6 potential buyout options the Cleveland Cavaliers could have interest in
By Chad Porto
Kemba Walker
The first two players are only going to be considered options if other plans fall through. The plan that the Cleveland Cavaliers should be aggressively pursuing is getting their hands on both Collin Sexton and Ricky Rubio. Healthy, Sexton is the best potential bench-scorer in the NBA, while Rubio is as good of a passer and defender as Dejounte Murray but for a huge discount in comparison. They’re the focus of the offseason.
However, if either player fails to return to the Cavs for the 2022-2023 season, then the Cavs need to re-think things. Pivoting from Sexton and Rubio to Kemba Walker is a noticeable step down in quality, no doubt there. Yet, if the team is cash strapped, and needs a veteran guard, Walker makes sense. Now a lot of people have come for Walker in recent years but he hasn’t been a bad player, he’s just not been as good as his massive contract said he should be.
A healthy Walker off the bench can probably get you 15 points per game on fairly efficient shooting, and that’s about what you’d want from a guy off the bench. Maybe I’m biased, as Walker has always been one of my favorite NBA players since he started his career in Charlotte (and while he was in college at UCONN) but I really believe that Walker has something left in the tank as a veteran role player.
Walker is currently on the Detroit Pistons after a trade with the Knicks, but the Pistons are talking buyout with Walker, and could be a free agent by the time this article goes live.