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The deadline for NBA trades is only at the end of March, but the Cleveland Cavaliers have already made a successful trade. The Brooklyn Nets acquired superstar James Harden from the Houston Rockets (without giving up Kyrie Irving) as part of a huge four-team deal that included the Cavs as facilitators. Cleveland has landed center Jarrett Allen, 22, and veteran winger Taurean Prince, in a move that changes the franchise’s long-term outlook.
Here are the full terms of trade from what we know so far:
BKN receives: SG James Harden
HOU receives: SG Victor Oladipo, SG Dante Exum, SF Rodions Kurucs, 2022, 2024, 2026 First-round pick BKN, first-round pick 22 MIL, 2021, 2023, 2025, 2027 Swap of first-round pick BKN, future second-round pick
IND receives: SG Caris LeVert, future choice of second round
CLE receives: C Jarrett Allen, SF Prince Taurus
For the Cavs, they drop Dante Exum, the Bucks’ first-round pick in 2022, and a future second-round to land Jarrett Allen and Taurean Prince. Yogi Ferrell and Thon Maker would be canceled to make room for new additions.
For a while, it looked like this Milwaukee’s first-round pick could be worth decent value, but once Giannis Antetekounmpo signed his extension, that hope went out the window. The pick will almost certainly be at the end of the first round, and while that’s always an asset, the chances of the selected player with that pick being as good as Allen are very slim.
Now to the players. Prince was the 12th overall pick in 2016 and spent his first three seasons with the Atlanta Hawks before being traded to Brooklyn. He’s in the first year of a two-year, $ 25.5 million contract. Prince is 6-foot-7, 218 pounds and although he doesn’t provide much defensively, he’s a solid scorer who should be able to succeed in a deep role with the Cavs. His $ 13 million salary next season could be traded if the Cavaliers wish to continue the cycle of accepting bad contracts for assets. Prince was included in this deal in order to make his salary work, but he is far from a bad player. Maybe head coach JB Bickerstaff will be able to defend him.
The centerpiece of this deal (at least for Cleveland) is Allen, who turns 23 in April. He’s in his fourth NBA season after being 22nd overall in 2017. At 6ft 11in, 243lb, he’s a tall stature for a tall man, and his afro hairstyle is impossible to forget. Allen is an excellent rim protector and has the potential to become perhaps the best defensive center in the NBA, not because of his rim protection ability, but because of his quick feet and elite length ( wingspan of 7 feet 6 inches). He has no problem switching to smaller players on the perimeter, and more than holding his own there.
Andre Drummond is a great defenseman on the inside and has the best defensive rating in the league so far this season, but he’s struggling to defend himself outside of the paint. Allen doesn’t have that limitation, and that’s why this trade is such a massive win for the Cavs. Drummond is 28 and will likely be traded before this year’s deadline, as his expiring salary of $ 28 million will be very appealing to teams in Hell. Drummond has obviously played a huge role with the Cavs this season, but he’s never been a long-term actor. Allen is, and it’s a wonder it costs so little.
Allen has never averaged more than 26.7 minutes per game, which is why his numbers aren’t so impressive: In 12 games this season, he’s amassed 11.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1, 7 assists and 1.6 blocks while committing only 1.8 faults. . He shoots 68% from the field (over 20 percentage points more than Drummond) and 75% from the free throw line. Allen also sits 14th in the defensive standings, a number that is expected to skyrocket once he starts playing for the NBA’s top defensive team.
Once Drummond is out of the question, whether it happens on the trade deadline or after the season, Allen will finally be a full-time starter with the Cavs for the first time in his NBA career and based on his averages by 36 is something to look forward to.
Allen by 36 minutes in 2020-2021: 15.1 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2.1 blocks
What Allen isn’t offering at the moment is refined offensive play or ground spacing. He almost looks like a significantly better version of Tristan Thompson, but with the potential to develop his scoring ability. Allen will be a restricted free agent next season, and extension talks between his side and the team will likely begin immediately.
It’s unclear how much he’ll ask for, as he doesn’t have the pure stats to match other young players who are well paid.
Final grade: A ++
There’s a very real chance that Allen’s long-term contract with the Cavs was even more of a good deal than what the team gave up to get him, and that was a road steal.
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