Cleveland Cavaliers: Why J.R. Smith wasn’t traded at the deadline

The 2019 NBA Trade Deadline has come and gone, yet J.R. Smith is still a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Many thought that the 2019 NBA Trade Deadline would be a prime time for the Cleveland Cavaliers to deal a few players. Some of the most frequently mentioned names such as Rodney Hood and Alec Burks were traded prior to the deadline. However, J.R. Smith remains on the roster.

The Cavs acquired Smith in 2015, when a three-team trade dealt Dion Waiters to the Oklahoma City Thunder, while Smith and Iman Shumpert were shipped to Cleveland. From the moment Smith become a Cavalier, it was obvious he was a perfect fit for the team at the time.

In one of his first interviews as a member of the Cavaliers, Smith told a reporter, “When in doubt, shoot the ball.” He more than lived up to this quote, going on to become the franchise’s fifth all-time leading 3-point shooter.

Playing alongside the likes of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, Smith became the perfect complementary player. His streaky shooting made him a wild card, but Smith had the ability to torch opposing teams from beyond the arc on any given night.

By his second season with the Cavaliers, Smith cemented himself as a legend in Cleveland by being a key component to their 2016 NBA championship run. He embraced the city and quickly became a fan favorite.

However, once Irving demanded a trade in the 2017 offseason, the writing was on the wall for Cleveland. It didn’t take long for LeBron James to jump ship to the Los Angeles Lakers, leaving the rest of the Cavaliers dazed and confused.

Luckily, Kevin Love pledged his allegiance to the city by signing a four-year extension. This move, along with the selection of Collin Sexton in the 2018 NBA Draft, gave the team some optimism that the 2018-19 season would be a good one.

It would become clear very quickly that this season was going to head in a much different direction. It took only three games for Love to get injured and be sidelined for months. After an 0-6 start to the year, head coach Tyronn Lue was fired.

Subsequently, the front office made a conscious decision to tank and let this season wash down the drain. The Cavaliers had no hope of making any noise in the postseason, so losing games and securing a good draft pick became the priority.

This obviously rubbed J.R. Smith the wrong way. The fact that he was reserving multiple DNPs did not help the situation either. When a reporter asked if Smith was hoping for a trade, he bluntly responded, “Yeah.”

Almost three months later and Smith has not appeared in a game for the Cavaliers since. Yet, he is still on the roster. Why is this?

Well, to keep it simple, Smith isn’t an easy player to trade. While he still has some value as a 3-point specialist with championship experience, his contract is atrocious. Smith is set to make around $30 million in the next two seasons. For most teams, this price is too high to pay.

So where does this leave the Cavaliers? Their best bet is to continue shopping around and looking for a suitable partner, though they will have to wait until the summer to actually trade him now. If they can’t find a team to take his contract by next year, it may be time to look at potentially buying out the final year of his contract.

Hopefully, both parties will find a way to resolve this issue and either complete a trade, or agree to a buyout. Smith had a positive impact on the franchise and will be remembered warmly by fans.