One team that has been hit very hard by injuries so far this NBA season is the Cleveland Cavaliers. Between players being in and out of health protocols and some key talents being ruled out for the season, the Cavs have faced a lot of adversity early on in the 2021-22 season, yet they are 11-10 and look like a team who could sneak their way into the playoffs via the play-in tournament.
Early on in the year, the Cavaliers looked fantastic with their lineup of Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Lauri Markkanen, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, but then Sexton tore his left meniscus, Markkanen entered the league’s Health and Safety protocols and Mobley suffered a right elbow sprain that forced him to miss over a week.
Lauri Markkanen and Evan Mobley have made their way back on the court for the Cavaliers, but Collin Sexton is done for the season and now Cedi Osman and Dean Wade are dealing with injuries.
For a team that is already limited with what they can do offensively, losing Sexton is a significant loss, but the Cleveland Cavaliers do have veteran Ricky Rubio, who has stepped up in a big way off-the-bench.
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Overall though, if the Cavs are going to have a chance to make the playoffs this season, they are going to have to be willing to spend some money to make some roster moves.
Their “big man” lineup with Markkanen, Mobley and Allen can work, but they have to make sure that their backcourt can be reliable.
Garland and Rubio are two steady forces for this team, but they cannot play 48 minutes per game, so adding some more backcourt depth could be essential for this team.
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Having just Isaac Okoro and Cedi Osman out on the wing as well, the Cleveland Cavaliers could also look to add some more wing scorers since this team ranks 25th in the league in scoring.
Do the Cavaliers have the ability to make some big trades ahead of this season’s trade deadline? Let’s take a look at three players Cleveland could target, as proposed by Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley, and evaluate whether or not the Cavaliers should “pass or pursue” said trade targets.
