The Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets continue to go in circles. While they are moving in different directions, much of their immediate futures could be decided by the other as the 2024-25 NBA season approaches.
For the Cavaliers, it’s decision time. After signing all of the team’s starters to extensions, their rotation remains virtually unchanged from last season. But that might not be enough for a team that two seasons ago seemed poised to become a perennial title contender.
On the other side, the Brooklyn Nets are ready to commit to their rebuild. The experiment with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden, by extension, didn’t work. But they took the bait and are now in a much stronger position than many realize.
NBA TRADE NEWS AND RUMORS: Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets Updates
With the three-star trade and the gargantuan return of Mikal Bridges, the team is firmly headed toward a rebuild. However, with an overwhelming stack of draft assets, the future looks bright in Brooklyn.
The two teams remain linked at the hip, though. And that comes down to three wing players on both teams. For the Cavs, it’s their lack of a bigger wing player who can fill their starting spot at wing. While Isaac Okoro was considered the answer, he hasn’t made significant enough progress.
NBA TRADE NEWS AND RUMORS: Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets Updates
For a rebuilding team like the Nets, taking a flight might not be the worst decision. Plus, when it comes to returners, Brooklyn also has a plethora of wings to offer Cleveland. Dorrian Finney-Smith and Cam Johnson could both fill that void with the Cavs perfectly and give them a long-term rotation option.
However, there is now a major problem: a possible transfer between the two teams.
Overtime could come back to bite Cavs
This offseason, rather than retooling the roster, Cleveland took a slower route. As a result, most of its core remains intact, albeit on larger contracts. As a result, the new collective bargaining agreement raises salary cap issues for the Cavaliers. That’s where any potential Okoro trade could take a back seat. The most likely scenario for the Cavs was a trade for Isaac. But that appears to be out of the question.
“ I don’t think a trade can happen now, after all the salaries are settled. I don’t think Brooklyn has the cap space to make that happen. And getting Dorian down to $14 million would be a challenge for the top position we’re talking about with Cleveland in general.
Thanks to the three-year, $91 million contract extension the Cavs signed Jarrett Allen a few days ago, their salary cap has skyrocketed. Now, making a trade is going to be increasingly difficult. However, from the looks of things, president of basketball operations Koby Altman wants to give this core more chances. With a new head coach in Kenny Atkinson, Cleveland has a litmus test in the first half of the season.
NBA TRADE NEWS AND RUMORS: Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets Updates
Otherwise, Allen is eligible for a trade just before the deadline, and the Cavaliers could look to officially move on. Jarrett and Okoro, along with other names like Max Strus and Caris LeVert, could become trade chips for the team to restructure its prospects. For now, though, it appears the team could stand its ground.
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