Due to the recent two-game losing streak, the Cavaliers' regular season ranking was surpassed by the Heat, temporarily ranking fifth in the East with a record of 20 wins and 15 losses, just one win ahead of the 76ers behind them. Compared with the decline in the ranking, the Cavaliers management is obviously more concerned about the team's playoff prospects, after all, with the help of Bixtaugh's three-tower system, the Cavaliers have taken off the fish belly label this season, and have become the biggest dark horse in the East, in the eyes of many NBA industry insiders, as long as the Cavaliers can get an All-Star level player through operation in the future, then this team is expected to break into the Eastern Conference semifinals, or even the finals. Player salary space is relatively flexible, do not need to pay a penny luxury tax, coupled with the top static talent of young players such as Mobly, Garland, Okoro, it is no wonder that the Junior Cavaliers are favored by many people, but it is very unfortunate that injuries have temporarily stumbled on their progress.
Following a meniscus tear in Sexton at the beginning of the season, Rubio was recently diagnosed with a torn cruciate ligament in his left knee, the two core masters were reimbursed for the season, the Cavaliers management was eager to find a guard with organizational ability in the free trade market, and the Lakers' 35-year-old veteran Rondo became the preferred target. Sources come from NBA journalist Shams Charania, the Cavaliers and Lakers have agreed on how to trade Rondo, in order to free up a player slot to sign Stanley Johnson, the Lakers are ready to send Rondo to the Cavaliers, and the return of the transaction is a $1.7 million deal exception and save nearly $7 million in luxury taxes.
From the follow-up report of NBA reporter Chris Fedor, it was learned that Horton Tucker originally wanted to join the Cavaliers with Rondo, the 21-year-old was fed up with gossip in the Los Angeles spotlight, as Tucker's agent, Rich Paul also suggested that lakers management bundle Tucker and Rondo to see if they can exchange high-quality resources such as Osman and Okoro. But the Cavaliers management has no interest in Tucker at all, they have no intention of bringing in another offensive guard with the ball, and more importantly, Tucker has another wonderful use for the Lakers management. It is understood that compared with Osman and Ocorro, Norman Powell's trade priority is higher, and the Blazers forward-back swinger has averaged 32.5 minutes per game this season, can get 18.4 points , 2.7 rebounds + 2.1 assists, and shooting 40.5% from three-point range.
In terms of technical and tactical characteristics, Powell has a strong ability to attack independently, scoring 15+ in a single quarter and 25+ in the half-time for many times in his career. In addition, Powell's high pressing is particularly fierce, and each game can score 3.4 points through the opponent's mistake, which ranks fifteenth in the league. Chris Fedor said that he was told that the Lakers have used Tucker + Nunn + 1 first-round pick, that is, a 3-for-1 plan to officially quote Powell, because Lillard is not for sale, CJ McCollum due to pneumothorax injury caused by a sharp drop in the value of the transaction, now there are many people inside the Blazers who support the trade Powell.
It is worth mentioning that compared with the offers provided by other playoff-level teams, the Lakers are obviously more sincere, they know that they are willing to take the team's future resources, you know, with reference to the Lakers' current team building ideas, this draft pick is likely to be the first round of signing in 2027, the probability of entering the lottery area is very large, and the Lakers clearly want to take the future to fight now. It is reported that the current Lakers and the Blazers 3-for-1 deal negotiations are progressing beyond expectations, the two sides are discussing some details, the Lakers seem to want to add some additional conditions to this first round of signing, similar to the first 10 picks to protect, the Blazers are trying to use other teams to pressure the Lakers. Do you think Powell is suitable to play next to the Lakers' Big Three? Welcome to leave a comment in the comments section below to discuss, thank you for reading and following.