Cavs get perimeter help in Caris LeVert trade with Pacers

With the trade deadline looming on Thursday at 3 PM for the NBA, and their squad reportedly being a team seeking perimeter/wing help, many Cleveland Cavaliers fans have been expecting the team to make a move.

That’s with Darius Garland recently dealing with back soreness, and that’s appeared to be something he’s been having on and off, as back issues are often lingering. Along with that, the team will likely not have Collin Sexton the rest of the season because of a meniscus tear back in November, and Ricky Rubio’s been out since late December (torn ACL).

When it comes to perimeter help in general, it wasn’t surprising that the Cavaliers have been rumored to have interest in guys such as Eric Gordon, Caris LeVert, and they’ve seemingly been linked to Terrence Ross, Buddy Hield and Harrison Barnes, among others.

With that having been the case, Cleveland has ultimately pulled the trigger in dealing for LeVert, a guy they were said to be reportedly trying to trade for.

Per a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Cleveland is acquiring LeVert from the Indiana Pacers and Indiana’s 2022 second-round pick via the Miami Heat, in exchange for the expiring Rubio’s contract, and Cleveland’s 2022 first-round pick (lottery-protected). The Cavs are also sending Indiana their 2022 second-round pick via the Houston Rockets and their 2027 second-round pick via the Utah Jazz.

The Cavs got the perimeter/wing help they were seeking here, but that was a fairly high price tag.

It was again understandable why the Cavaliers were looking for perimeter/wing help, to alleviate stress on Garland, given their injury issues, and LeVert can produce as a very solid starter for the Wine and Gold, as a result.

This season, he’s had 18.7 points, 4.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds per contest for Indiana, and is a player that can create for himself consistently, while being a capable secondary playmaker as well, which makes Cleveland’s interest logical.

LeVert is a guy that get to his spots and connect in the pull-up game, has enough quickness to get through gaps to finish with body control and touch on drives, and he can get looks to go in the floater game. There are some real similarities, from an on-ball perspective that is, as a shooter and finisher, between LeVert and Collin Sexton, to those points.

LeVert is a player that self-create, can make things happen in the pick-and-roll, and like Sexton, can be a late-clock bailout option, something the Cavs have been largely lacking since both Sexton and to some degree, Rubio, have gone down, aside from Garland.

That had to be in the minds of the Cavs’ brass and recently-promoted President of Basketball Ops, Koby Altman, with this trade acquisition in the 27-year-old LeVert. Inconsistencies from three-point range, as evidenced by a career 33.4 percent clip from there (with the Brooklyn Nets’ time for most of it so far involved, too), have to be expected, though.

But from that creation standpoint with the Cavaliers’ injuries, I completely see the rationale here for the Wine and Gold; I just can’t say that the Cavaliers didn’t give up anything here.

Now, I know that it seemed to be a foregone conclusion that Rubio’s expiring contract would be moved, so there’s virtually nothing to that, particularly with him entering his 12th season, if he returns to the league, next season, coming off an ACL tear. That’s the second tear in that knee for him.

Looking past that, anyway, I can’t say that even with the Cavs on the rise it seems this season and looking onward, that likely their first-rounder this season isn’t meaningful. And that Houston second-rounder this season is something to consider as potentially a possible gem for Indy down the road, too. We’ll have to see down the line if that Utah second is meaningful; perhaps it will.

Fortunately, the Cavaliers do still have their 2022 second-rounder via the Spurs for this upcoming 2022 NBA Draft, which could potentially lead to a rotational player for the team to develop, and that won’t be a fully-guaranteed contract in that sense, either. Perhaps Cleveland could find a rotational guy there such as Peyton Watson, Nikola Jovic if he were to fall, or a developmental point guard in Kennedy Chandler, or combo guard Alondes Williams.

And last but not least, after this LeVert pickup, with him feasibly factoring in at the 2 and, to some extent, the 3, how does that affect the likes of Isaac Okoro in the short term? That’s something to watch.

LeVert is also extension-eligible this upcoming season, and with Sexton potentially set for restricted agency, could he maybe be moved in the offseason via sign-and-trade or let walk in the offseason? Maybe he could end up playing out next season via qualifying offer after an injury-wiped out season it seems; I just wouldn’t expect that.

Sexton also recently changed his representation to Klutch Sports, who represents Darius Garland as well, so after this LeVert acquistion, maybe Sexton ends up playing on a new squad next season; I can’t blame him if he’s not overly enthused about a potential bench role, if that were to ensue. That’d be tough for me personally to stomach, too, given what Sexton has provided for the Cavs, and with how he’s just 23.

Plus, even with Sexton coming off an injury, regarding next season, and him needing to continue to sharpen up his playmaking to some degree still, LeVert having a litony of injury issues throughout his career has to be mentioned.

That is part of why I can’t just write off Sexton, when it comes to the Cavs’ outlook past this season/onward. I do acknowledge that feeling by likely a bunch of Cavaliers fans to come, however, and the bench role, seemingly, thing doesn’t make me overly optimistic.

For now, though, the 6-foot-6 LeVert, provided he stays healthy from here, should definitely provide his share of notable production for the Cavaliers. We’ll have to see if the Columbus native, but ironically, Michigan alum, can mesh with other guys in due time in coming weeks.