Could blockbuster trade for Zach LaVine raise Cavs’ ceiling?
Zach LaVine to the Cavs: Examining the fit
The Cleveland Cavaliers have the luxury of three studs making up the core of their team, both now and for the future. Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley are all pre-prime and already making All-Star level impacts for the Cavs. That’s a great place to be for an organization.
The difficult those three present for team building is that all three are locked into their positions. Garland has to be the team’s smallest guard, while Mobley and Allen have to be slotted at the 4 and the 5. Any major pieces added have to be wing players; the Cavs can’t pursue an available big, for example; they wouldn’t be able to add enough value behind Mobley and Allen.
LaVine would be an excellent fit offensively, and at 6’5″ he is the right size to play 2-guard. A backcourt of Darland and LaVine would have defensive issues, but certainly less so than starting Collin Sexton and Garland would. LaVine and Garland are both excellent play creators for themselves and others, and their outside shooting would let either excel off-ball. LaVine is a good enough shot-creator to run the offense whenever Garland sits.
The Cavs would need to find the right small forward pairing to check an opponents’ best wing player each night, but having a frontcourt pairing of Mobley and Allen makes LaVine’s defensive fit less scary. He would immediately raise the floor and ceiling of the Cavs on offense, and his defensive limitations aren’t any worse than playing Sexton or Caris LeVert.
Next. Regrading the Cavs’ sign and trade for Lauri Markkanen. dark
This is a longshot of a move; Zach LaVine will be courted by every team in the league that can feasibly find a path to adding him. If he were interested in Cleveland, and hitching his wagon to some exciting young stars, then this framework could set up one of the best backcourt pairings in the league and set the Cavs on a championship trajectory.