Adrian Wojnarowski dropped an interesting nugget on Tuesday morning in a story about how the Cavaliers are approaching a potential Kyrie Irving trade. Basically, Cleveland has shifted their focus from veteran help to getting back a young superstar in exchange for Irving, partly because they’re worried about LeBron James leaving in free agency once next summer rolls around.
Considering where Irving reportedly wants to be traded and the assets those teams all possess, you can make the argument that the return the Cavaliers would enjoy the most is Knicks big man Kristaps Porzingis. And as it turns out, there’s a chance that could happen if Cleveland would be willing to take on the contract of Joakim Noah. According to Wojnarowski, that caveat is the reason why this deal is a “nonstarter” so far.
This Irving trade process has been deliberate, and teams believe that the Cavaliers expect more aggressive conversations in September, closer to the start of training camps. Porzingis has emerged as a primary Cleveland target, but that’s a conversation that can occur only with Cleveland’s willingness to unburden the Knicks of the three years and $55 million left on Joakim Noah’s contract. For now, the conversation is a nonstarter for the Knicks, league sources said.
So let’s assume the Cavaliers decide to take on Noah’s contract, the Knicks are on board with building around Irving — who is from New Jersey and would like to play for New York — and this trade ends up happening. This would be the rare deal where neither side wins nor loses, because it would have a ton of pros and cons for both teams.
Cleveland would get a legitimate star back for Irving in Porzingis, but having to deal with Noah’s contract — especially when it already has a ton of money tied up in a big man with a limited offensive game for the next three years in Tristan Thompson — is rough. As for New York, sure, they get out from Noah’s deal, but is it worth moving Porzingis for Irving, especially because Irving could hit free agency after the 2018-19 season.
Basically, it would be one of those rare deals that features two teams swinging for the fences. Now all we need is for this rumor to be true and for the Cavaliers to be willing to take on Noah’s contract and maybe we’ll be onto something.
(Via ESPN)
