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Trade Alert: Grading LeVert deal from all angles

By Josh Cornelissen

Caris LeVert, Indiana Pacers. Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images
Caris LeVert, Indiana Pacers. Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images /
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Caris LeVert, Indiana Pacers. Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images /

Grading LeVert deal from all angles: Asset Value

Caris LeVert is 27 years old, likely older than many fans realized, and is under contract for this season at $17.5 million and next year at $18.8 million. He was traded in the same James Harden blockbuster that brought Jarrett Allen to Cleveland, moving from Brooklyn to Indiana. Reports are that he was going to be a Houston Rocket until the Pacers offered Victor Oladipo for LeVert.

13 months later, LeVert was moved for what appears to be a higher value than he was last year. The Cavs traded an expiring salary in Ricky Rubio; given that the Pacers now have Malcolm Brogdon, Tyrese Haliburton and T.J. McConnell under contract long-term, it’s unlike Rubio was anything other than matching salary.

The Cavs then also sent their first-round pick this season, which will likely fall in the 15-25 range, swapped their lucrative Houston 2022 second-rounder for a Miami Heat second-round pick (likely a 20-spot drop or so) and sent a Utah 2027 second-round pick that has some upside given the age of Utah’s core.

Norman Powell went for less, but is also under contract for three seasons longer than LeVert. CJ McCollum went for more and is on a negative value contract. Buddy Hield had some value in the Domantas Sabonis – Haliburton deal, but likely not much. Players such as Eric Gordon and Gary Harris haven’t yet been moved.

If the Cavs get a legitimate long-term starter at the 2, then perhaps the compensation sent to the Pacers — effectively a back-end first and two seconds with enough value to equal another back-end first — ends up being fair. As it stands this seems like an overpay for LeVert, a player with clear flaws and a robust injury history. He absolutely has a lot of talent and production, but so do other players who were out there on the market.

The Cavs felt that LeVert was the best on-court fit and lined up closer to their timeline than the other options. They also reportedly had to outbid other suitors, including the New York Knicks. In the end they didn’t mortgage the future, they traded mostly out of a draft most pundits view as the weakest in some time, and they got back a player who will start for them. That’s not the worst asset play in the world.

Grade: C+