The Cleveland Cavaliers have been a menacing presence in the Eastern Conference over the last few years.
They consistently put together incredible regular seasons, winning 64, 48, and 51 games over the last three years.
Despite this, they’ve yet to crack the Conference Finals since the days of LeBron James.
They have one of the best young cores in all of basketball, featuring All-Stars Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen.
But once again, there seems to be a limit on what this current iteration of the Cavs can achieve.
Maybe the nucleus has hit its ceiling, and Cleveland won’t break through until a change is made in the lineup.
‘Realistic’ Cavaliers Trade Target
Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey recently gave on “realistic” and “dream” trade targets for each NBA team.
For the Cleveland Cavaliers, he has Memphis Grizzlies forward Santi Aldama as a reasonable trade option.
“The Cleveland Cavaliers don’t really need to make a trade, but if they do, it seems like it would be to either break up the Donovan Mitchell-Darius Garland pairing or the Evan Mobley-Jarrett Allen one,” wrote Bailey.
“The latter feels likelier, and if Allen were moved, it would make sense to bring in a forward who’d bump Mobley to the 5. Cleveland already had a juggernaut-like offense in 2024-25, but Aldama’s perimeter skills could make it even more dangerous.”
In this trade scenario, the Cavs would swap Allen out for the six-foot-eleven Aldama, who would be a downgrade defensively but provide an uptick in offensive output.
Mobley would slide down as the more traditional center, while the former Grizzlies first-rounder establishes himself at power forward.
His three-point shooting has steadily improved since coming into the league, bringing his percentage up to a career high 37% in 2024-25.
Swapping out Allen for Aldama provides a major boost offensively, creating spacing nightmares for opposing defenses.
It would certainly be a reasonable trade for Cleveland to make, considering the duo of Allen and Mobley has likely run its course.
‘Dream’ Cavaliers Trade Target
When it comes to the perfect trade target for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Bailey has Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner listed.
“Moving Garland would be pretty surprising, but his game and the fact that his salary is almost doubles Allen’s could open the door to some pretty interesting returns. Would the Orlando Magic think Garland, with his outside shooting and playmaking, is a better fit with Paolo Banchero?” Continued Bailey.
“For Cleveland, moving Mitchell to the 1 and starting him with Wagner, Mobley and Allen, would certainly improve the defense. This would be a high-risk, high-reward type swap for both teams.”
While the Cavs would be parting with their young All-Star point guard, the addition of Wagner to Cleveland’s roster would create an insane size advantage.
Outside of Mitchell, De’Andre Hunter would be the shortest player in the Cavaliers’ starting lineup at six-foot-seven.
Not only would their size and length be too much for teams to handle defensively, but their offense would create mismatches all over the floor.
A starting lineup of Mitchell, Hunter, Wagner, Mobley, and Allen would certainly strike fear in the rest of the Eastern Conference.
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