Grade the Trade: Cavaliers dump worst salary in cost-saving idea

Cavaliers could trade Max Strus for Dorian Finney-Smith

Bleacher Report recently looked at every team in the league and identified their worst contract; they suggested Max Strus on the Cavs. They then built a trade for the Cavaliers to move off of that contract, a deal that would send Strus back to the Atlantic Coast.

Strus can’t be traded until mid-January, which is a large chunk of the season to see how he fits with the rest of the Cavaliers’ roster. It’s also enough time for the Brooklyn Nets to see how their season plays out and whether they are pushing for playoff contention or, more likely, heading for a spot in the Play-In Tournament or below.

Brooklyn gets to add a movement shooter under contract for the next few years, and Strus can both play for them and be flipped for assets down the road. They pocket the second-round pick now and send out Dorian Finney-Smith, a player who is duplicative with a number of other players on the Nets.

This kind of trade depends on how both teams value the key player, in this case Max Strus. He could be fair return for Finney-Smith if the Nets think highly enough of him, but if the reasons that Cleveland is moving him also influence Brooklyn a deal becomes harder to make. If both teams think he’s overpaid the trade gets harder to make.

Assuming the Nets are on board with this trade, what should the Cavaliers think?