NBA Trade Rumors 2015: Cleveland Cavaliers Shopping Brendan Haywood, First-Round Pick
The Cleveland Cavaliers have one of the deepest rosters in the league, but they are looking to get even deeper this offseason after losing to the Golden State Warriors in the 2015 NBA Finals.
According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Cavaliers are shopping seldom-used center Brendan Haywood along with their 24th overall pick in the upcoming draft for a player who can contribute big time for them next season.
Haywood played in just 22 regular-season games. The 35-year-old center averaged just 1.6 points and 1.3 rebounds, but his contract could attract teams looking to offload big contracts from their books.
Haywood is scheduled to earn $10.5 million next season, but his contract is not guaranteed if he's waived before Aug. 2. The contract is friendly to teams who are planning to make big moves in free agency.
The Cavaliers are reportedly shopping Haywood and their first-round pick for a future draft pick or a player, who can get some load off Kyrie Irving's shoulder next season. The Cavaliers are also open to adding another guard who can co-exist with Irving, who went down with a season-ending injury in the 2015 NBA Finals.
Backup point guard Matthew Dellavedova and starting shooting guard Iman Shumpert will become free agents next month. Shooting guard J.R. Smith also announced that he will opt out of the final year of his deal with the Cavaliers this summer.
It remains to be seen whether or not they will return to Cleveland next season, but Cavaliers general manager David Griffin made it no secret that they will look to re-sign or add more playmakers this summer.
"The one thing that we did see in Golden State, and it was something that was very difficult for us to deal with, is they have an incredibly versatile team of multiple facilitating playmakers," Griffin said when asked about possible moves this offseason. "That's something we're going to continue to work upon."
Sources also added that the Cavaliers could use Russian center Sasha Kaun as a trade chip. The 30-year-old, who was drafted in the second round of the 2008 Draft by the then-Seattle Supersonics before Cleveland acquired rights for him for cash consideration, played in the EuroLeague this season.
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