Kemba Walker or Isaiah Thomas?

The Cleveland Cavaliers should consider trading Isaiah Thomas for Kemba Walker before the NBA trade deadline for the sake of their offseason.

What if there was a 6-foot-1 point guard with “And One” Mixtape Tour handle, the ability to knock down shots from all three levels, a knack for getting to the free-throw line, a high basketball IQ that he uses on both sides of the ball and is only 27-years-old? What if said player was rumored to be available in trade talks?

Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets could be the Cleveland Cavaliers’ gift from the basketball gods.

Now, I know that some people will think the idea of the Cavs trading for Walker to ludicrous but here’s the thing. Isaiah Thomas and the Cavs don’t have the same goal this season.

Thomas wants to make sure everybody knows he’s still the player who can average 28.9 points per game, like he did last season.

Why? Because at the end of the season, Thomas gets a chance to sign a max contract after playing on a $6 million budget contract worth one-fourth of his value.

Because after rehabbing a torn labrum in his hip and sitting out for the first three months of the 2017-2018 season, there are plenty of people who would short him on a contract for fear that he’s not the same player as the one who led the Boston Celtics to the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

In the process, Thomas has been head-hunting for shots, averaging a career-high 22.3 field goal attempts per 36 minutes since his return. While that’s not necessarily an issue in and of itself, Thomas doesn’t yet have his legs under him so the results and process haven’t been the prettiest sight.

By the time that he does, it may be too late. The Cavs, who are in a race against time as they try to tweak their roster prior to the postseason and a pivotal offseason, may determine they’re not willing to pay the soon-to-be 29-year-old big bucks in free agency or sign him to a long-term contract.

If that’s the case, because the Cavs are above the luxury tax line, they wouldn’t be able to sign a top-level point guard in free agency.

Say LeBron James leaves in free agency, does Thomas return anyways? Say James wants to return but realizes his 5-foot-9 point guard is a revolving door on defense in a league where countless point guards are All-Star level scorers and playmakers, do the Cavs try to find a point guard in the 2018 NBA Draft or use that pick on a different position or a draft night deal?

Quite frankly, there are a lot of questions but not enough time for the Cavs to play the “wait and see” approach.

Must Read: Give IT some time and he'll be just fine

But Walker is a player that you could call an upper middle class man’s Kyrie Irving. In fact, Walker was selected with the 9th pick in the 2011 NBA Draft when Irving was selected with the number one overall pick.

There’s no “wait and see” with him. He’s in his prime and he’s healthy.

The video below does a great job explaining Walker’s strengths as a player but I’ll highlight some key areas as they pertain to his fit in Cleveland.

Walker, a cinephile who watches game film tirelessly, is a player who has worked tirelessly on to minimize his weaknesses as a perimeter shooter. He’s developed into a knockdown three-point shooter (making 37.9 percent of his three-point attempts since the 2015-2016 season). With that jumper, Walker will be a prime catch-and-shoot option when he plays off-ball.

Now, armed with a jumper, a Kyrie-like cadence of crossover dribbles, floaters and scoop layups, Walker is more or less a complete scorer and has been averaging 21.9 points per game since the 2015-2016 season, in no small part because of his improvements behind the arc. Walker’s balance between playing on-ball and off-ball bodes well for the Cavs, as he’s seems like a more natural fit than Thomas when considering the playing style and offensive importance of James and Kevin Love.

A masterful pick-and-roll player with a natural ability to manipulate defensive coverages with subtle movements, Walker has been a pick-and-roll ball-handler for 50.6 percent of his possessions this season, scoring 1.00 point per possession and shooting an effective field goal percent of 49.7, putting him in the 89th percentile on such possessions.

For a team like the Cavs, this doesn’t just mean that Walker will find Love, James, Tristan Thomson or Channing Frye for easy buckets after they set a screen although his recognition and cognizance in the pick-and-roll is superb. Walker is just as dangerous of a scorer in that setting as James (0.99 points per possession as a pick-and-roll ball-handler, 86th percentile) albeit without the level of physical dominance that James possesses. With the space drawn by the Cavs’ stretch fives and the gravity that James has on the court, Walker should find himself with plenty of driving space.

More from Cavs Analysis

• The Cavaliers may have snagged a hidden gem in Craig Porter Jr.
• This stat is one to keep an eye on for Cavaliers’ Max Strus in years ahead
• Projecting how much Cavs’ 3 two-way signings might play this season
• 4 Cavaliers looking to make a name for themselves in training camp
• Mitchell’s numbers getting trimmed a bit wouldn’t be bad thing for Cavaliers

Luckily for the Cavs, Walker has been converting 54.1 percent of his drive attempts (12.1 per game) this season.

Oh and let me not forget the clutch, where both Irving and Thomas excel.

Last season, Walker was 19th in the league in points per game in the clutch (3.3) and shot 47.5 percent from the field. This season, Walker is 10th in the league amongst players have played at least 10 games this season with 3.5 points in the clutch per game.

As he’s shown since his days with UConn, trusting in him in the clutch is a pretty good idea.

Defensively, while his size (or lack thereof) doesn’t doesn’t do him any favors against the biggest and most athletic point guards, his ability to fight over screens and his defensive awareness on rotations are areas where he’s going to be a better fit than Thomas or Irving was.

Walker, who hasn’t averaged fewer than 1.0 steal per game since his rookie season, is also a solid thief along the perimeter. Thomas has only averaged more than 1.0 steal per game twice in seven seasons.

Steals lead to transition opportunities and with James on your team, getting as many fast break points as possible is a must. It would be easier to do that with Walker.

In addition, he’s holding opponents to 37.5 percent shooting in isolation, so though he doesn’t possess the length to blow up pick-and-rolls, he won’t be getting picked on mano y mano.

With two years left on his deal, Walker could help keep James in The Land or stick on the team even if James leaves. With his age and clean bill of health, he’d also be a great trade asset next year of it came down to it.

Sure, keeping Thomas gives you a better scorer. However there’s more to the game than the number of points you can put up.

What say you Cavs Nation? Walker or Thomas?

Related Story: KJG Podcast, Episode 5

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