Would Jimmy Butler's business make sense to the Cleveland Cavaliers?

CLEVELAND, Ohio – In 2014, the Cleveland Cavaliers traded extensively with the Minnesota Timberwolves for an unhappy All-Star and a future free agent.

Could the story be repeated?

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Cavaliers are one of many teams to continue trading for Jimmy Butler.

Like Love 2014, this type of displacement would pose a huge risk. In 2014, the presence of LeBron James minimized the danger. With the Cavaliers in championship mode, the addition to Love would make it one of the favorites. In addition, the chances that Love left the best team in the East in free agency were unlikely.

The Cavs took advantage of the opportunity to crown off a season that saw the future GM David Griffin form the new super-team of the league and make it to the finals. Shortly after, Love signed again with the Cavs.

Flash forward to now.

Things are very different. The Cavaliers try to bounce back after James' departure. They spent this summer debating the best direction, finally deciding to grant Love a four-year extension and adding some upward pieces to help them in their fight for one of the last places. playoffs. Staying competitive during a rebuild is a difficult task. But the Cavs are determined.

There is no doubt that Butler would help.

He is four times star and one of the best two-way players in the league. Butler averaged 22.2 points, 4.9 assists and 5.3 rebounds in 59 games for the Timberwolves, who were eliminated in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, leading to Butler's frustration.

The stars, even those of the last year of the contract, are hard to find, which explains the plethora of teams that burn Minnesota phone lines.

But is it really worth it for the Cavaliers?

They are not on his destination list. He did not want to be distributed to the Cavs last season. It is said that he wants a bigger market. And the Cavs would still be under at least three teams (Boston, Philadelphia and Toronto) in the conference hierarchy. None of these realities bode well for Cleveland's chances of signing Butler again in the summer of 2019.

Although Butler really wants the full $ 190 million contract over five years, perhaps he will sign with any team in place that will complete a deal in the coming days. Negotiating for Butler means not only separating from assets, but also financially engaging, losing financial flexibility and having a contract that may prove unfortunate in the future.

Some of the interested teams have the space to sign Butler again and try to attract one of the free agents of Class 2019. Unless General Manager Koby Altman does some magic, the Cavs will not be able to not go swimming in this pool.

Butler's contract itself would probably not be a problem for the owner Dan Gilbert, who showed his propensity to penetrate the luxury team. And the Cavs already have a star on the list so maybe it would not be embarrassing not to recruit another one.

So now the question becomes expensive.

Most likely, wolves can not get the same kind of value they gave up for Butler's off-season. Yet all the chatter between Cleveland and Minnesota would probably start with Collin Sexton, Cedi Osman or Larry Nance Jr. – three players considered part of Cleveland's new core. The picks would also be interesting for the Timberwolves, but the first round of the 2019 Cavs is reserved for Atlanta, unless it is a top-10 pick.

Ending an agreement would also mean that the Cavs are throwing a high-priced player to make the same pay. If the Cavaliers are ready to take Gorgui Dieng and his albatross for a contract, holding $ 48.5 million over the next three seasons, one or two more players should be included. Love can not be used in a business until January 23rd. JR Smith has limited appeal (the best thing about it is its partial guarantee for 2019) and Tristan Thompson is not very attractive either. Would the wolves be content with Kyle Korver or George Hill?

If the Cavs denounce Sexton as the centerpiece, and saw how delighted they were to have it in the night, that would probably be their answer, so they probably will not stay competitive in the Butler contest.

Of course, it's easy to see why the Cavs would be interested. But embarking on a potential bidding war and giving up multiple assets, for which the Cavs have no surplus for an uncontrollable star, is too risky.

The same two teams would be involved. Only this situation is not the same as in 2014.