3 Reasons Why The Cavaliers Just Got Too Good For The NBA…

3 Reasons Why The Cavaliers Just Got Too Good For The NBA…

the Cleveland Cavaliers just pulled off an absolute heist in a simple one forone trade They managed to acquire Lonzo Bull in exchange for Isaac Aoro No extra picks no future assets just a straightup swap And when you really look at that deal it’s really shocking Lonzo joins a Cav’s team that came up short in the second round last playoffs and his arrival is going to seriously elevate them in three major areas as they aim to dominate what’s shaping up to be a very vulnerable Eastern Conference But before we dive into these three key areas let’s just take a moment to look at the trade This in my opinion is straight up highway robbery plain and simple And we’ve seen this kind of a move from Chicago before Just last season they gave away Alex Caruso without even getting a first round pick in return This time though it somehow feels even worse That Caruso for Josh Giddy trade made some sense because of the upside And personally I actually still kind of like the move from Chicago given how Giddy’s scoring and shooting showed real improvement last season And he clearly still has a ton of potential But swapping Lonzo Ball for Isaac Aoro now you’ve gone too far Don’t get me wrong Aoro is a great defensive player but so is Lonzo and Lonzo brings so much more to the table From Chicago’s perspective I’d give this trade a generous D And for Cleveland it’s a solid A Now when it comes to Lonzo’s fit on the Cavs let’s start with the first major area that he really gives them a boost in and that’s the defensive side of the ball Even coming off a serious knee injury Lonzo didn’t skip a beat His defensive instincts and decision-making skills are still elite There’s a play where he perfectly closes out on Emanuel quickly and just as quickly tries to turn the corner over a screen Lonzo reads the movement of where he is going to place the ball and is able to snatch it right out of his hands His help defense is equally as impressive Take this clip against James Harden who thinks he’s got him beat for an open pass after drawing help only for Lonzo to jump into the lane and steal it clean He doesn’t take plays off either Against Kawhi Leonard Lonzo waits for him to relax in the post and then sneaks up behind him to pick his pocket His IQ is off the charts here He’s on the opposite side of the ball guarding Alec Burks but still he’s able to read the play and intercepts a kickout pass intended for Bam Adabio That isn’t normal Even when he’s trailing a play he’s still able to poke the ball free from behind like he does here against Jamal Murray And it’s not just about getting stops He turns defense into offense Like here where he catches GP2 sleeping on a lazy pass to Wiggins and is able to make the intercept where he then creates an easy bucket for Patrick Williams These are veteran highlevel plays the kinds of plays that never show up in the stat sheet but will definitely win you games in the postseason And that’s exactly the role I see him thriving on with this Cavs team I think the way Alex Caruso was able to impact the Thunder on their recent title run is very similar to what I believe Ball can do for this team Caruso came off the bench brought the energy set the tone defensively and just continued to make winning play after winning play Lonzo I believe can be that same guy in Cleveland He’ll be the Cavs super sub the glue guy who settles things down flies around defensively and makes sure everybody is locked in For a young team with big aspirations having a guy like that around is just invaluable But the defensive side of the ball is only one part of the story when it comes to how Lonzo Bull can truly impact this Cavaliers team Because the second and maybe the more exciting piece is what he brings to the offensive end Earlier in his career Lonzo’s offense wasn’t exactly a strong suit His jump shot was often a talking point and not in a good way But that narrative started to shift in a big way leading up to the 2022 season That season before the knee injury which would sideline him for what felt like forever he finally looked confident with the ball in his hands especially with his jumper He shot a blistering 42% from three in that year And the mechanics look so much better with the ball more in front of his face than off to the side A huge leap from where his career began Fast forward to last season and yeah his three-point percentage did dip to 34% but context is so important He was coming off a 2 and 1/2 year layoff had no real off season to get his legs under him and he was managing a wrist issue that disrupted even the 35 games he was able to play So when you look at these numbers I’m not discouraged at all If anything they reinforce how much room for improvement there still is once he has a healthy summer to train and build himself back up properly If Lonzo can stay healthy fingers crossed I genuinely believe he can return to being a near 40% three-point shooter And for a Cavs team that’s often lacked consistent spacing off the bench that is another massive boost The proof is in his progression He’s always been a player who’s been able to tweak and improve year after year from 30% from deep in his rookie season to 33% then two straight years of around 37% and then that jumped to 42% in 2022 was not a fluke It was a result of consistent work smart adjustments and confidence boosters So yeah the three-point shooting is a big part of what makes him so valuable But it’s not just about knocking down shots It’s also about how he plays the game Lonzo brings that same calm calculated veteran feel on offense that he does on defense Now some might look at the Cavsg guard rotation and wonder how he is really going to fit in considering they already have Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garlin handling the bulk of the playmaking But that’s where nuance comes in Many assume Lonzo’s value will lie in giving them solid backup point guard minutes when neither Mitchell or Garland is on the floor But the truth is that situation hardly ever happens Much like how the Cavaliers also rotate their bigs always keeping either Moy or Al on the floor at all times they tend to do the same thing with Mitchell and Garland So Lonzo’s real value isn’t going to come in maybe 3 minutes a game where neither of them are on the floor Instead it’s during the Donovan Mitchell only minutes especially in the postseason where he’s going to truly shine We’ve seen this before Go back to Mitchell’s time in Utah and it’s the same issue that cropped up in Cleveland’s last postseason When it’s his show alone the ball stops moving Now that’s not necessarily a knock on Donovan Mitchell He is a top tier scorer and has proven he can take over games but when every possession turns into a one-man show the rest of the offense around him can really stall That happened far too often against Indiana in round two Even when Garland was clearly playing at less than 100% due to the toe injury his presence still reintroduced the ball movement and the team looked so much better for it especially in that pivotal game three win That is where Lonzo’s going to step in When Garland sits Lonzo becomes the stabilizer the guy who’s going to keep the ball moving will keep the offense humming and ensures Mitchell doesn’t have to do absolutely everything by himself And the best part Lonzo doesn’t need the ball to be effective either That shooting that we talked about earlier it also allows him to space the floor and play off the ball when Mitchell is going into full spider mode That blend the ability to run the offense and play off of it is really rare and it’s what makes Lonzo such a seamless fit with basically any team He plays like a seasoned vet always under control always making the right reads and yet he’s only 27 years of age heading into just his seventh NBA season And finally the third major area that Lonzo Bull can really help this Cavaliers team and one that might be really flying under the radar has everything to do with his contract After spending two full years on the sidelines with the Bulls Lonzo finally made his return to the court last season And not long after that the Bulls quietly signed him to an extension Now because of all those injury concerns this deal didn’t come close to matching the value of his last deal Back in 2021 Lonzo signed a 4-year $80 million deal as a part of a sign and trade from New Orleans to Chicago which paid him over $21 million last season alone But now this new extension will pay him just 10 million next season and with a team option the season after that for the same number Just 10 million that’s going to carry through all the way till 2027 That’s two full seasons of incredibly value production for an absolute bargain Especially considering what Lonzo’s able to give you on both sides of the ball And what really adds to the shot value here is that Isaac Aoro the player Cleveland gave up in this trade will actually be making more money than Lonzo Ball over the next 2 years Aoro is set to earn 11 million next year and then nearly 12 million the year after So not only did the Cavaliers land the better player they also somehow landed the cheaper player as well No draft picks were included no sweetness just a clean swap And the more you sit with that the more staggering it becomes Honestly it might have been one of the more lopsided deals we’ve seen in recent memory And that’s saying something because Dallas pulled off a pretty massive move last season that nearly completely derailed their whole franchise but managed to miraculously recover I can’t even imagine what Chicago’s front office was thinking here And I bet Cleveland’s GM had to stay stonefaced over the phone just to keep them from having second thoughts because of how bad this deal was Now sure Lonzo’s injury history is a major concern Everyone knows that But it’s not like Aoro has been the perfect outline of health either He played just 55 games last season and 69 the year before that So it’s not as though the Cavs were giving up some iron man who never misses a game Also this deal signals to what should be the end of the road for Ty Jerome in Cleveland With Lonzo now slotted in as a versatile backup point guard there just likely won’t be need for another secondary playmaker like Ty Jerome on the roster And truthfully that might be a good thing Ty did have some great moments this past season Don’t get me wrong especially in the first round series against Miami where he put up 16.3 points per game on a scorching 64% true shooting But the drop off was brutal In the second round against Indiana he managed just eight points a game on a woeful 34% true shooting There were stretches where he simply could not buy a bucket with game two standing out in particular shooting just one of 14 from the floor hitting just 7% of his shots in that game So while the highs were promising the inconsistency in the playoffs was just so impossible to ignore And when you compare that to what Lonzo offers steadier playmaking a defensive presence and better decision-making it’s clear that the Cavs come out ahead So from Cleveland’s point of view assuming that Lonzo and Aoro stay relatively healthy next season they’re not losing much of anything In fact their only gain in Cleveland gets a smarter offensive initiator another steady ball handler a floor spacer and someone who can help organize this team both on the floor and off it All while playing strong defense It’s a complete win no matter how you look at it And when you zoom out and look at the current state of the Eastern Conference it is wide open So many teams are dealing with injuries The Knicks still haven’t even hired a coach Giana seemingly doesn’t have any teammates in Milwaukee as this appears to be Cleveland’s moment to capitalize Out in the West though it’s a completely different story The Mavericks have reloaded in a scary way and they have a real chance to crack that entire conference wide open And if you want to hear about their master plan for Cooper Flag and his development I’ve got that full breakdown right now

3 Reasons Why The Cavaliers Just Got Too Good For The NBA…

The Cleveland Cavaliers just pulled off an absolute heist. In a simple one-for-one trade, they managed to acquire Lonzo Ball in exchange for Isaac Okoro — no extra picks, no future assets, just a straight-up swap. And when you really look at that deal, it’s kind of shocking. Lonzo joins a Cavs team that came up short in the second round of the playoffs last season, and his arrival is going to seriously elevate them in three key areas as they aim to dominate what’s shaping up to be a very vulnerable Eastern Conference.
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