Why You Shouldn’t Worry About the Cavs
By Noah Eck
Here is a shocking bit of news: Lebron left this last summer for the Lakers, and now the Cavs are terrible. When Lebron decided to leave for the Lakers at the time, many assumed that the Cavs would become much worse but still be a contender for a low playoff seed. Kevin Love was expected to step up as the new leader of the team and with the help of a promising young rookie named Collin Sexton, the Cavs looked good given the circumstances. Unfortunately Kevin Love has only played 4 games due to injuries this year and they have gotten out to a 4-15 start good for 14th in the East. For the first 7-8 games Tyronn Lue tried desperately to form a decent lineup with leftover pieces from Lebron’s 2017-18 finals run. Unfortunately for Ty, he never found success as he has been fired from his job as head coach.
Everything I have wrote about up to this point is terrible so what are the positives of this situation? The Cavs aren’t going to win soon however they have a solid foundation for a successful (and hopefully short) rebuilding phase. Collin Sexton looks like a future star as he has shown he is capable of putting up 20+ points a night. He still has a lot of work to do to improve as a playmaker and defender but with plenty of playing time he should improve quickly. Now for the 6’10” 251 pound elephant in the room, Kevin Love. We know that he is capable of being the first option for a team as he was putting up 20 and 10 in his Minnesota days however he hasn’t exactly returned to his old self. I do see Kevin Love as playing a role in acquiring a second scorer to pair with Sexton. There are a lot of teams that would pay a fair price for a stretch big man who can rebound. The Cavs would have to trade for someone young yet capable in order to be set for the future. A scoring forward like Harrison Barnes or Tj Warren would be ideal. Another solid trading option is the nearly retired Kyle Korver. There are a few win-now teams (OKC, Houston, Utah, and Denver) who need a reliable three-point shooter like Kyle Korver to space the floor for their offense. The Cavs in return could get a young, undeveloped, player who has time to improve for the future. All of this combined with the fact that the Cavs are likely to get a very high lottery draft pick this year (and possibly 1-2 years afterwards) provide Cavs fans with a pretty bright future ahead.
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