Reports are coming out that Cleveland is interested in KD, so I decided to rack my brain and try to figure out what the framework of a KD to CLE trade would look like. This is the best I could come up with (though admittedly, I’m not a fan of the trade).

Because of the 2nd apron, the Cavs and Suns will need a third team to take salary in, in-order to facilitate the deal. Brooklyn is the obvious choice for this. They’ve been linked to Dean Wade for years and I’m sure they’d love to have him at the cost of taking on a semi-bad Royce O’Neil contract (that they can likely flip to a contender).

With both teams now below the 2nd apron, the trade can become far more flexible. DG is on his was out in Cleveland, so that’s the obvious starting point here. It’s always been an awkward fit between himself and Donovan. (Though at this point, if the Pacers win it all, I think the only reason the Cavs should break up the big four is for a Giannis trade). After adding DG to the deal, the Cavs still had some salary to make-up in order to get KD. Initially, I put Strus in there, but that felt like too much, so I opted for Okoro and last year’s first round pick Tyson.

I don’t love this trade for Cleveland as I think it’s unwise to trade a multiple time all-star PG who hasn’t even hit his prime for a 38 year old KD. In addition, Cleveland would be doing what every KD team has done, gutting their roster in order to get KD. Their saving grace is that they will be below the 2nd apron, so they can bring back Ty Jerome (which will then put them over the apron again). If they pull something like this off, I’d expect Allen or Hunter to get traded for 2-3 role players.

As far as the Suns go, let’s be honest, they can get better offers elsewhere. Even if the Rockets and OKC are out, the Spurs still have a better offer to give. The Cavs could (in theory) go all-in by offering a maximum of one future 1st and three future 1st round swaps, but the Spurs still have more picks to offer.

Overall, I think a KD to Cleveland trade is highly unrealistic. What do you all think? Is this the best offer the Cavs could make?