The Cleveland Cavaliers are expected to do the most obvious thing

The Cleveland Cavaliers are rumored to be in the market for a wing player

The Cleveland Cavaliers are finally admitted, allegedly, what we all knew for a long time; the team needs a defensive wing. According to Zach Lowe of EPSN (via Sam Amico of HoopsWire), the Cavs are interested in trading for a guy who can start at small forward, and many in the know believe this will be a guy who can shoot and play defense.

And looking at the “names” who are available, the Cavs are better off starting Isaac Okoro and Dean Wade. The three names who are getting the most hype are Alec Burks, Terrance Ross, and Wayne Ellington. None of them are any good, at least anymore.

Ross is the one who is getting the most hype, but he’s shooting just 35% from three and is playing terribly. In fact, he’s a bad defensive player historically. It isn’t just with the Magic, he’s not a good defensive player. He’s only had one year, 2018, on the positive end of that court according to his RAPTOR score.

He’s not the guy you want.

What other options do the Cleveland Cavaliers have?

You’re either going to need to pick a defensive player or an offensive player because there is no wing available who can do both. A guy like Paul George just isn’t going to come sauntering through the doors.

The two of the three best fits are Zach LaVine and Bojan Bogdanovic. Keep in mind, I’m saying “best” fits, not “perfect” fits. Both players come with their own host of issues and would cost too much.

You don’t want to pull a Los Angeles Rams and trade away all of your draft picks. You have to build and sustain. You don’t just sell all out. That’s what GMs trying to keep their jobs do. Look at the Los Angeles Lakers (must be an LA thing). Sure, they won a ring, but the coach who won it was fired and the management team behind that win isn’t long for employment either.

LeBron James is toiling and fading away from the spotlight and the entire team’s young corp is dominating elsewhere.

So, notice before how I mentioned two of the three? Well, there is a pick that is nearly perfect and can come relatively cheap considering his injury history. He’s also someone who has the potential to be a net-positive on a good team and that’s Gordon Hayward.

He has his own issues, granted. He’s a liability healthwise, his defense can drag at times, but if he’s healthy and fully engaged, he’s probably the best you can do without trading someone like Darius Garland or Evan Mobley as part of the package.