Cleveland Cavaliers: 5 roster moves they must make in the coming offseason

5. Trade Kevin Love

The wrong side of 30, Kevin Love is putting up good numbers on a losing team. Averaging 17.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists last year, he did not have the supporting cast to help him lift the franchise off the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.

In fact, as mentioned earlier, Love has struggled to lead a team into the playoffs. He is also totally wrong for the timeline of the Cavaliers rebuild. Nance and Drummond are 27, Cedi Osman is 25, Collin Sexton is 21, and Darius Garland is 20.

Love’s current contract is due to expire in the 2022-23 and while this does not sound too bad, the Cavaliers have the chance to get some quality draft picks between now and then. They will want to develop this talent and Love will potentially hinder that growth, taking up playing time.

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In this current draft, the Cavaliers own the fifth pick. With it, they could select a player such as Onyeka Okongwu who is a 6’9″ combination forward/center out of the University of Southern California.

He has good length and athleticism as well as having a good pick and roll game. This allows Okongwu to get to the hoop where he is hard to stop. While the Cavaliers may not take a big, they are going to rely on the draft to get back to relevance.

By trading Love, they might be able to get a player who suits their timeline a little better. Love will also be looking to get to a team that can contend. He has shown that when he is the second or third option, he can help a team win.

The Cavaliers have only one way to go in the Eastern Conference. No matter what they do, they should improve as a team. They need to figure out their identity and find players who can fit within that.