The pace at which things have moved for the Cleveland Cavaliers since LeBron James announced his return has been somewhat alarming – especially when you consider what it could mean to their future. LeBron arrived, they traded two top picks for Kevin Love, they spent a bunch of money on veteran players, and they attempted to reshape an entire team around James. Now LeBron is struggling and injured, Anderson Varejao is done for the year, Love has been inconsistent at best, the role players aren’t playing their role, and everything could be on the verge of falling apart.
One of the players that hasn’t been a fit from a chemistry perspective has been Dion Waiters. The arrogant shooting guard has a bigger perception of his game than what he actually delivers. He’s averaging a career-low 10.5 points per game with just 2.2 assists and 1.7 rebounds while shooing a mediocre 40.9 percent from the field. He’s had issues with Kyrie Irving in the past and a recent in-game issue with LeBron James might push the Cavs to start searching for a trade partner for Waiters again.
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Sacramento Kings
The Kings make sense as a potential trade partner since they are feel they can compete for a playoff spot and would be looking to add a pure scorer that can also help move the ball around. Sacramento already has two players that need their touches in DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay, but acquiring Waiters would provide another quality option to round out the scoring on the team.
The truth is that the Kings have some younger players that haven’t panned out at the position (we’re looking at you Ben McLemore) and a swap of guards could work out well for both sides. Waiters is more proven than McLemore while McLemore to Cleveland also makes sense. He doesn’t need the ball in his hands to be effective and could give the Cavs a three-point weapon.
Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets have made it known that they’re looking to shed salary and rebuild, so Waiters could be one of the pieces they eye to help their next generation. Waiters is an alpha personality who needs the spotlight and he would likely get that in Brooklyn where the team is lacking in the back court.
On the other hand, the Nets would be able to dump some of their high-priced players, namely Joe Johnson. Johnson is a savvy veteran and, while he’s past his prime, he’s still scoring 16.5 points per game this season with 4.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists. He could step into the starting lineup with Irving and James, and be the quiet third man (or fourth, if you’re counting Love). He has some valuable experience that the Cavs are lacking and even though he’d be expensive, he’d be a welcome addition.
At the end of the day, the Nets just need to get younger and more athletic, while shaving some payroll. A swap involving Waiters and Johnson would work.
Philadelphia 76ers
Waiters reportedly “wants out” of Cleveland and a source close to him has said he “prefers to go to Philly because he thinks he’d be the best player on the team. That’s his mindset”. Leaving the debate as to whether or not Waiters would be the best player on the 76ers for a moment, all that’s relevant for the Cavs is they get better and dump a disgruntled player. Waiters is an excellent pure shooter and both he and Michael Carter-Williams could benefit from being paired up together. The only question is what do the 76ers have that the Cavaliers want. It doesn’t appear they have any talent that can help the team right away.
Philadelphia has been linked to Waiters for some time now and while they have done an excellent job of building up a talented young team, they could definitely still use a veteran scorer with a bit of moxie.
