Cleveland Could Benefit From Trading LeBron James

By Mark Barnes
for HOOPSADDICT.com

Published: December 3, 2008

The headline would shock the sports world: “The Cleveland Cavaliers Trade Megastar LeBron James.”

Is it even imaginable?

Before saying that the notion of Cleveland shipping King James is incomprehensible, the issue merits some serious consideration, especially when you factor in the dilemma the Cavaliers face in two years, when James becomes an unrestricted free agent.

So why wouldn’t Cavs general manager Danny Ferry and the Cleveland fans just enjoy the ride for the remainder of this season and next? After all, the Cavs are off to the best start in team history and, with the addition of Mo Williams, Mike Brown’s club seems primed for a championship run.

Plus, James helps fill Quicken Loans arena when the Cavs are at home and the young phenom has become the face of the Cavaliers.

Life from a Cleveland basketball fan’s perspective couldn’t be better.

So, what could possibly motivate Ferry and the Cavs brass to give one iota of thought to trading LeBron James this year?

Remember the aforementioned note about James becoming a free agent in 2010? This is exactly why the right trade this season might not be such a horrible idea for Cleveland. James refuses to guarantee that he’ll stay when his contract expires, making a trade next season seem unlikely; NBA GMs aren’t going to give up the quality that James commands, when they know they can get him a year later, making a trade this year a better option. Plus, unlike previous years, the Cavaliers are scary good, even without LeBron.

Crazy? Maybe, but Cleveland’s bench typically outperforms its opponents, and suddenly, when James takes a seat, the Cavs are often increasing leads, rather than losing them. Sure, James’ statistics are sick, but it is feasible that Cleveland could still lose a seven-game playoff series to Boston or Detroit, then see LeBron leave in two years and get nothing in return – a nightmare for Ferry, Brown and every Cavaliers fan.

What if the Cavs and their fans could have their proverbial cake and eat it too? That is, get something in return for James and still win an NBA title this season. Not as unfathomable as you might believe. This Cleveland team is built for winning – even minus King James.

Williams and Delonte West comprise one of the league’s most efficient backcourts. They attack the basket, shoot from the perimeter and pressure opponents in the full-court.

The frontcourt rotation of Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Ben Wallace and Anderson Varejao is the perfect blend of rebounding, shot-blocking and defending in Brown’s complex team concept.

Throw in quick, sharpshooting guard Daniel “Boobie” Gibson and veteran swingman Wally Szczerbiak, who is having one of his best all-around seasons, and you have a solid playoff team, minus one piece – the talent brought in with a trade of LeBron James.

With numerous solid players having soon-to-expire contracts, there are several potential trades the Cavaliers could consider. Salary cap issues would have to be examined more carefully than they are in this space to look at all of them, so with this precursor in mind, consider the following trade possibility – LeBron James to Miami, where he can play alongside Dwayne Wade, in exchange for Shawn Marion and Michael Beasley. Cleveland loses its best player but gets an All-Star-caliber forward in Marion and a remarkable young talent in Beasley.

Of course, there are several problems with this deal on the Miami end, the biggest of which is that Wade is also heading for free agency in 2010, which potentially leaves Miami with nothing, if both stars leave. What an attraction Floridians would have until then, though, and Miami would have awesome trading power, if it could move either or both superstars.

As far as the Cavs and their fans are concerned, Marion could potentially step right into LeBron’s small forward spot. Of course, Marion is not King James; there will be fewer “Oh-no-he-didn’t” slam dunks and balls swatted emphatically into Row X at the Q.

Marion, though, is more than serviceable, sporting career numbers of 18 points and 10 rebounds per game. Plus, Marion is a solid defender, who averages nearly two steals and better than one block per game. Give him just 15 points a night, and Cleveland only has to make up 12 more to replace James’ nightly scoring, which it should be able to do with improved production from Williams, West and Ilgauskas and 6-10 points from Beasley, who is already averaging better than 13 in Miami. The rookie will have less pressure to make an immediate impact, so he can learn at a comfortable pace behind Wallace and Ilgauskas and be a force in limited but key minutes in the playoffs.

For a brief time, Cleveland might lose its swagger and the team might even suffer through a brief downward spiral. Give this new-look Cavaliers team 30 games prior to the playoffs, and Cleveland fans and NBA opponents might be surprised.

A blockbuster like this is unseemly to say the least, but it makes for great fodder for sports talk radio. And if Cleveland could get the championship it has craved for so long, losing James now would be much more palatable than losing him later.

2 Comments on "Cleveland Could Benefit From Trading LeBron James"

Michael Tiedemann on Wed, 3rd Dec 2008 2:23 pm

if the heat had james and wade on the same team, i could start at center and they’d still win.

Rashad Mobley on Wed, 3rd Dec 2008 4:41 pm

A unproven Beasley and an aging Marion wouldn’t be enough for a man who STILL isn’t in his prime..now I’d do Wade for LeBron straight up, but Wade would veto that trade so fast….

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Cleveland Could Benefit From Trading LeBron James

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