While the Cleveland Cavaliers are apparently following the wishes of point guard Kyrie Irving to try and trade him to another team, there’s also some effort being put into trying to work out the issues that had caused Irving’s dissatisfaction in the first place. That’s because trying to obtain equal value for a player who’s among the very best at his position might be next to impossible, especially with training camp set to begin in less than two months.
Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report looked at the situation, with one unnamed member of the organization noting Irving’s ability as a key reason for looking at alternatives to making a deal.
“What Kyrie does is a perfect fit for us. That’s why we want to smooth this out if we can,” said a team source.
Another anonymous member of the Cavs front office noted that Irving’s frustration with his treatment by both LeBron James and the organization itself that sparked the trade request seemingly came out of nowhere. The hope is that Irving’s action was just impulsive behavior that can be smoothed out in further talks.
“He’s an emotional kid,” says one team source.
Yet the potential for conflict that could end up destroying team chemistry is one reason why finding a quality trading partner or partners in any Irving deal is imperative. Magnifying the issue is the fact that whoever the Cavaliers receive in the deal has to be able to produce at a similar level and establish a working relationship with James. Failure to do both could lay the groundwork for James’ departure in free agency next July, which means that team owner Dan Gilbert is under added pressure.
“You can be sure Dan wants to win the press conference with whatever trade he makes,” said a former member of the organization. “Dan always wants to win the press conference.”
That’s become even more important after Gilbert criticized the Indiana Pacers for what he felt was their failure in not getting full value for Paul George when they dealt him to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Right now, the favorite in any such deal is one that would be made with the Phoenix Suns with Eric Bledsoe serving as a key component.
“At the end of the day, that’s what I think happens,” the source says.
Irving offered the Cavs a list of four teams as trade destinations. However, since he has three years left on his contract, he has no influence on where he actually ends up.
