Cleveland Cavaliers: Constructing the dream offseason

The Cleveland Cavaliers trade Collin Sexton to the New Orleans Pelicans

Collin Sexton is an extremely talented player, a hard-worker who has improved every year he has been in the league. He is also nearing the end of his rookie contract and will be looking for a max-contract. Given his poor fit with Darius Garland in the backcourt and the Cavaliers’ long-term timetable, it makes more sense to trade him now than pay up.

The New Orleans Pelicans are a logical trade partner for the Pelicans, a team without an established backcourt who wants to take a step forward immediately next season. They help the Cavaliers make a move focused on the long-term and gain a high-scoring shooting guard to pair with Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram.

The Cavaliers get back a pair of solid assets in the deal, with Wesley Iwundu thrown in to make the salaries work. Nickeil Alexander-Walker is a guard with size, a full five inches taller than Sexton at 6’6″. That makes him a much better fit with Garland in the backcourt defensively. On offense, Alexander-Walker is good-not-great across the board, able to create shots and shoot decently from outside.

The 10th pick in the year’s draft also gives the Cavaliers another young piece to add to their rebuild. The team will have plenty of options in a reasonably deep lottery, including some upside wings perfect for a team with patience. They reset their financial timeline, clear a small amount of space and get younger in one fell swoop.