The Cleveland Cavaliers initially acquired George Hill from the Sacramento Kings midway through last season. It was a move to bolster the supporting cast around LeBron James, but with his departure, favoring to provide opportunities to younger talents could be a priority.
Collin Sexton is now the point guard of the future for the Cavs. While George Hill can slide over to the shooting guard spot, he has never played that position full-time. Let’s not forget that it did not work well at all when Hill played two-guard just a year-ago alongside another highly touted point guard prospect in De’Aaron Fox.
Whether it was with the San Antonio Spurs, Indiana Pacers, or the Utah Jazz, Hill has comfortably been a net positive in every season of his career except for 2017-18. His time with Sacramento was the cause for that because he was on a bad team that lacked talent and the Cavs will be closer to the Kings than they will be to those Spurs, Pacers, or Jazz teams.
Hill has an interesting contract because while he is set to earn $19 million during the upcoming season, only $1 million of the $18 million that he is set to earn in 2019-20 is guaranteed, which is the final season of his contract.
A trade suitor could potentially acquire him for an immediate impact for this upcoming season and then waive him before his July 1 guarantee date next summer to clear $17 million in cap space.
The Cavaliers already have $117.4 million in inclusive total for the 2019-20 season following Kevin Love’s new contract extension. Trading away George Hill would help get something in return while still capitalizing on the flexibility of his contract to open up cap space for next summer.
Next Up: Orlando Magic
