The Cleveland Cavaliers need to figure out a way to bounce back from this season’s heartbreaking playoff loss.
Some believe they will finally consider breaking up their core and build around Evan Mobley and Donovan Mitchell.
Others don’t see that happening, primarily because they will likely struggle to find equal value in return.
If that’s the case, their best shot at contention will be to get better around the edges, moving some pieces around to get better role players.
With that in mind, team insider Chris Fedor revealed that the team had some internal discussions about potentially moving on from Dean Wade, as it would clear some money they need to re-sign Sam Merrill and Ty Jerome:
“From everything that I’ve heard, the Cavs have had discussions about Dean Wade. Do they want to see if they can use him and something else to see if they can get assets back, different kinds of assets back, or different kinds of players back in return? I think they’re trying to figure out what is possible for us. If we move off Dean Wade’s money, does that make it easier to justify a Ty Jerome contract? Does that make it easier to justify a Sam Merrill contract?” Fedor explained.
The Cavs can’t afford to lose Jerome.
While he didn’t play well in the playoffs, he was their most important player off the bench last season, and he won them a couple of games when he was asked to fill in as a starter.
Wade is one of their best defensive players, mostly because he’s big enough to hold his ground against both forward spots.
Nevertheless, he’s also had plenty of injury issues during his career, thus making him the odd man out and a potential bargaining chip.
As for Merrill, he’s not the defender Wade is, but he’s taken a big step forward in that regard, not to mention his sharpshooting skills.
It won’t be easy, but the Cavs need to figure out what to do to get to the next level next season.
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