Kyrie Irving in a Boston Celtics jersey might be jarring to NBA fans for a long time. But could you imagine Irving in a Golden State Warriors jersey? It turns out that very idea was floated by Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman.
An article published Wednesday on The Undefeated indicates that Altman was clearly interested in securing the future of the franchise with this trade. That meant trying to get a mix of future prospects and talent that’s good enough to win now, which could entice LeBron James into staying past the final year of his contract.
One move the Cavaliers GM apparently made was to call up the rival Golden State Warriors to see if Klay Thompson is available.
Altman was extremely focused on the future in making this trade, a source said. This trade may give James much more faith in Altman as a general manager. It would be hard to believe that Altman could have landed a better trade than the Boston one. He did call the uninterested Warriors about Klay Thompson, a source said.
I can’t imagine how that phone call went down, but it’s not a completely insane move to consider. Thompson is one of the few key pieces on the Warriors to get a massive payday, though he’s said in the past he’s more than willing to wait his turn like Steph Curry did until this summer.
The willingness to take less to win together has been a key selling point for the Warriors, but Altman was smart in trying to pick off what’s likely the most vulnerable asset on Golden State. Thompson playing with James would have been super interesting to watch, and he might have been a long-term key to the Cavaliers puzzle if LeBron were to walk and the Cavs had to retool.
Instead, it’s a funny footnote on the latest trade to rock the NBA in this wild offseason.
