Cleveland Cavaliers: Key to offseason is trading pick, not Kevin Love
As an organization, the Cleveland Cavaliers should be concentrated on becoming a better team without dealing all-star forward Kevin Love.
Dan Gilbert, the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, did all he could do obtain the Brooklyn Nets 2018 first-round pick, even if it meant dealing his superstar point guard to a conference rival.
However, now, on the brink of losing millions of dollars, Gilbert needs to cave in and trade the pick in order to keep the King, therefore, making this offseason a success for the Cavs.
That’s the key to the Cleveland Cavaliers offseason, and from a business perspective, Dan Gilbert should have Koby Altman meet with every possible team to get some type of deal done.
For Gilbert, it boils down to creating a reasonable way for James to want to return to Cleveland, instead of taking his talents out to LA.
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According to WKYC.com, the Cavs are currently worth $1.2 billion. Back in 2014 when LeBron James left the first time, Gilbert’s franchise dropped 25% in value following James first exodus. We’re going to call that the LeBron-effect.
If James were to leave for the second time, Gilbert could lose up to $300 million.
Is a draft pick that’s not a guaranteed star worth putting your franchise’s value on the line? For a businessman, the answer seems clear. Trade the pick and keep James.
Finding a player good enough to trade the pick and few other players for without dealing Love could be a challenge for Altman though. His only real options are Oklahoma City, Charlotte, Portland and a few other teams that have star wanting out.
Obtaining one of those players will be key to having a successful offseason. Imagine Cleveland starting a lineup of Kemba, Hill, Hood, LeBron, and Love. While that lineup might not conquer even the East, it should entice James enough to stay.
Inserting a playmaking two-guard like CJ McCollum is even more intriguing.
McCollum who is still under contract till following the 2020-2021 season would help sustain Cleveland’s value even if James left. However, a player like Kemba Walker, Paul George, or Kawhi Leonard could take their talents elsewhere following just one season.
This is where Koby Altman, who has already conducted as many trades in just one season as a long-time GM would, needs to finesse a player under contract for a few more seasons while maintaining Kevin Love. That’ll be the entire key to this offseason.
Next: 7 players the Cleveland Cavaliers should trade the No. 8 pick for
It’s what Cleveland must do to keep James, but will Gilbert trade the pick? Obviously, since it’s still Cleveland’s, he holds it at a higher value than most. In the end, that might come back to drop his team hundreds of millions in value.