The three greatest acquisitions for the Cavs at the trade deadline

Youth

This graphic has appeared many times but the average age of the players the Cavs traded was 30.7 and the average age of the players they brought in was 27.0. Hill, who is 31-years-old, is the only arrival that isn’t 25-years-old.

While that doesn’t necessarily mean that the players they brought in are more athletic than the players that left (though, in this case, they are), it certainly means they have young legs and those young legs will be willing to fly around on offense and defense. That’s a big difference for a Cavs team that was lethargic on defense and prone to stagnation on offense.

Their youth also brings a new vibrance and excitement to the team. Hill is the only player of the bunch to have ever had championship aspirations and none of the group has ever been to the NBA Finals. The Cleveland Cavaliers have been to three straight NBA Finals series and LeBron James has been to seven consecutive NBA Finals series.

The energy provided by the young guns, which includes rookie Cedi Osman, has breathed a new life into James. James, consistently described as a big kid, has to love being around guys young enough to have fun but mature enough to know how to get to work.