The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a resurgence this past season following the departure of LeBron James back in 2018. This season was the first time they secured a winning season without James since the 1997-98 season.
Unfortunately, they went from a game behind the top seed with two All-Stars and multiple players receiving All-Defensive team consideration to being eliminated by the Hawks in the second game of the Play-In tournament.
The Cleveland Cavaliers should avoid making big trades that cost a lot of pieces to get done, they should instead focus on making smaller deals to improve.
Injuries played a large role in that fall from glory that the Cavs faced throughout the season as they lost multiple key players for large chunks of the season. This includes Collin Sexton, Ricky Rubio, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley, just to name a few.
Now there have been suggestions of the Cavaliers looking to potentially make a big trade for a top guard in the league such as Bradley Beal or Zach LaVine. Some fans even expect them to reunite with King James himself.
Personally, I don’t think that is the direction best suited for this particular team, here’s why.
The Cavaliers played their best basketball this season with the ball primarily going through Darius Garland’s hands. Bringing in another ball dominant guard to a roster that already has questions revolving around Collin Sexton’s fit may not be the best move.
To further bash on the idea of Cleveland potentially trading for a star guard this offseason, the names being thrown out there just don’t fit the defensive focus that the Cavs had this past season. Stars also carry a lot of financial burden that could be better utilized by paying Garland, Mobley, and Allen later down the line.
LaVine, Beal, and James are all great players, but I don’t believe they are best suited for the Cavaliers current roster construction. The Cavs would be much better off focusing on smaller moves that make subtle, but important improvements. Here are three smaller moves that will make a difference.