According to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, the Cleveland Cavaliers could trade Darius Garland this offseason.
With that said, Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report proposed that the Cavaliers trade Garland to the Orlando Magic for Jalen Suggs, Jett Howard and a top-five protected 2027 first-round pick.
The Cavaliers had the top record in the East this year. They swept the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs but lost to the Indiana Pacers in the conference semifinals in five games.
Many people in NBA circles don’t believe Cleveland can win it all with Garland and Donovan Mitchell in the same backcourt since both players are small, which is why Bailey has the Cavaliers swapping Garland for Suggs.
“That’s what this one potentially does, giving Cleveland a much more defensive-minded guard to play alongside Mitchell in Suggs. Swapping him in for Garland would almost certainly slow the offense a bit, but the tradeoff might be worth it for a more viable playoff defense,” Bailey wrote.
Garland is listed at 6-1, 192 pounds.
Meanwhile, Suggs is listed at 6-5, 205 pounds.
A two-time All-Star, Garland appeared in 75 games for the Cavaliers this season. He averaged 20.6 points and 6.7 assists while shooting 47.2% from the field, 40.1% from beyond the arc and 87.8% from the free-throw line.
Garland has spent his career in Cleveland. He was the fifth overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. The Vanderbilt product will make $39,446,090 next season.
Suggs only played in 35 games this season for the Magic due to a quad injury. He averaged 16.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.9 blocks while shooting 41.0% from the field, 31.4% from 3 and 88.2% from the free-throw line.
An All-NBA defender, Suggs will make $35 million next season. He was the fifth overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
The Cavaliers signed Evan Mobley to a five-year, $224 million extension last summer. It was a no-brainer move.
However, by winning Defensive Player of the Year this season, Mobley triggered a clause in his contract that calls for him to increase the first-year salary of his rookie-scale extension from 25% to 30% of the salary cap.
As a result, the Cavaliers are now projected to have $219 million in salary for the 2025-26 season and be over the second apron.
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