The Cavaliers have one All-Star at guard in Darius Garland, but they are still looking for his backcourt running mate after losing Ricky Rubio to a torn ACL (and having Colin Sexton out for the year as well). Cleveland needs another player who can create his own shot.
Enter Carris LeVert. The Cavaliers are making a push at the trade deadline to trade for the Pacers’ wing, something that has been reported multiple places, most recently by Joe Vardon at The Athletic.
The Cavaliers are trying to acquire Caris LeVert from the Pacers ahead of next week’s deadline. For a little twist, Indiana is on its way to Cleveland today for a game tomorrow, @TheAthleticNBA
— Joe Vardon (@joevardon) February 5, 2022
LeVert is a shot creator averaging 18.7 points and 4.4 assists a game. He’s not an elite shooter but is a wing who fits the bill of what the Cavaliers want, plus LeVert is under contract for next season at $18.8 million.
The buzz has been Indiana wants a first-round pick and a young player for LeVert. Cleveland has all its first-round picks to put in a deal, the contract of Rubio to make the money work, and young players such as Cedi Osman, Isaac Okoro or Dylan Windler.
This is a trade mentioned a lot around the league because the Cavaliers have been aggressive on the trade market and this deal makes sense for both sides. While Indiana is also shopping its two bigs around, a LeVert trade — especially to Cleveland — is more likely.
