NBA Trade Grades: Cavaliers swap Isaiah Thomas for Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance Jr.

Cleveland Cavaliers

First things first: Isaiah Thomas was not working in Cleveland. Whether you believe Kyrie Irving forced his way out, whether you believe LeBron James was angling to keep him or pushing to deal him, whether your believe the Cavs should/shouldn’t have caved to Irving’s trade demands — everyone can agree IT just wasn’t fitting in.

In his 15 games on the court for Cleveland this season, the team went 7-8. Since his debut on Jan. 2, the Cavaliers plummeted from a defensive rating of 108.6 (which already ranked 28th in the league) to a disastrous 112.4 (ranked 29th).

In his time in the locker room, the Cavs coughed up a 22-point lead against the Indiana Pacers, gave up 148 points to the Oklahoma City Thunder, saw a 21-point lead against the lowly Orlando Magic turn into an 18-point loss, got pounded by 32 against the Houston Rockets…the list goes on and on.

Throw in him allegedly calling out Kevin Love for being sick and his bluntness with the media over the Cavs’ problems and it’s no wonder he’s being shipped out as something of a locker room head case. He was nowhere near worth the meager 14.7 points and 4.5 assists per game on putrid .361/.253/.868 shooting splits he was putting up this season.

So yes, an upgrade at point guard was badly needed. Channing Frye was entirely expendable, as he was only getting 12.4 minutes per game and shooting just 33.3 percent from downtown this season. It’s just unfortunate the Cavs had to include a first round pick to undo some of the damage of the Kyrie trade.

The Cavs still have their more valuable Brooklyn Nets pick to fall back on in 2018, and the speculation surrounding that asset should stop now, but it remains to be seen if the upgrades from this deal — at the cost of another potential rebuild piece — even make a difference.

To be fair, Clarkson and Nance have been solid for the Lakers this season. In just 23.7 minutes per game, Clarkson has put up 14.5 points, 3.3 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game on 44.8 percent shooting.

However, he’s only converting 32.4 percent of his 4.0 long range attempts per game, and playing sixth man for a lottery team is a very different task from being the starting point guardon a title contender — especially one facing a ton of pressure to keep LeBron James interested in staying.

Nance is enjoying a career year in this third season, averaging 8.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 22.0 minutes per game. He’s shooting 60.1 percent from the floor, so even though he doesn’t spread the floor, he’s an athletic player who brings energy when he steps on the court — something Cleveland sorely needs.

Before Altman continued his flurry of moves to get better while also getting younger and more athletic, this move seemed to be more about the future beyond LeBron than it did about keeping him satisfied and bolstering the roster for a title run. However, between the trade being addition by subtraction with Isaiah Thomas gone, and the flurry of moves Altman unleashed next, the fact that Clarkson and Nance don’t address the team’s need for improved defense is less significant.

The Cavs are adding two 25-year-olds to the mix who will help Cleveland rebuild should the King leave this summer, while also helping with the push for another championship. Clarkson is on the books through 2019-20, while Nance hits restricted free agency in the summer of 2019.

The Cavaliers are all in on keeping LeBron James this summer, and Nance should help fill minutes in the frontcourt until Kevin Love gets back. Perhaps Clarkson will thrive in the lesser role Cleveland needed Isaiah Thomas to embrace. This move comes with a few potential pitfalls and question marks, but most of them were taken care of less than an hour later.

Grade: B+