rebounds and 900 blocks in his 13-year career. He should be able to provide the Cavs with an experienced interior defender and force on the boards for a team that needed big-time rebounders when Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson went out with injuries last season.

Tavares, Zizic and Felder are three young Cavs who the team wants to develop but due to roster size limitations, won’t. Only two of these three players, at max, will remain on the team all season.

Tavares is a gargantuan center with a solid offensive game and the ability to dominate defensively. He often looks too gangly and his movements too uncoordinated but the awkwardness of his movements don’t effect his efficiency or impact. But, with only 101 minutes of on-court playing time in two seasons, Tavares is too inexperienced to be trusted by the Cavs in big moments.

Zizic, an on-the-radar pickup in the Kyrie Irving trade, has a nice offensive skillset and is a throwback scorer in the post. However, his defense leaves a lot to be desired at times, as he doesn’t have the experience he needs to have the impact as an interior defender that he’s capable of having.

Felder is an explosive point guard with a knack for scoring and facilitating but at 5-foot-9 he’s severely undersized for the position. In just his second year as a pro, he’s too inexperienced to be relied on by a championship-contending team although he’s seemingly turning the corner with his decision-making this preseason.

Must Read: Kay Felder on the trade block

So, with that said, who should the Cleveland Cavaliers cut to make room for Wade?

To start, it’s important to note that Tavares, Zizic and Felder all qualify for two-way contracts although only one two-way contract remains for the Cavs. In a heads-up competition between the trio, Felder has shown the most promise of any of the others. In addition, with the injury history of Derrick Rose, the injury status of Isaiah Thomas and the age of Calderon, Felder could be the healthiest and most durable point guard on the Cavs roster.

Tavares, Zizic and Perkins all provide the Cavs with a traditional center and while one or a couple of them may be signed by NBA teams if waived by the Cavs, it’s unlikely all three centers will be picked up by another squad if waived.

Perkins spent the last year making appearances of sports talk shows while Tavares spent most of the past season in the NBA G-League playing for Raptors 905. Only Zizic was on an NBA roster for the majority of last season.

While Tavares’ defensive impact and Zizic’s offensive potential make teams want to sign a young player like them to a two-way contract, the movement for traditional centers on the free agent market is slow. Even for the Cavs, who should only sign one of Tavares, Zizic or Perkins if they make a trade that leaves them with an open roster spot.

Until then, it would be best to waive Zizic’s guaranteed contract to make room for Wade.

In the process, the Cleveland Cavaliers keep veterans like Calderon, Shumpert, Frye and Jefferson on the team while investing in Felder’s potential with a two-way contract. It was only last season that Felder averaged 29.9 points per game for the Canton Charge, the Cavs’ NBA G-League affiliate.

It was only last summer that the Cavs spend $2.5 million to select Felder in the 2016 NBA Draft.

Tavares and Perkins look like they’ll be left in the dirt in this scenario but Perkins is probably one of the first players the Cavs would call if they have an open roster spot because of his experience and leadership. In retaining Tavares, the hope would be that the big man cleared waivers and he, like Zizic, could sign with the Canton Charge this season.

Next season, with so many of the Cavs’ contracts expiring this summer, Tavares and Zizic would have a better chance to make the roster. That’s especially true for Zizic, who the Cavs have played at power forward sometimes as well. Zizic’s versatility only enhances the chance the Cleveland Cavaliers would have a spot for him on the roster.

By waiving the young players (one of whom can sign a two-way contract) and Perkins, the Cavs keep the most talent and experience they possibly can on the team. For passionate fans that fall in love with new Cavs like a kid falls in love with a new toy, it’s disappointing to think that some of these players may never don a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform again.

But as they always say, it’s a business. The Cavs are in the business of winning championships.

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*Unless otherwise referenced, all stats gathered from www.basketball-reference.com