The Cleveland Cavaliers valued Isaiah Thomas and the Brooklyn Nets’ draft pick more than they valued Eric Bledsoe.
The Cleveland Cavaliers probably couldn’t have had Eric Bledsoe even if they really wanted to. Not because they didn’t have the trade assets to make it work but because of what those assets mean to the team. Because of what Isaiah Thomas will mean to the team as well.
With the Phoenix Suns trading away Bledsoe for center Greg Monroe (who is averaging 6.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game this season), a protected first-round draft pick (2018) and a protected second-round draft pick (2018), it seems as if the Cavs could have gotten the deal done with a trade of Iman Shumpert, Channing Frye, their own first-round pick next season and a future first-round pick.
The problem with that is two-fold: On the Cleveland Cavaliers’ side, Shumpert and Frye provide valuable three-point shooting, make heady plays and enhance the Cavs’ chemistry. On the Milwaukee Bucks’ side, the Cavs’ first-round pick wouldn’t have been enough and they’d have wanted the Brooklyn Nets pick.
A pick the Cavs’ are unlikely to surrender for anything less than a perennial All-Star with how significant an impact the trade asset could mean for the team’s present and future.
However, Shumpert and Frye are two players that have been rumored to be on the trade block since the offseason. So, with that said, it would seem as if the decision not to trade for Bledsoe came down to a desire to keep the Nets’ first-round pick.
While there were inherent difficulties in making the trade work, the decision not to bring in Bledsoe could also be seen as a move that showed Isaiah Thomas that the organization was behind him. Thomas is a player who will likely make his upcoming free agency decision with organizational loyalty near the top of his needs after the Boston Celtics made the decision to trade him to an Eastern Conference rival after his MVP campaign, solely because he was hurt.
Why show that loyalty to Thomas, who is sure to demand top-dollar after hiring agent Andy Miller to represent him? Possibly because, although Bledsoe’s defense at the point guard position would be a breath of fresh air for a franchise that hasn’t had a defensive stopper at the position since Matthew Dellavedova, Thomas’ offensive skillset compliments LeBron James’ in a way similar to the way Kyrie Irving’s did.
Like Irving or James, Thomas will consistently probe the teeth of the defense in an effort to attack the rim – despite his 5-foot-9 frame.
He has no problem pulling up from the midrange or creating space to do so, with nifty ball-handling and the quickness you’d expect from a point guard built like a NFL scat back. He’s a pure scorer, like Irving, with the shooting range that James doesn’t (or didn’t) naturally possess and that players like Derrick Rose (29.7 percent from three) and Dwyane Wade (28.6 percent from three) – the team’s incumbent starting and backup point guard respectively – don’t have.
Neither does Bledsoe, for that matter.
Thomas has made 36.7 percent of his threes for his career while Bledsoe made 33.4 percent of his career threes. However, Thomas made 39.9 percent of his catch-and-shoot threes last season and 36.6 percent of his pull-up threes – which should show how consistent of a shooter he is. Bledsoe made 37.0 percent of his catch-and-shoot threes and 30.1 percent of his pull-up attempts from long-range.
Those efficient pull-up attempts are also shots the Cavs are missing.
36.0 percent of Thomas’ shot attempts were pull-up jumpers and he had an effective field goal percentage of 53.6 on such attempts.
46.3 percent of Irving’s field goal attempts were pull-up jumpers and he had an effective field goal percentage of 48.6.
Bledsoe did have a high frequency of pull-up attempts, as they accounted for 44.1 percent of his shot attempts. However, he only had an effective field goal percentage of 39.8.
Rose? 35.5 percent of his shot attempts were pull-up jumpers and he had an effective field goal percentage of 43.3 percent thanks to him only making 29.8 percent of his pull-up attempts from three-point range.
Rose is certainly not a natural jump shooter and he hasn’t been able to complement James well offensively. As a scorer or as a facilitator. It’s hard to see Bledsoe complementing James better as a scorer, although he’s sure to be a better passer.
Thomas is a better passer than Rose too though. He’s always a threat to make a pass and his lack of height actually helps him make pinpoint passes in traffic since he can see and fit through holes a lot of players can’t.
Thomas contributed to 32.5 percent of Celtics’ assists last season while Rose contributed to 22.8 percent of the New York Knicks’ assists last season. Rose has only assisted on 10.3 percent of the Cavs’ assists this season.
For the record, even while scoring 28.9 points per game last season, Thomas averaged 5.9 assists per game. He’ll have the ball in his hands far less than last season but that doesn’t mean his passing tendencies will.
No matter how you slice it, Thomas is a better fit for the Cavs’ offense than Bledsoe would have been – a player who is much like a souped-up version of Rose.
Thomas is expected to return in early January, at the latest.
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*All stats gathered from stats.nba.com and www.basketball-reference.com