The Cleveland Cavaliers are doing everything they can to secure a roster built to contend for a championship. The team is in a playoff drought and hoping a few splashy free agency moves will change that. The Cavaliers have several lofty goals for the offseason that may or may not be attainable. However, one goal has been reached which could dictate the future of other player's on the roster.
The Cavaliers confirmed they have locked point guard Kyrie Irving down for the long-term after the two sides agreed to a max contract worth $90 million. There was a lot of debate as to whether or not Irving would be offered the contract and then another debate as to whether or not he actually intended on signing it. After losing LeBron James, Irving has become the franchise player and the Cavaliers' future would likely be determined by if the point guard signed the deal. With Irving now secured for the future, what does that mean for the remaining roster.
The Cavaliers now need to build around Irving. That will include retaining Dion Waiters for the future. The guard has faced trade rumors for the better part of the year as the Cavaliers have never appeared truly committed to him. However, according to Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio, the Cavaliers are not actively shopping Waiters on the open market in order to sign other free agents. Waiters has made comments saying he knew a trade was possible in the near future, but apparently Cleveland does not see it that way.
Just because the Cavaliers are not actively shopping Waiters does not mean the guard is totally safe. Cleveland drafted Andrew Wiggins and intend to play him mostly at shooting guard which puts Waiters in an odd spot. For any team that misses out on players like Carmelo Anthony, Waiters could be in demand. The Cavaliers are targeting free agents like Gordon Hayward which could also force a trade for Waiters.
Many believed that Waiters would be gone by the NBA Draft but he remained on the roster. If the Cavaliers feel confident they can land a player like Hayward or even LeBron James, Waiters will be the off man out, but not until Cleveland is certain they have someone to replace him.
Jarrett Jack is another player experiencing the possibility of being traded. The Brooklyn Nets are exploring the possibility of a deal that would send the Cavaliers Marcus Thornton. The two teams have discussed this in the past, but failed to finalize anything. With the Nets roster falling apart, they might be more willing to strike up a trade than before.
