The Cleveland Cavaliers have a bright future coming off an expectedly surprising season that brought them to the brink of reaching the NBA playoffs.
However, they will have some tough decisions to make this offseason, and perhaps the biggest one centers around Collin Sexton, their promising and skilled guard.
He will be a free agent once the calendar turns over to July, and he could command a max contract on the open market.
Reportedly, the Cavs front office has had some reluctance to pair Sexton with Darius Garland long-term in the backcourt together, given that both are 6-foot-1 and lacking on defense.
Therefore, a sign-and-trade involving Sexton may be the team’s best bet, since it would end up getting some viable talent and/or capital in return.
Here are two potential teams that could net Cleveland something valuable in such a deal.
Indiana Pacers
The Pacers are rumored to be looking to move on from a few of their key players in an attempt to trim salary and build around Tyrese Haliburton, whom they acquired from the Sacramento Kings this season.
If Indiana would bite, perhaps the Cavs would be interested in a player such as Malcolm Brogdon.
Brogdon is a versatile 6-foot-5 guard who can play both backcourt positions, making him, at least theoretically, a nice fit next to Garland, as well as Caris LeVert.
The Atlanta, Ga. native can score pretty efficiently, hit the open man and play good defense, which would allow him to fill in multiple needs for the Cavs.
Throwback to Malcolm Brogdon dunking on Kyrie and LeBron in the same game during his rookie year. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Qvg7jykJXY
— Hilltop Hoops (@HilltopNBA) August 26, 2021
This season, he put up 19.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game for the Pacers.
The concern with Brogdon is his durability, as he hasn’t appeared in more than 70 games since his rookie season back in 2017.
Another possibility for Cleveland could be Buddy Hield, another big guard who has a different skill-set.
Hield is known as a 3-point sniper, and he has career averages of 15.9 points in 29.2 minutes per game while shooting 39.8 percent from downtown on 7.6 attempts a contest.
The Cavs shot just 35.5 percent from beyond the arc this season, which was 15th in the NBA, and Hield could significantly improve that mark.
He is regarded as a rather poor defender, but the presence of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen inside could at least somewhat mitigate that weakness.
New York Knicks
The Knicks were one of the NBA’s most disappointing teams this season, and they make be willing to make some wholesale changes this summer.
New York needs scoring from its backcourt, and Sexton could fit the bill, especially given how young he is.
Would the Knicks be willing to give up a player such as Evan Fournier or Alec Burks?
If so, either one could address the Cavs’ need for better 3-point shooting at the wing position while giving them a big guard who could also masquerade as a small forward when they go small.
EVAN FOURNIER FOR 3… AGAIN
38 POINTS 🔥 pic.twitter.com/GkFVNVEqGM
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 7, 2022
Maybe the Cavs would have some interest in Derrick Rose, who is still a capable spark plug off the bench at this point of his career.
Rose also has two years left on his contract, with the second one being a team option, so if he doesn’t work out, he could either be traded or simply allowed to come off the books to give Cleveland some salary cap relief.
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