Grade the Trade: Cavaliers get expensive in scintillating proposal

Isaac Okoro is an elite backcourt defender with some real offensive question marks, but if the Cavaliers sour on him, other teams will want to take a flier on him. The time to trade Okoro is probably right now, as another poor offensive season will decrease his value.

Even so, Okoro on his own is not bringing back much of value for a win-now Cavaliers team. That’s where Jarrett Allen comes in. The All-Star center is one of the league’s best rim protectors, and teams looking to upgrade their defense with a young big would likely be very interested in Allen.

That package together is intriguing, but it gets even more enticing if you add in a swap of the Cavaliers’ 2030 first-round pick. Together, that package is among the best the Cavs can offer without moving one of their tentpole stars. What could they get for it?

Over at Bleacher Report, Andy Bailey put together a trade idea for all 30 teams, and the deal he built for the Cavaliers brings back a pair of veteran players to fill out the starting lineup. Here’s the trade:

The Indiana Pacers would get a defensive anchor who is two years younger than Myles Turner, while moving on from Buddy Hield with a high-upside future pick swap and the developmental potential of both Okoro and Sam Merrill, who has a lot of Hield-like qualities as a movement shooter. Ricky Rubio joins the trade to balance out the contracts, returning the veteran point guard to Indiana for the second time in three seasons.

This is a very interesting deal for the Pacers; how does it stack up for the Cavaliers? Would they make this deal?