Cleveland Cavaliers: What a Kemba Walker trade could look like

At least one trade need to made by the Cleveland Cavaliers prior to the trade deadline, so why not some guard help?

As great as it was hearing the news that the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired point guard Isaiah Thomas from the Boston Celtics, he’s been disappointing.

A major reason that is the case is that he’s been recovering from a hip injury. In time, Thomas should make the necessary adjustments and prove to be a good asset in the backcourt.

However, that is far from certain and given that Cleveland needs help both in the backcourt and at center, something has to give.

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Hopefully, Thomas does get back to the player we saw in Boston. Regardless if he does or not though, the fact is Thomas will be a free agent after this season. In six games, he has averaged 14.8 points and 3.5 assists in 24 minutes/game.

While traditional stats don’t say all one needs about a player in 2018, looking beyond Thomas’ injury and instead more with his skill-set and how he plays, something just seems off.

Thomas is a good PG but if there’s a chance to upgrade, wouldn’t you make the trade? Well, here’s a chance for Cleveland to do just that.

Cleveland could acquire Charlotte Hornets’ point guard Kemba Walker, who without his play, arguably should have the worst record in the NBA.

According to ESPN NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Charlotte has made Walker available via trade. If Cleveland acquired Walker, a potential trade could look something like this:

Now, could it be premature to move on from Thomas already, yes, but not necessarily. Walker is going for 21.7 and 5.8 this season. In addition, Walker is signed for one additional season and progress has been seen each year since entering the NBA.

Per Wojnarowski, Charlotte is trying to move a big contract.

Cleveland wouldn’t have to give up the Brooklyn Nets’ pick since the Cavs would be taking on G/F Nicolas Batum‘s deal. Besides, Thomas is a building block the Hornets could sign long-term. If Charlotte insisted on receiving a second rounder too, that’s fine.

Given the number of guards that would be on Charlotte’s roster following this trade, a logical secondary move would be moving J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, or one of their own guards in a separate deal.

The unfortunate part about Walker is that he plays for Charlotte. If he was on an up and coming team or especially a playoff contending team, Walker’s play would surprised many.

If Walker was playing elsewhere, with what he provides a team, his stats would be even better. Not only that but Walker would also be mentioned more in the discussion about who the best PGs are in the NBA.

Batum was added to make the money right in the hypothetical deal but he is more than just a throw-in. Forward Jae Crowder does plenty of the dirty work in Cleveland. Batum, on the other hand, does similar things but with better production.. not to mention the ability to guard more players on the court.

I’d be open to the idea of seeing what Cleveland could do to improve the point guard position. At the same time, I don’t want to just picture the present. The long-term outlook is also important since no one knows what F LeBron James is going to do. Walker is more talented than Thomas and if he were to be traded to Cleveland, I am confident his game would only improve!

Next: 5 NBA trade partners that makes the most sense for the Cavs

The trade deadline is coming up. Cleveland could go about changing their roster in a number of ways. I’d just recommend keeping an open mind to whatever they decide to do. Who knows, maybe they somehow get better while also getting younger.

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