Should the Cavs trade Darius Garland for Jalen Suggs? Wine and Gold Talk podcast
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cleveland Cavaliers face a painful salary cap reality that might force them to trade All-Star point guard Darius Garland.
In a revealing episode of the Wine and Gold Talk podcast, hosts Chris Fedor and Ethan Sands explored why Cleveland might need to make dramatic roster changes despite their regular season success.
The catalyst for these potential moves? The NBA’s punishing second apron tax, which severely restricts team-building options for luxury tax teams.
As Fedor explained on the podcast, “I just think the Cavs are at a point, where they’ve got some hard decisions to make because of the realities of the salary cap and the realities of the second apron. There are three potential second apron teams in the NBA. It’s Boston, it’s Phoenix, and it’s Cleveland.”
This financial constraint is pushing the Cavaliers toward a crossroads that could fundamentally reshape their roster.
While the organization would ideally keep their “Core Four” of Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, and Darius Garland intact, Fedor revealed a significant shift in the front office’s thinking.
“I think the two untouchables are Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley,” Fedor said. “I have been getting the sense that the Cavs would be more willing to entertain and at least consider possibilities for Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland than they have in the past.”
Of those two potentially available players, Garland represents the more valuable trade asset. With the point guard market in free agency described by Fedor as “non-existent,” teams like Orlando and Sacramento could be motivated to make competitive offers for the 25-year-old two-time All-Star.
More Cavs coverage
The ‘most overrated’ label: How Tyrese Haliburton made NBA players eat their words
Former Cavs All-Star pleads guilty to assault charge in 2023 shooting
Should the Cavs trade Darius Garland for Orlando’s Jalen Suggs? Wine and Gold Talk podcast
Fedor outlined a potential trade framework sending Garland to the Orlando Magic for Jalen Suggs and Tristan da Silva. This hypothetical deal would sacrifice some of Garland’s offensive brilliance for Suggs’ defensive tenacity, size, and playoff-ready physicality.
“I understand that Jalen Suggs is not as good of a player as Darius. I understand that Jalen Suggs is not as naturally gifted or talented as Darius, but he brings a lot of stuff that this team would benefit from,” Fedor explained. “He can handle. He can distribute, he can guard his butt off, he can shoot from the perimeter, he can drive, and he gives you more size, more toughness, more tenacity.”
The consideration of trading Garland reflects a broader conversation about playoff basketball versus regular season success.
Despite the Cavaliers’ historic offensive efficiency in the regular season, their playoff limitations have become painfully apparent. Fedor didn’t mince words about Garland’s playoff viability: “I just think stylistically, Darius’ style is one that is really difficult in a playoff environment.”
This potential move also addresses a fundamental question about championship roster construction in the modern NBA.
As Fedor noted, “In today’s NBA, with the way that there are so many harsh penalties, it’s very, very difficult to have three All-Stars on your roster. Very difficult. At some point, you’re going to have to make difficult decisions.”
The Boston Celtics serve as a telling example. While they’ve maintained Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as their cornerstones, they’ve continuously reconfigured the pieces around them — even trading Marcus Smart, “the heart and soul of their team,” because they believed it would make them better.
The following season they won a championship.
For Cavaliers fans, the podcast presents a sobering reality: championship contention often requires painful sacrifices. While the team might prefer incremental improvements, the financial constraints and competitive realities of the Eastern Conference may force more dramatic changes.
“So I just think when you’re at a point that the Cavs are at with their roster the way the season ended earlier than anybody expected and with their salary cap situation, you have to start considering some of these alternatives and you have to start having very difficult conversations, conversations that are going to be painful, maybe even subtractions from the roster that are going to be painful,” Fedor concluded.
Here’s the podcast for this week:
Note: Artificial intelligence was used to help generate this story from the Cleveland Wine and Gold Talk Podcast by cleveland.com. Visitors to cleveland.com have asked for more text stories based on website podcast discussions.