Cavaliers Rumors: Could Cleveland add veteran forward before trade deadline?
Although the Cleveland Cavaliers' latest dominance has overthrown numerous rivals in the Eastern Conference, their inconsistent three-point attempt conversion leaves room for improvement.
Over their last 10 games, the Cavaliers have a league-best 9-1 record with just over one week before the February 8 trade deadline. While they battle for playoff positioning with the New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers, Cleveland has been the only team of these three not to make a trade yet this season. Both the Knicks and Pacers acquired highly-soughtafter players in O.G. Anunoby and Pascal Siakam from the Toronto Raptors, respectively.
Last season was the Cavs' first trade deadline without any deals since 2017. While the Cavaliers will have ample opportunity to improve their veteran forward depth in the post-deadline buyout market, they have generated plenty of buzz around potential win-now moves. Bolstering the team mid-season will not only help the Cavaliers overcome the first round of the playoffs, it could be another reason to convince Donovan Mitchell to sign an extension this offseason.
Cleveland has reportedly set their sights on another 3-and-D wing in trade discussions, but nothing has yet materialized. The Cavs have an admittedly small pool of assets to offer in a trade, leading to many calls going nowhere fast. While Brooklyn Nets forward Royce O'Neale has emerged as Cleveland's favored target for the second consecutive season for his shooting, defense and friendship with Mitchell, another former Utah Jazz teammate of Spida's may be the next player to join the wine and gold.
How Bojan Bogdanovic would improve the Cavaliers
The Detroit Pistons currently sit at the bottom of the NBA and set a record for the longest regular season losing streak in NBA history after dropping 28 consecutive games. With the team clearly far from contention, rivals have been eyeing one player in trade talks year after year, but the Pistons have refused to surrender him.
At 34 years old, Bojan Bogdanovic is already past his best years but has shown plenty of value as a spot-up three-point sniper and solid defender. As the Pistons continue a lengthy rebuild, Bogdaonvic's talents are seemingly being used in vain, making him one of the most intriguing names in the trade market. He has one year left on his contract after this season, making this season a perfect time to cash in as teams would be willing to pay a higher premium for a player that is more than a half-season rental.
DraftKings Network listed the Cavaliers among teams who should show interest in Bogdanovic at the deadline, citing their subpar shooting as a reason to chase the veteran sharpshooter.
If there is a team that Bogdanovic could impact instantly, it is the Cleveland Cavaliers. Although the Cavs have reimagined their offense to integrate a barrage of deep shooting, they still rank in the twenties for three-point percentage as a team. Thus far, Sam Merrill is the only Cavalier with an above-average percentage from long range. Bogdanovic has connected on 41 percent of his 7.3 three-point attempts per game, which would make him the best shooter on the team upon arrival.
The Cavs signed Georges Niang this summer to provide shooting in the frontcourt. Niang had connections from Utah with Mitchell, too, and had a career three-point percentage above 40 when he joined the Cavaliers. This season, though, Niang is shooting 36.8 percent from deep, the first time he has dipped below 40 percent since his sophomore season. Bogdanovic theoretically provides what the Cavs hoped to get in Niang with size, strength and shooting.