Instant Replay: No move is a win for Cavs at trade deadline

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Jan 24, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Jalen McDaniels (6) passes the ball against the Phoenix Suns during the first half at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports /

Philadelphia 76ers

Jalen McDaniels was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, who stand in third place right now, a game in front of Cleveland. McDaniels could be a rising star in the league as he’s bumped his minutes up, increased his scoring, and had been starting for a pretty lowly Charlotte Hornets team. Now McDaniels goes from the bottom of the standings to almost the top.

It will be interesting to see how McDaniels does in Philly. The youngster is only 25 years old and has an 11-points-per-game average to go along with five rebounds. He’d started 21 games with the Hornets and is known to be a quality defender both on the inside and on the outside with his 6-foot-9 height and big wingspan. With teams needing defense down the stretch, this was a good move by the 76ers.

New York Knicks

Josh Hart has been traded again as he’s now played for four teams in his brief NBA career. He’s now a New York Knick after being traded from the Portland Trail Blazers. He’s only in his fifth season in the league but is considered a strong defender and a player that can help in many areas of a basketball team.

The Knicks traded Cam Reddish, who’d been linked to the Cavs in recent days as a possible trade landing spot. Hart will give the Knicks a good defensive player and even more offense. He’s averaging around 10 points a game to go along with four assists.

New York is in the No. 7 spot in the current Eastern Conference standings and has been a team that has given the Cavaliers trouble this past season when they’ve battled head-to-head. Hart can step in and be a starter as he was doing this season in Portland.

As a Cavs fan, I’d be more nervous today because of this trade because the Knicks will begin to climb in the standings. I don’t know if they’ll catch Cleveland, but this could be setting the stage for the Cavs to have to play the Knicks in the playoffs and that’s just not a good matchup for the Win and Gold.

However, in the end, the competition in the East got a lot easier for the Cavs as the Nets broke the band up with the departure of Durant and Irving to the West.

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Yes, Cleveland will still need to trump the Bucks and Celtics, but I like the Wine and Gold squad’s chances even better today.