The Cleveland Cavaliers might find a way to make it all work. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland may prove to be a perfect backcourt pairing, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen find the balance as two bigs on the court together, and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff might break through as a tactician and lead the Cavs deep into the playoffs.
On the other hand, Garland and Mitchell could prove to be an unworkable fit defensively, Allen and Mobley may smother the offensive spacing too much, and Bickerstaff could be fired by the end of the season. Of those three scenarios, the one the Cavs are likely to move on first is the pairing of their two big men.
It wouldn’t be an absolute shock for the Cavaliers to trade Jarrett Allen by this upcoming NBA Trade Deadline, sliding Evan Mobley to center full-time and looking to juice the offense. If that happens, which players around the league could the Cavs target in a trade?
In no particular order, here are six players that could be a part of a Jarrett Allen trade next season.
The idea of the Cavaliers pursuing Jerami Grant in a trade is not a new one; the possibility was bandied about back when Grant was on the Detroit Pistons, and again leading into this past summer before he re-signed with the Portland Trail Blazers. Even with the new deal, however, a Portland team embracing a rebuild could look to move Grant to get younger and less expensive.
If so, a midseason deal for Grant could be just what the doctor ordered. He’s certainly not the rim protector that Allen is, but he is a plus defender who can defend multiple positions. On offense, he is a good shooter, especially for a power forward, and would be an excellent fit alongside Mobley in the frontcourt.
A name only recently floated in relation to the Cleveland Cavaliers was Dallas Mavericks forward Josh Green, a young athletic player who has steadily improved every season that he has been in the league. Coming off of a rotation role with the Australian National Team at the World Cup, Green will look to take another step forward this year.
The step forward could be enough for the Mavericks to dangle him in a trade for a big man, as despite making multiple transactions involving centers this summer they are reportedly still in the market for an upgrade. Green is their best asset to include in a trade, and his fit as an athletic wing with a developing offensive game is enough for Cleveland to be interested. If his shot comes around he will be a long-term starter, for the Cavs or another team.
One of the easiest players from the 2022 NBA Draft to fall in love with, Tari Eason gives his all on every play of a basketball game. He flies around the court on defense, breaking up plays and swatting shots. He attacks the glass, pushes in transition, sets hard screens, zips passes around. He’s the ultimate role player.
The Cavaliers have a trio of offensive stars and could use an ultimate role player. The pairing of Evan Mobley and Eason on defense would be a joy to watch, and he could absolutely fly in transition with Donovan Mitchell. If the Rockets decide that they want to upgrade at center after missing out on Brook Lopez, Eason should be at the top of the Cavaliers’ wish list.
The San Antonio Spurs made a move that the Cleveland Cavaliers are all too familiar with, drafting an elite talent who is a good enough rim protector to play center but is too slim to start his career there. Now that Mobley may be ready to become a full-time center, perhaps the Spurs could take Jarrett Allen to fill that role alongside Victor Wembanyama.
If they are interested, Keldon Johnson seems like an obvious choice to be sent back to the Cavaliers. He has some holes in his game but he’s also a much better scoring threat than any forwards on the Cavs right now, and his defense isn’t terrible whether he is put at the 3 or 4. He would allow the Cavs to stay young while still continuing to compete right now.
A true upside swing would be to trade Jarrett Allen for a prospect who has not yet made “the leap” and hope it makes them a better team long-term even if they take a small step back in the present. That’s what trading for a player like Trey Murphy III would accomplish, except that he might be good enough already to not cause that step back.
Murphy is a good defender, but where he truly shines is as a shooter from anywhere on the court. He is a 40 percent 3-point shooter for his career (an elite 90 percent from the free-throw line) and can pull up or catch-and-shoot off of movement. He would add an entirely new element to the Cavaliers, combining the movement shooting of Max Strus with the wing defense of Dean Wade, except a better version of both.
If the Pelicans decide they have to move on from Jonas Valanciunas as the center behind Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, they could look to move one of their many forwards for a player like Jarrett Allen. The Pelicans are better equipped to win immediately, and the Cavs land their long-term starting 3.
Most of the players on this list would get my personal stamp of approval as well; the kinds of players the Cavaliers should be targeting are two-way forwards who can help on defense and space the court on offense. Kyle Kuzma doesn’t really fit the bill.
That doesn’t mean he isn’t an extremely talented and skilled player, a guy worth the long-term contract that the Washington Wizards gave him. It’s just that Kuzma is not a very scaleable player; that is, his skillset is difficult to fit with the on-ball creators he would need to play with to be on a winning team.
Kuzma may have taken a step forward last season, but he was also helped by pure volume, increasing his shot attempts to 17.8 per game and riding similar efficiency on greater volume to 21.2 points per game. To his credit, he did increase his 3-point attempts, but his accuracy went down; he’s a career 33.8 percent 3-point shooter and hit only 33.3 percent last season. Shooting is not a strength for Kuzma.
For a team that needs someone to come in, eat possessions and get a decent shot up, Kuzma is a great fit. The problem is that contenders, like the Cavaliers aspire to be, need players who can thrive alongside other creators. Kuzma is not that guy, not anymore, and he wouldn’t bring a lot to the table as the fourth option on the Cavs.
The Cavaliers may decide to hang on to Jarrett Allen, seeing out the pairing with Evan Mobley for as long as possible. They may also decide to move quickly and trade him for another player who can help at a different position. If so, one of these six players could be heading to The Land by the time February rolls around.