Recently, according to Shams, multiple sources in the league revealed that more and more people believe that Cavaliers guard Mitchell will reach an early contract extension agreement with the team; Meanwhile, Garland, another All-Star guard on the Cavaliers' roster, is looking for a trade away from Cleveland.
The San Antonio Spurs are considered a potential foothold for Garland. They picked up French talent Wembanyama in last year's draft and are in desperate need of a ball-handling core at the backcourt. So if the Spurs want to bring in Garland, what are the trade options? The American media "Fadeaway World" put forward a deal idea for this reason:
Spurs sent - Johnson, a 2024 first-round pick, a 2026 first-round pick
Knights sent out - Garland
As it turned out, the backcourt duo of Mitchell and Garland didn't work, with the former's ability to play with a lot of the ball limiting the latter's play to a certain extent. Before Mitchell joined, Garland had averaged 21.7 points and 8.6 assists per game in a single season and was named to the All-Star team, but after Mitchell joined, his statistics did not increase but declined, averaging only 18.4 points and 6.7 assists per game this season.
Rather than being forcibly tied together, the Cavaliers should trade Garland and build the team entirely around Mitchell. In the deal, they could get a 24-year-old Johnson who doesn't need to carry the ball and is averaging 15.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game, as well as two valuable first-round picks that could be used as leverage to bring in another star player.
As for the Spurs, they are in desperate need of a reliable backcourt core to partner Wembanyama to open up space for the latter and deliver beautiful open picks, Trae Young is considered one of the potential options, but Garland is younger and cheaper. He has four years left on his current contract, $36.7 million next season, and even four years later, $44.9 million, when he will be 28 years old.
Garland is a reliable three-point shooter, shooting 38.4 percent from three-point range and averaging 2.2 three-pointers per game throughout his career, and even this season, he's shooting 37 percent from three-point range and averaging 2.3 three-pointers per game. His excellent long-range shooting ability creates space and relieves the defensive pressure on Wembanyama.
Garland is also a reliable passer, having finished seventh on the assists list for two consecutive seasons before Mitchell joined the Cavaliers, and Allen has played the best of his career, ranking among the top in the league in dunks for two consecutive seasons, including being named to the All-Star team in 2022. Imagine what it would be like to replace Arun with Wembanyama.
While there have been questions about Garland's defense, Wembanyama has proven himself to be a top-of-the-game defensive player rim protector whose mobility and defensive ability can make up for Garland's shortcomings.
So the question is, as a fan, are you optimistic about the combination of Garland and Wembanyama? Welcome to leave a message in the comment area and say your opinion!