Trading a player is a difficult task. One team likely values that player extremely highly, while other teams have to negotiate the cost down while also outbidding everyone else. Each team has different needs, different financial situations, different roster constructions. The better a player is, the trickier it is to find a deal that works for all parties.
That fact is going to make it difficult for the Cleveland Cavaliers to trade All-Star center Jarrett Allen. Koby Altman and the front office are listening to trade offers, and considering the option of moving the big man, but finding the right trade partner and securing the right return package is easier said than done.
Who makes sense as a Jarrett Allen trade partner?
Looking around the league, there are a few teams that tried to secure a starting center this summer but failed to do so. Could that increase the leverage of the Cavaliers in a trade? Those teams may already have come calling with trade offers to pry Allen away from the Cavs.
One such team are the Houston Rockets, who went after Brook Lopez in free agency, only for him to re-sign with the Milwaukee Bucks. They pivoted to sign Jock Landale to a surprisingly lucrative contract, but they can move on from him after the first year. Locking down a defensive anchor for the next few seasons could be an extremely attractive option for them.
What kind of trade could the Cavaliers work out with the Rockets? Let’s lay out one potential option that pulls in a third team to prevent a reunion no one wants, and lands a do-it-all youngster in Cleveland.
Laying out the three-team trade
The Houston Rockets entered this summer with the most cap space in the NBA, and they wielded it to the tune of massive new contracts for Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, Jock Landale and Jeff Green, essentially outbidding the competition. What it also means is that they have relatively few contracts to use as matching salary in a deal.
Unless they were going to move on from both Jalen Green and Jabari Smith Jr., which would be inexplicable even to add a player like Jarrett Allen, the Rockets need to include Kevin Porter Jr. in a deal. The prospect of KPJ returning to Cleveland is unthinkable; they sent him packing just months after he was drafted, and that relationship isn’t one they want to mend.
That requires a third team to reroute Porter Jr., and the Utah Jazz now enter the picture. Here is what a deal could look like:
The Houston Rockets get to place Allen in the middle and immediately shore up a defense that was overwhelmingly porous last season. He is young enough to grow with their young core, but he also helps them fulfill their win-now mandate this year. They don’t give up any of their recent top picks in the deal, moving Tari Eason (a player locked into the bench with this summer’s signings) and a future Brooklyn first-round pick.
For their part, the Jazz made multiple moves this summer to add talent to their rotation of bigs, so moving a veteran center on an expiring contract for a young guard is the kind of swap that makes sense for them. If KPJ doesn’t work out they can move on, but it’s a flier at a position where they need to find long-term answers.
The deal makes sense for the Rockets and the Jazz; would the Cavaliers say yes?
Would the Cavaliers accept this trade?
The Cleveland Cavaliers love Jarrett Allen, as do their fans. He grew from part-time player to All-Star center with the Cavs and is a key part of their culture. He also is a limited offensive player, position-locked into center and prevents the Cavs’ best defensive player from playing center. They built a successful team last year, but also felt the spacing pains of Allen and Evan Mobley in the playoffs.
In any Jarrett Allen trade, the Cavaliers would ideally increase their defensive versatility and lineup flexibility, adding a player who helps with defense, spacing and can play multiple positions. Those players tend to be very expensive when they are established and proven in the league, but perhaps the Cavaliers could find one before he breaks out.
Tari Eason was the 17th pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and he quietly had an excellent rookie season for the Rockets despite playing just 21.5 minutes per game. He appeared in all 82 contests and played hard for every second he was on the court, flying around making defensive impact plays or crashing the glass for a rebound. He is a high-energy forward who can defend multiple positions and fit into nearly any lineup.
The Rockets added Dillon Brooks in free agency and drafted Cam Whitmore. When you add in last summer’s selection at No. 3 overall in Jabari Smith Jr., there isn’t much space for Eason in Houston. It’s not out of the question that they could be convinced to move him.
Long-term, Eason would be an amazing fit starting next to Evan Mobley. Together they could defend all over the court, and either could handle in transition to kick off the break. Eason can pass, he is a magnet for steals, and he is a fast-break fiend on both ends of the court. The Cavaliers would love to bring him aboard.
This deal would also net the Cavs a backup center to stretch the court behind Mobley; Cavs fans would need to bury the hatchet with Olynyk, who was involved in Kevin Love’s shoulder injury in the playoffs years ago, but he would otherwise be a good stylistic fit in the frontcourt. The future first-round pick gives them ammunition to make other upgrades on the wing.
This trade would check all of the major boxes for the Cavaliers and add a young forward to pair with Mobley long-term. That’s an exciting return if they do decide to move on from Allen.
Grade: A-