Cavaliers swap two wings for one in ESPN trade proposal

CLEVELAND, OHIO - JANUARY 31: Isaac Okoro #35 of the Cleveland Cavaliers drives to the basket around Josh Hart #3 of the New Orleans Pelicans during the third quarter at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on January 31, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Pelicans 93-90. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

2 of 3

Cedi Osman and Isaac Okoro, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images /

Looking at the Cavaliers trade from ESPN

To not only match salaries with Josh Hart but to make it worth the Trail Blazers’ while, Bobby Marks has the Cavaliers putting two rotation players into the deal alongside a pair of second-round picks. The lopsided trade would look something like this:

Josh Hart makes $12.96 million this season, and could make the same next year. He has one of the most unique contract structures in the NBA, as he has a non-guaranteed contract for next season, but also a player option. Hart decides first whether to opt out of his contract; if he doesn’t, he’s non-guaranteed for next summer. That makes it very unclear whether or not he will be a free agent next summer.

The Portland Trail Blazers would make this move to turn one rotation player into two. In Isaac Okoro they get a point-of-attack defender to mix in with Gary Payton II, essentially duplicating his role and giving them redundancy for the games GPII will miss. Cedi Osman adds a wing with size who can reasonably hit a shot. As they need to re-sign Jerami Grant this summer, Hart may have been a cap casualty, so moving him now for value would make sense for Portland.