NBA Analyst Believes Cavaliers Will Trade Darius Garland Or Jarrett Allen This Offseason

NBA analyst Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report believes the Cleveland Cavaliers will trade Darius Garland or Jarrett Allen this offseason.

Swartz, who covers the Cavaliers, has Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley as untouchable players. 

“Mitchell will stay if he wants to, and Cleveland isn’t going to trade a 22-year-old Mobley this early into his career,” Swartz wrote. “Garland and Allen are the most likely pieces to be moved, and Koby Altman should be exploring deals involving both if Mitchell commits to the franchise for the long term. Consider Garland or Allen the most likely players to be traded.”

Garland averaged 18.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 6.5 assists for the Cavaliers this season while shooting 44.6% from the field, 37.1% from beyond the arc and 83.4% from the free-throw line. He’ll make $36.7 million next season.

Allen, who has two years and $40 million left on his contract, averaged 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 0.7 steals and 1.1 blocks this season while shooting 63.4% from the field and 74.2% from the free-throw line.  

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, “it is believed” Garland will request a trade if Mitchell signs an extension with the Cavaliers.

Meanwhile, multiple teams around the league are interested in acquiring Allen. 

The Cavaliers beat the Orlando Magic in the first round of this year’s postseason in seven games but lost to the Boston Celtics in the second round in five games. Allen missed the Celtics series with a rib injury. 

According to NBA insiders Shams Charania, Joe Vardon and Jason Lloyd of The Athletic, some members of the Cavaliers were frustrated Allen refused an injection to try and numb the pain in his rib and play.

“The four-man combo of Mitchell, Garland, Mobley and Allen had a lowly net rating of plus-2.7 in 819 total possessions together this past season,” Swartz wrote. “With just Mitchell and Allen, this number jumped all the way to plus-9.9 (93rd percentile, via Cleaning the Glass).”

The Cavaliers will hire a new head coach before making roster moves.