The Cleveland Cavaliers have made a major splash, as the team is reportedly acquiring big man Lauri Markkanen in a three-team sign-and-trade deal.
The Cavs are shipping away Larry Nance Jr. in the deal.
Cleveland is acquiring Chicago restricted free agent F Lauri Markkanen on a four-year, $67M deal in a sign-and-trade, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 27, 2021
Bulls: Derrick Jones Jr., Portland protected first-rounder, Denver protected 2023 second-rounder
Cavaliers: Lauri Markkanen
Trail Blazers: Larry Nance Jr. https://t.co/slpHsB08cm
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 27, 2021
Nance is a notable loss, but his departure doesn’t come as a total surprise.
Markkanen is an interesting player. He’s a 7-footer, but he doesn’t always utilize his size to the best of his ability. Instead, he adds value from the perimeter.
In the 2020-21 season, he averaged 13.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. He made 48.0 percent of his shots from the field and 40.2 percent of his shots from beyond the arc.
He has four years of NBA experience under his belt.
It looks like the 24-year-old will be spending the foreseeable future with the Cavs. He will slide in alongside an extremely exciting young core for Cleveland.
