Let the Cavaliers trade rumors begin.
They have the No. 1 pick again, tins time in a draft that may not be as transcendent as originally advertised but certainly has some very good players at the top. The Cavaliers want to win starting next year, not just keep adding younger players — they want a veteran presence.
Other GMs know this and they didn’t wait to start calling and feeling GM David Griffins out on a trade, he told ESPN.
“I actually got calls right afterward, while I was standing there doing media,” Griffin said Wednesday during an interview on ESPN Cleveland’s “The Really Big Show.” “Teams were already reaching out and texting, so I think it will be an active period of time…
“We’re going to be open-minded to whatever it is that advances our cause the furthest.”
Of course he says he is keeping his options open.
Most likely this will end up with the Cavs keeping the pick.
There has already been a lot of Kevin Love trade talk — the Cavs did inquire about him a year ago before Minnesota was willing to trade him. There certainly still is interest from the Cavs and they could put together a potentially interesting package with guys such as Anthony Bennett (okay, not so much him), Tristan Thompson, Dion Waiters, the No. 1 pick and Anderson Varejao.
The risk for the Cavs is big — Love opts out and leaves anyway, heading to L.A., New York or whatever big market attracts him. He does not want to be on another small market team where he doesn’t trust the management. The Cavs would need an assurance he would at least opt in on his deal, if not sign an extension. Sorry to tell you this Cavs fans, this ain’t happening. Same with you dreams of LeBron James returning to join Love. I know those rumors are getting thrown around out there, but do you really think LeBron trusts the Cavs to build and maintain a team more than he trusts Pat Riley to recruit players to Miami? (If you said yes, you have been eating from the wrong batch of brownies.)
It is not impossible the Cavs trade the first overall pick, it is possible they get blown away by an offer. It’s just not likely.
But it’s going to mean a lot of rumors for the next month.