If asked, should Cavs trade Evan Mobley for Kevin Durant?

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Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets and Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images /

The Cleveland Cavaliers love to benefit from the Brooklyn Nets’ dysfunction.

In 2018 they went to the NBA Finals, but then picked in the Top 10 of the 2018 NBA Draft because they owned the Brooklyn Nets’ pick that year; that picked netted them Collin Sexton. A few years later they stepped in as an “extra” team in the James Harden trade and used a first-round pick to add Jarrett Allen, who last year made his first All-Star team.

The Nets are at it again, with the team and mercurial point guard (and former Cavalier) Kyrie Irving at an impasse over a new contract. The most recent rumors suggest that Kevin Durant is not pleased with the current state of affairs, and The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Durant is “monitoring” the situation and “considering options” with his future. If Irving walks or forces a trade, then Durant could decide he wants out of Brooklyn.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have a budding star in Evan Mobley. If the Nets call and ask, should the Cavs trade Mobley for Kevin Durant?

That possibility has set the NBA world abuzz. Where might Durant, a top-5 player in this league but seemingly in his late prime, want to go? How much will the Nets, who hold nearly all of the leverage, take into account Durant’s personal preferences? Who will they call and ask about.

It seems likely that a scenario where Kyrie is leaving and Durant is looking for greener pastures will have the Nets first make a few calls to teams with the very best young talent. The presence of Evan Mobley, a defensive star after just one season, puts the Cavs near the top of the list. ESPN’s Zach Lowe theorized on a recent Lowe Post episode that the Toronto Raptors would be the Nets’ first call, and that Cleveland would be second.

Let’s say for a moment that this scenario unfolds. Kyrie Irving signs with the New York Knicks, and Durant demands out of Brooklyn. The Nets call the Cavs and offer to trade Kevin Durant for a package centered around Evan Mobley. What does that trade look like, and do the Cavs say yes?