In a desperate effort to acquire Paul George, the Cleveland Cavaliers are ready to trade All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving to acquire George's services. According to SiriusXM NBA host Mitch Lawrence’s sources, the Cavs are negotiating with the Utah Jazz and the Pacers for a potential 3-team trade. If completed, Paul George and Jazz point guard George Hill would move to the Cavaliers while Irving would join the Jazz. Lawrence added that the Pacers stand to gain top picks from this deal. The Cavs need a third team because they don’t have enough assets to get George via a one-on-one trade.
Can NBA off-season get crazier? Yup. Kyrie Irving’s name now linked to Jazz with George Hill going to Cavs in sign-and-trade, per sources.
— Mitch Lawrence (@Mitch_Lawrence) June 30, 2017
However, Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune reported that the trade has "no traction" based on input from his sources. Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus said Hill can't be part of a sign-and-trade with the Cavaliers logistically since it would trigger a hard cap, which they are prohibited to exceed. Before he was fired, former Cavaliers general manager David Griffin reportedly refused to trade Irving while team owner Dan Gilbert is willing to part ways with their 2011 first-round pick.
The Cavaliers were earlier pursuing Jimmy Butler, who rejected the opportunity to play with LeBron James, saying he plans to win a championship with the Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls traded him to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Draft night. George is considered a rental because he has one year remaining on his deal with the Pacers and signing him is a big risk especially if he decides not to sign a contract extension with the new team. However, the Cavaliers are confident that they can convince George to sign a long-term deal if the trade pushes through.
Cavs also tried to trade with Nuggets
Earlier, the Cavaliers were reported to be negotiating a three-team trade with the Pacers and the Denver Nuggets in an effort to acquire George. That trade could have brought George to Cleveland while the Nuggets would get power forward Kevin Love. In another version of the deal, the Cavs may also get Kenneth Faried from the Nuggets.
The Pacers stand to get a combination of young players and draft picks from the Nuggets, including Faried, Wilson Chandler, and Emmanuel Mudiay.
Irving will ask for trade if James leaves in 2018
According to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, Irving plans to ask the Cavaliers to trade him if James leaves the team in 2018. Cowly said Irving told some of his former Team USA teammates that he will ask to be traded if James ops out after the coming season. The report mentioned that Irving is interested in joining the Chicago Bulls via trade. Reports have it that James plans to leave the Cavs in 2018 and join the Los Angeles Lakers.
