Cavaliers have assets for sale as NBA trade deadline nears

Don’t judge the talent of the Cavaliers simply by them being 13th in the NBA East because, according to the rumor mill, there is no shortage of teams wanting to pluck from general manager Koby Altman’s roster before the March 25 trade deadline. Center Jarrett Allen and guard Collin Sexton are as close to untouchable as players on a 14-22 team can get. Guard Darius Garland and rookie forward Isaac Okoro are also core players in the rebuilding project that began when LeBron James left Cleveland after the 2017-18 season.

Larry Nance Jr. is part of that core, too, but teams are calling Altman to find out what it would cost to get Nance in a trade, according to multiple reports. The 76ers, Celtics, Pelicans, Mavericks and Heat have shown interest in Nance, according to Cleveland.com.

Nance can make a playoff contender better instantly. He plays hard, he listens to his coaches, he is unselfish and his teammates love playing with him.

Plus, he has a teamfriendly contract. He is making roughly 11.7 million this season. His salary goes down by about $1 million a year each of the next two seasons before he becomes a free agent in the summer of 2023. Nance’s contract and talent makes him doubly attractive to teams.

Kevin Love is also mentioned in trade rumors. He has been linked to the Dallas Mavericks. But while Nance’s contract is teamfriendly, Love’s contract is the opposite. He is making $31.2 million this season and next. He is under contract for $28.9 million in 2022-23.

Taking on Love’s contract is only part of the risk in trading for him. His injury history is long — very long. He has played two games this season

and has been out since Dec. 27 with a strained calf that was supposed to heal in four weeks.

Nance is recovering from surgery to repair a fractured finger and should be ready to go when the season resumes March 12 with a road game in New Orleans. Nance on March 3 worked out on the court before the Cavs played the Pacers in the final game of the first half. The brace on his left hand is gone. He dunked with each hand and did not seem bothered by the injury.

Love worked out before previous games, but he did not join Nance before the game with Indiana. He could be back soon, but there is no firm timetable for his return.

Andre Drummond, the rebounding machine, hasn’t played since Feb. 12. He dressed but did not play in two games and has been listed as inactive the last seven games while Altman tries to trade him.

The Knicks, Bulls, Raptors and Heat have been linked to Drummond. Brooklyn was in the running for Drummond, but the Nets signed Blake Griffin, so that destination seems unlikely even if the Cavs end up buying out Drummond instead of trading him.

Cavaliers forwards Cedi Osman and Taurean Prince are the subjects of trade rumors, too. Each would generate scoring for a team that wants to get deeper. Javale McGree would provide depth to a team that needs a backup center.

Altman has proven in his time as general manager that he will be bold if he believes a trade can help the Cavaliers. Of all the rumors, trading Nance seems the most unlikely.

The Cavs are 2.5 games behind 10th-place Indiana and three games behind seventh place Toronto. Instead of the normal eight teams making the playoffs

this year, the teams that finish ninth and 10th have a chance to play their way into the postseason.

Nance returning to the lineup could push the Cavaliers into playoff contention with 36 games remaining. But is the potential of squeezing into the 2021 playoffs worth standing pat if Altman can make a trade that will make the Cavs better in a year or two, even if it weakens them for the remainder of this season?

A one-and-done would show tremendous progress from last year, when the Cavs finished last in the East at 19-46, but Altman will be thinking of bigger prizes as the trade deadline draws closer and his phone starts ringing more frequently. He will surely be a busy man over the next 15 days.