3 trade candidates for Cavs using Disabled Player Exception

3 trade candidates for Cavs: Ben McLemore

While the Cavs do indeed suffer from a lack of accurate shooters, a more nuanced weakness is that they lack role players who will put up shots. Cedi Osman is their only bench player willing to pull the trigger when he gets a pass on the outside. To varying degrees Ricky Rubio, Dean Wade and (inexplicably) Dylan Windler show a reluctance to shoot, while Isaac Okoro and Lamar Stevens seem to know how badly their shots are broken and often record-scratch when they receive the ball on the perimeter.

One low-cost target via trade who could address that issue is Ben McLemore of the Portland Trail Blazers. He was signed this past offseason to provide backcourt depth but hasn’t been called upon, playing just 33 minutes total this season. He is not a deadeye shooter; for his career he shoots a merely respectable 36.3 percent from deep.

Where McLemore truly helps is in putting up 3-pointers, which helps to keep defenses honest and spaces the court for his teams inside. He is shooting 15.3 3-pointers per 36 minutes this season, a number which would lead the Cavs by a country mile. Despite averaging varying levels of minutes the past few seasons he comes in off the bench ready to shoot, and his lowest mark from the past three seasons would still be first on the Cavs. McLemore is a gunner.

He’s fine on the defensive end, not a complete sieve, but his role would be shooting when he touches the ball, occasionally attacking closeouts or running his lane in transition. It would likely be a small role, but it’s one the Cavs certainly need filled. He is making $2.4 million this season on a one-year deal and could fit perfectly into the DPE, and as a player not seeing minutes for the Blazers shouldn’t be too expensive to acquire.