The Cavaliers‘ search for a scoring guard to replace the injured Collin Sexton and the Pacers‘ interest in moving some of their veteran players could lead to a possible trade, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
Cleveland looks like a legitimate contender in the East with seven wins in its last nine games and will probably be seeking an upgrade before the February 10 trade deadline. An obvious area to address is replacing the 16.0 points per game that Sexton delivered before being lost for the year with a torn meniscus.
Caris LeVert is struggling with his shot this season, hitting just 42.1% from the field and 28.9% from three-point range, but he has a history of being a productive scorer. He is under contract for $17.5MM this season and $18.8MM in 2022/23, and at age 27 he fits in well with the Cavs’ timeline.
Indiana is known to like Sexton, who is only 22 and will be eligible for restricted free agency after the season. Vardon isn’t sure if the Pacers will commit to him in light of the injury, although it could allow them to re-sign him to a shorter, low-cost deal while he works his way back.
There’s more from the Central Division:
- Cavaliers forward Lauri Markkanen has to fulfill a commitment to Finland’s military, but it shouldn’t affect his NBA availability, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.
- Bulls center Nikola Vucevic has been struggling with his shot after missing two weeks with COVID-19 and he expressed his frustration after Saturday’s loss in Miami, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Vucevic was just 3-of-15 from the field and missed several opportunities close to the basket. ‘‘It’s tough when you want to play well and go out there and help the team win and don’t do your job,’’ he said. ‘‘I have a lot of pride in myself and put the work in, obviously. It’s not working for me right now, but that’s part of it. I’ve never been through a slump like this, and I just have to work myself out of it. I’m not doing what I’m supposed to do.’’
- When Donte DiVincenzo makes his season debut this week, he will return to a Bucks team that has changed since DiVincenzo suffered an ankle injury in the playoffs, notes Brian Sampson of Forbes. The offseason addition of Grayson Allen, who has become a starter in the backcourt and has provided a shooting upgrade, will likely push DiVincenzo into a reserve role, but he remains valuable because of his defense and rebounding.
I take Garland over Sexton at PG. So I take LeVert for sure. LeVert is a 20 pt scorer who plays D. Fits right in imo. This team is playing well without Sexton. You add LeVert. Makes them better.
@knickerbocker
There’s no Garland vs Sexton as a pg debate. Garland is the starting PG and Sexton the starting SG. There’s no way to say how well Sexton nor Levert will fit. However, it would be a bad idea to trade Sexton for Levert. Sexton has true all-star potential and is a 3 way scorer who shoots with efficiency. Levert is a poor outside shooter who takes too many 3pters (30%/4 pg)
laurie has to serve 165 days before he’s 28 and he’s supposed to report to start his service at the end of the reg season. the cavs look like a playoff team though.
I just giggled a little at the mental picture of Lauri holding a carbine, and dressed in fatigues. Like some little kid in a paintball game.
We don’t want LeVert! Why mess up something that’s already working! LeVert won’t improve this team, they’d have to trade away players to get him. And who would they trade? Cedi? He’s playing super well. Lauri? Doing surprisingly well in his role at the three. Okoro? He’s our best defender on the perimeter and is showing these past 3 games that he can score. Sexton? He’s our best scorer and he’s better than LeVert. Darius? He’s our future, so that’s never happening. Mobley? That’s never happening to the extreme. Allen? Is an Allstate player and isn’t going anywhere either. Rubio? Rubio is the glue for our second string, and plays starter minutes, no way. Love? He has shown he can come off the bench and be very productive! Plus his contract is too big. So who does that leave left, Lamar, Dean, valentine etc. No, trading for LeVert will not happen.
This is the first time I’ve seen a Cavs fan say anything good about Kevin Love in probably 5 years. Well done.
Did you read the post ? It says Pacers liked Sexton. The guy is not even playing. So how does adding a guy who can play. And score 20 a gm mess things up. You must be part of Cavs FO.
because he would take minutes from either Garland/ Rubio or Okoro/Markannen/Cedi.. and Sexton is a better player. they’d have to include another player in a trade for salary matching purposes
FO?