The Cleveland Cavaliers have a stacked roster.
They have some very good players and a deep rotation.
What they don’t have, however, is a legitimate superstar.
Evan Mobley is their safest bet to become one at some point, and he might be the only truly untouchable player on the roster.
That’s why Bleacher Report analyst Dan Favale believes that the Cavs could still look to dump some salary.
In his latest column, he argued that the team could downsize its hefty payroll:
“Cutting Salary,” Favale wrote. “Hovering around $20 million past the second apron suggests the Cleveland Cavaliers won’t be looking to slash operating costs. Salary-dumping grounds were sparse to begin the offseason and aren’t any easier to suss out now. Still, team governor Dan Gilbert could get pocket shy. Cleveland’s operating costs will hit nearly $400 million between salaries and tax payments. That’s a lofty enough bill to think about downsizing from one of its more expensive non-stars—or maybe even one of its stars.”
The front office has repeatedly talked about their commitment to this core, and they have claimed that they won’t get ‘pocket shy’ if that’s what it takes to win an NBA championship.
Then again, we’ve seen how quickly things can change in the league.
Even so, it doesn’t sound like the Cavs will do any big-time salary-dumping move at this point in the offseason.
If that were their intentions, they would’ve done it before the NBA Draft, as they didn’t even have a first-round pick and could’ve attempted to land one.
Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland’s trade value took a big hit after their no-shows in the playoffs, and much more after Garland’s injury news broke.
Simply put, there’s not much of an incentive to go that route at this point.
That could change if, say, LeBron James were to become available, as the Cavs could shed future salary on a trade to get James on a one-year rental.
Still, that also looks like a long shot.
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