5 wing players the Cleveland Cavaliers should trade for.
The guard/wing position for the Cleveland Cavaliers has been anything but consistent this season. There comes a time where you have to ask yourself- “Is it time for the Cavs to move on?”
On January 5, 2015, the Cleveland Cavaliers executed a three-team deal that sent Dion Waiters to the Oklahoma City Thunder and brought J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert to Cleveland.
The motivation for the trade was to bring in two versatile wing players who could both score and defend.
In their first season with Cleveland, both players performed fairly well. Smith had arguably his best season as a Cav scoring 12.7 points on 42.5% shooting from the field and 39.0% from three. That has since decreased to just 7.9 points per game, on 39.0 % from the field and 36.6% from three this season.
At the age of 32, Smith’s defense has been as inconsistent as his offense. He’ll go for 15 points one night, and 2 points the next. He’ll be the Cavs’ best lock-down defender one game, and one of the worst the next game.
To add on, Shumpert had his best season in a Cavaliers uniform last year. He played 76 games, which was the most in his career.
In addition, Shumpert averaged 7.5 points, shot 41.1% from the field and 36.0% from three. Also, not only did Shumpert play shooting guard last season, but he also played some backup point guard.
However, this season Shumpert has been back on the injury report, playing in just 13 games thus far. In those 13 games, Iman is averaging only 4.8 points on 38.6% shooting from the field and 28.0% from three.
In addition to the declining play, both Smith and Shumpert are on some hefty contracts. J.R. is in the second year of a 4-year, $57 million contract. Smith’s contract will end in 2020 where he will be an unrestricted free agent at the age of 34. Shumpert is in his third year of his 4-year, $40 million contract. He will have the option to opt out of his contract after this season.
In order to fully compete for a championship, is it time for the Cavaliers to move on from Smith, Shumpert, or both?
Here are 5 wing players the Cavs could potentially trade for.