The Cleveland Cavaliers somehow found a way to shed salary and improve the team at the same time prior to the trade deadline. They were able to trade the oft-injured Darius Garland to the Los Angeles Clippers for James Harden, ship Lonzo Ball to the Utah Jazz in a salary dump, and bring in Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis from the moribund Sacramento Kings in exchange for the underperforming De’Andre Hunter.
That final trade, in particular, was such a masterful stroke of genius from the Cavs front office. Schroder has come in to bring the toughness and energy that Ball was supposed to bring, while Ellis has become an invaluable part of the team’s defensive core — much to the delight of head coach Kenny Atkinson.
Atkinson, in fact, wasn’t too convinced at first that Ellis would be a huge addition for the Cavs. But working with him firsthand has changed his mind completely.
“He’s maybe the most unique player I’ve ever [seen.] I didn’t have a great body of knowledge on him. Our front office, especially Jon Nichols, was convincing me that this guy was really good. Really, really good,” Atkinson said, via @dillybar2145__ on X. “I watch a little film & I didn’t really see it.”
“[But he’s] totally not what I thought. Unique, unique player. Sometimes he gets a deflection & you don’t even see how it happened. His hands are so fast. … Really a game changer.”
The Cavs benefit from Kings’ neglect of Keon Ellis
David Richard-Imagn Images
Ellis has become quite the divisive player. He’s a deflections machine who can get his hands on anything and everything, but there seems to be a disconnect between him and coaches; Atkinson’s misgivings and Kings head coach Doug Christie’s choice to not play him in a featured role were telling.
But Ellis is a bundle of energy on defense, and he can hit shots from deep — sometimes even in bunches. He doesn’t do too much on offense, however, which may be why he hasn’t broken out in a big role yet. Nonetheless, he’s a winning player, and he’s showing out in Cleveland.