The Cavs are climbing the ranks defensively and are in the top 10 in the NBA in that category once again. But offensively, well, not so much.
So that may lead them to explore some trades, per Michael Scotto and Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype, with wing Caris LeVert and center Jarrett Allen being the names seemingly mentioned most.
“They started the season with several injuries to a lot of players and got off to a 4-6 start, and they’re 9-4 since. They’re still a Top 10 defense like last year, but they’ve been struggling on offense,” Gozlan said on the HoopsHype Podcast. “They’re 24th… Their bench is one of the worst scoring benches at 24th in points per game, have a minus-2.6 net rating, and are last in offensive rating. I suppose that’s one of their bigger indicators of what’s going on with their offensive struggles.”
He went on to say that the Cavs’ starting five seems “pretty well set,” and sources have indicated to Hoops Wire earlier this season that it’s highly doubtful they would move Allen, a favorite of both the organization and its fans.
But the NBA silly season is almost upon us, and we all know what that means. Basically, everyone outside of maybe 10 guys in the entire league stands a chance to hear their names in trade rumors.
“I would say that if the Cavaliers do something, it’s probably more smaller scale moves to try to reshuffle their bench and get pieces that can improve on offense,” Gozlan said.
Guards Zach LaVine and Alex Caruso, and small forward DeMar DeRozan, are the names being mentioned most when it comes to the Bulls and trade rumors.
But others could be in the mix as well, per Scotto.
“It’s unclear at this time, but you talk about guys that could hold value for playoff contenders that could fortify any bench on a playoff team,” he said. “I wondered about Jevon Carter and Torrey Craig on the Bulls because I do think those guys would have value. I remember in the offseason, Minnesota was also looking at Carter, in addition to Chicago. Craig had a number of teams as well because he’s a good role player.”
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