NBA News NBA News, Match Reports and Updates
Cleveland Cavaliers President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman delivered his requisite end-of-season interview with the media a few days ago, several weeks earlier than he probably would have liked. His answers made it seem like the team will be running it back, indicating that this group has another attainable gear to hit.
Altman is standing behind head coach Kenny Atkinson, praising James Harden for assimilating as well as he could, and noting how great the front court is, and will be, next year. He also heaped praise on Evan Mobley during his press conference in a way that makes it sound like the team is very unwilling to part with him.
Advertisement
“All Evan has done is impact winning,” Altman said. “He’s been remarkable for us in terms of our ascent the last five years. He’s a huge part of what we do.”
All signs point to a team that will look very similar come October. But the uncomfortable truth is that the only way for the Cavs to meaningfully upgrade this offseason is to trade Evan Mobley.
While a run to the conference finals is no small feat, the Cavs got there in a way that feels much worse than reality. They ended up losing more games than they won in the playoffs with a record of 8-10, failed to close out several winnable games against inferior teams, and then were beaten down in historical fashion to conclude their campaign. Had the Cavs, say, swept Toronto, dispatched of Detroit in six games, and then lost to New York in a hard-fought series, the discussion would be different. As it stands, this team is not as close to the NBA Finals as the front office thinks.
The team already dove headfirst into the deep end of the pool with the trade of Darius Garland, and that was met with raised eyebrows. Moving on from Mobley would be even more daring, but also much more rewarding. He would fetch a hefty package in return, but it would have to be for a player who is better right this very second. The Cavs cannot trade him for a few decent players and draft capital to make up the difference. The tightrope they are walking is championship or bust.
Advertisement
Someone like Giannis Antetokounmpo…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/trading-evan-mobley-cavs-best-120000579.html
Author :
Publish date : 2026-06-08 12:00:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
