Should Cavs sell high on Cedi in this proposed trade for Jae Crowder?

Heading into the 2022-23 NBA season, the Cleveland Cavaliers were a team on the rise. After winning 44 wins a season ago, the addition of Donovan Mitchell and improved health was expected to increase that total. Even so, the Cavs weren’t listed among preseason title contenders.

The Phoenix Suns were among the ring of contenders, although their ignominious exit at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks last year and the multiple personality clashes suggested there were serious cracks in the foundation.

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Phoenix Suns could make a deal with Jae Crowder and Cedi Osman. Should the Cavs pull the trigger on the trade?

Now both teams sit at 8-4, and both are clearly among the best teams of the early season. On the surface, neither team needs to make a trade to right the ship; the ships are sailing along, even if they have stumbled a bit this past week. Yet each team has an obvious weak spot in their rotation that could be addressed via trade. For a mediocre team or even a good one, perhaps you paper over. For a contender, you want to shore up any weakness you can find.

To that end, there is a potential trade tossed out by Fanspo, which runs the popular trade machine and is a great way to examine potential deals. Let’s look at the deal in detail, then break down both sides – why would the Suns and Cavs make the trade? Finally, we’ll give a final verdict on whether this one should get done.

Cavs trade with Suns: Breaking it down

The Phoenix Suns currently have a Jae Crowder problem. It’s nothing like the Kyrie Irving problem,  the Russell Westbrook problem or even the Ben Simmons problem (wow, the Brooklyn Nets are a sight) but it’s a problem. They are a contender paying $10.1 million to a good veteran player to simply sit out games. That’s a cost they likely can’t afford to pay.

They therefore need to find a trade partner who is both trying to win and has a need for a combo forward. The Miami Heat are an obvious choice, as they lost P.J. Tucker this past offseason and have familiarity with Crowder going back to 2020. Yet one thinks that if the Suns were game for whatever package the Heat were offering this deal would be done already.

Therefore the other options open up, and the Cavs are an option that could certainly use another combo forward. The Suns, on the other hand, need a player who can defend combo forwards and wing depth. Crowder gives them both in one package, but without him they likely will have to settle for meeting those goals with two players.

This proposed deal from Fanspo would do just that:

Cedi Osman is a regular part of the Cavaliers’ rotation this season, playing 20.9 minutes per game. He is shooting 39.5 percent from deep and splitting time between the 2 and the 3. Lamar Stevens is outside of the rotation but proved last season he is an excellent defender with some streaky shooting and fearless athleticism.

Let’s see if the Suns would bite on such a package.

Cavs trade with Suns: Would Phoenix do it?

The Phoenix Suns just lost Cameron Johnson for 1-2 months after meniscus surgery, and the timetables for any kind of knee surgery are often more optimistic than they should be. Johnson had moved into the starting lineup this season and played very well; the Suns went 6-1 with him and 2-3 thus far without him.

It might make sense for the Suns to patch things up with Jae Crowder now that Johnson is hurt, but according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst that is not on the table. The Suns, therefore, have to move Crowder, and they have to do so in a way that brings back someone who can play the 4 and match up against larger and smaller forwards.

Lamar Stevens could be an option to fill that role. He is 6’6″ and 230 lbs, roughly the same size as Crowder, and has the strength to take on pure power forwards with the lateral quickness to hang with smaller forwards. Defensively he can fill the same role as Crowder, and as a minimum contract he is an excellent value for this season and next.

Cedi Osman is the carrot here, ostensibly a two-way wing who can help jumpstart the Suns’ bench. Adding another wing can help stretch the group and keep players like Josh Okogie and Damion Lee from playing big minutes. Osman is a streaky shooter but he’s also proven as a rotation player.

Would Phoenix do this trade? It obviously depends on what other offers are out there, but given that Crowder is on an expiring deal and just sitting at home it is clear they need to act. This deal does address some weaknesses and gives the Suns low-cost options for next season as well. The Suns’ window may not be open forever, and they need to strike now.

Yes, the Suns would make this trade.

Cavs trade with Suns: Would Cleveland do it?

The Cleveland Cavaliers have a less obvious need on their roster, and none of the cascading hourglass sands that the Suns have with Cam Johnson and Jae Crowder. Yet it’s no question that the Cavs lack two-way role players. Osman and Kevin Love are offensively minded but struggle mightily on defense. Isaac Okoro is effectively just a defender at this point in his career.

Jae Crowder could come in and join Dean Wade as legitimate two-way wings at the 3, players who can defend multiple positions while shooting at a high percentage. In an Eastern Conference with players such as Jayson Tatum, Khris Middleton and Jimmy Butler likely to be around during the playoffs, having multiple big wing defenders is a boon.

On the other hand, Crowder is also somewhat redundant with Dean Wade. Right now the Cavs have issues defending guards with Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell both average defenders. That’s not a problem solved by adding Crowder. It might be a problem solved by adding Ricky Rubio from injury later in the season, though.

If Ochai Agbaji were still on the team this might seem like a no-brainer decision, but right now Osman is the only player of his archetype in the rotation, running off of screens and firing at a high frequency. It would be painful to lose him. At the same time, the Cavs would be swapping 21 minutes per game for a better defender and better shooter.

This one is close. Given Osman’s track record of horribly streaky shooting, the improved defensive effort of Garland and Mitchell and the large wings the Cavs have to slow in the postseason, this looks like a deal the Cavs should make.

Cavs trade with Suns: Final Verdict

This is not a slam dunk trade for either side. The Phoenix Suns ideally would get a Jae Crowder-type player back, and that’s both unlikely and isn’t happening with this deal. The Cavs would love a 3-and-D wing who can defend up the lineup as needed.

Yet as far as the cost goes, it’s fairly minimal for both sides. The Suns are getting nothing from Crowder; the Cavs aren’t using Stevens and probably shouldn’t feel safe trusting Cedi Osman. Both teams get a little better with this deal, and that might be enough to get it done.

It’s the prospect of something better at the deadline that could hold this back. Do the Suns want to give it time, hoping to weather Cam Johnson’s absence and wait for a contender to lose a piece themselves and get desperate? Do the Cavs wait to see if a 3-and-D wing with a bit more foot speed comes available?

This deal feels unlikely to happen in real life because it doesn’t move the needle in a massive way for either team. Yet if the two sides pulled the trigger right now, each would likely benefit from the return and add wins to the ledger. Therefore, they should make this trade.

Verdict: Make the deal