As the February trade deadline quickly approaches, much of the attention has been on the Cleveland Cavaliers. After losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder 148-124, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported the Cavaliers had a team meeting to question Kevin Love’s illness, which forced him to only play three minutes and miss practice.
With the Cavaliers losing six out of their last eight games, they are looking to improve their roster. Wojnarowski has now provided an update on trade discussions with the Sacramento Kings involving George Hill:
For the Cavaliers, they have the oldest roster (30.1) and second-worst defensive rating (109.8) in the league. While Hill has been productive throughout his career, he is 31 years old and is not the same player he once was. In 38 appearances with the Kings, he is averaging 10.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 27.0 minutes.
Although the Cavaliers would not be giving up much for Hill, the question is if this trade truly makes them better against the Golden State Warriors. In addition to Hill, Cleveland has been linked with DeAndre Jordan and Lou Williams, but there are conflicting reports about their desire to trade the Brooklyn Nets 2018 first round draft pick.
It is well-documented the short- and long-term impact of trading the Nets first round draft pick. As it is one of the most valuable assets general manager Koby Altman and company have, it will be interesting to see what they ultimately do. Their decisions leading up to the trade deadline will not only impact their pursuit of a fourth consecutive NBA Finals appearance, but perhaps LeBron James’ upcoming free agency.