Could Suns’ Royce O’Neale make sense for Cavs?

Suns forward Royce O’Neale and Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell are close. O’Neale has been linked to the Cavs in the past, perhaps largely because of Mitchell.

Well, guess who Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes listed as Cleveland’s “ambitious trade target” this offseason? You got it. O’Neale.

This is all hypothetical, of course. But the Cavs have been interested in O’Neale in the past. Who’s to say they wouldn’t be again?

If so, Hughes suggested he’d be a better option than those currently manning the spot.

“O’Neale is probably an upgrade over the grab-bag mix of small forwards Cleveland tried this past season,” Hughes wrote, via Ashish Mathur of Cavs Roundtable. “He’s become a reliable 40.0 percent three-point shooter and can still defend multiple positions in a starting role. At the moment, the Cavs don’t have someone who can tick both of those boxes as well as he can.”

Hughes is right about that last part. Dean Wade usually mans the starting small forward role. He’s a really nice defender, but he doesn’t even consider shooting unless he’s wide open. Sometimes not even then.

And, oh by the way, Wade is an unrestricted free agent who’s sure to draw a fair share of interest.

Anyway, Max Strus is another option. He gives the Cavs loads of energy, hustle, hard-nosed defense and some outside shooting. But he’s, in a word, streaky.

Sam Merrill and Jaylon Tyson have also filled in. They both bring some pluses and minuses. 

Would O’Neale be an upgrade? Maybe not in talent. But perhaps in fit.

He is also pretty reliable from beyond the arc, shooting nearly 41 percent on three-pointers (and 42 percent from the field overall). Along with that, he averaged 9.8 points and 4.8 rebounds while helping the Suns become one of the NBA’s most pleasant surprises.

O’Neale, 33, remains a staunch defender of wings as well.