The trade deadline for the 2023-24 NBA season is less than a week away, leaving teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers with a limited amount of time to make some splashes.
The Atlanta Hawks may be a team worth keeping an eye on for Cavs fans, as Bogdan Bogdanovic and Saddiq Bey are now being linked to Cleveland.
“Sources have told Right Down Euclid for a while now that Royce O’Neale is a player the Cavaliers have had on their radar and could be had for a matching salary and draft compensation,” wrote Cavs insider Evan Dammarell. “Similar sources have shared that Atlanta forwards Bogdan Bogdanovic and Saddiq Bey are also worth watching for Cleveland.”
Bogdanovic, 31, is in his fourth season with the Hawks. Any Cavs trade for the veteran would give the squad a long-term piece, as he’s under contract through the 2025-26 season and has a club option on his deal for the 2026-27 season.
Meanwhile, Bey, just 24, is set to become a restricted free agent this coming offseason. He was a first-round pick just a few years back in the 2020 NBA Draft.
Bogdanovic is averaging 17.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game this season while shooting 43.1 percent from the field and 37.1 percent from beyond the arc. He has primarily been used off the bench, starting just six times in 45 appearances this season.
As for Bey, 35 of his 47 appearances have been starts. He’s averaging 13.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game this season while shooting 41.7 percent from the field and 30.7 percent from deep.
If the Cavs are high on Bogdanovic, he could be an appealing target given the amount of club control that still remains on his deal. He could become a key part of Cleveland’s core moving forward if he were to land with the squad.
Bey could be a solid target in his own right, with his age being one promising factor. Although Bey’s deal doesn’t have the sort of club control that Bogdanovic’s does, the Cavs could try to lock the youngster down and turn him into a project. His best years may still be ahead of him.
Cleveland is currently the No. 4 team in the Eastern Conference with a 30-16 record. The Cavs have shown some major signs of life lately and are hoping to make a deep playoff run after their 2022-23 season didn’t end as they hoped it would.
