The 2025 offseason is expected to be a busy one, and one of the teams that could be an active player in all the mayhem is the Cleveland Cavaliers.
After their best season since LeBron James left town, the Cavaliers fizzled out in the second round of the playoffs for the second time in as many years, bringing back concerns about the overlapping skillsets of their four best players.
Individually, Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen are fantastic players. The four of them finished in the top 20 this season in Estimated Plus-Minus (per Dunks & Threes).
Unfortunately, Garland’s skillset clashes with Mitchell’s, and ditto for Mobley/Allen. This leaves them vulnerable to more balanced teams like the Indiana Pacers. Plus, the Cavaliers are on track to be a second apron team in 2025-26.
These conditions have reportedly made the team open to the prospect of trading Garland and Allen. But if they are actually available, which teams should pursue them? And what would those trades look like?
What Cleveland Should Be Looking For In A Garland/Allen Trade
Even if they break up their core four, a tandem of Mitchell/Mobley is still potent enough to compete for titles (particularly in an Eastern Conference that will be powered down with Jayson Tatum and Damian Lillard set to miss most/all of next year).
So, in potential trades involving Garland/Allen, Cleveland should be requesting players who can amplify these two (along with some draft capital). In this case, the Cavaliers should be looking for two-way wings/forwards, a backup big to offer Mobley some relief, and a secondary creator to fill some of the void left by Garland.
Potential Trades For Garland/Allen
While we won’t go into every single possible deal that could take place this summer, we will go into some examples of trades featuring Garland, Allen, and one including both the All-Star caliber performers.
The most obvious destination for Allen would be the Los Angeles Lakers. After trading Anthony Davis for Luka Doncic, the Lakers are in desperate need of a pick-and-roll partner for Doncic, who can also be an enforcer in the paint. A potential trade could look something like this:
Jarrett Allen Trade Idea.Fanspo.
Rui Hachimura isn’t an elite defender, but he has graded out as a positive in that area over the last three years. Meanwhile, on offense, he’s a good shooter (41.3%) and finisher around the rim (66.5%). He’s also still young (27) and pretty battle-tested (26 playoff games in the last three years). Overall, Hachimura is a clear starting-caliber forward in this league and a nice frontcourt fit next to Mobley.
Dalton Knecht gives the Cavaliers a bigger and younger version of Sam Merrill (Knecht is an inch taller and five years younger), which will enable the team to let him walk in free agency this summer without a worry. They would also net some draft capital in this deal with the Lakers’ 2026 first-round pick.
As for Garland, the defensively brilliant (2nd in defensive rating) but offensively-challenged (third in offensive rating) Orlando Magic could be a prime candidate for his services. In a perfect world, the Cavaliers would get Jalen Suggs in return for Garland. But it is hard to imagine the Magic would be willing to part ways with someone so deeply embedded in their core. So, just in case they aren’t willing to include him in this deal, here is an alternative idea:
Darius Garland Trade Idea.Fanspo.
Last year was a down one for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, but he’s still one of the best two-way role players of the last decade (he was also quietly much better after January 1). He’d be the perfect guy to share a backcourt with Mitchell.
Anthony Black didn’t have the sophomore surge that his advocates had hoped for, but he’s still a great perimeter defender (80th percentile DEF EPM) with plenty of time to develop (21 years old) into the secondary ball handler Cleveland will need if Garland leaves. Although, if he is the only true facilitator the Cavaliers get back in these trades, they will really need to prioritize re-signing Ty Jerome in free agency.
Goga Bitadze isn’t a household name, but he is one of the best cost-controlled backup bigs in the NBA right now. His game is simple, yet effective. Bitadze sets hard screens, rolls to the rim, finishes layup passes, blocks shots, and is always in the right position on defense. The analytics love him, as he’s placed in at least the 93rd percentile in DEF EPM and the 81st percentile in EPM in each of the last two years. The two first round picks from Orlando will give Cleveland three overall from the two trades. Jaylon Tyson and Jett Howard are included here to make the money work.
The Dallas Mavericks would be another interesting trade partner for Garland. With Kyrie Irving set to miss most of next season with a torn ACL, the Mavericks will need someone to set the table for Davis, Dereck Lively II, and Cooper Flagg. And even when Irving comes back, lineups with him and Garland will still be tenable because of how much size they boast on the front line. Plus, they have Daniel Gafford and a cavalcade of wings/forwards to include in a trade.
If one team were to acquire Garland and Allen in one fell swoop, the Magic would make the most sense. They are a playoff-caliber team that is in need of an upgrade at point guard and center, and a starting five of Garland/Caldwell-Pope/Franz Wagner/Paolo Banchero/Allen would be pretty formidable in the East (they would certainly need to part ways with Suggs in this case).
Along with Suggs, the Magic would need to give 2 or 3 first round picks, Black, at least one of their three centers, and some combination of salary filler/young players Cleveland can try to take a flier on.
Some other teams that could be interested in one of these two studs are the Houston Rockets (Garland), Phoenix Suns (Allen), Brooklyn Nets (Garland), Boston Celtics (Allen), Sacramento Kings (Garland), Milwaukee Bucks (Allen), Chicago Bulls (Allen), Miami Heat (Garland), and Toronto Raptors (Allen).
If Cleveland Kept One Of Those Two, Who Should It Be?
Another alternative for the Cavaliers is to just trade one of those two players. If that’s the route they choose to go, their best bet would be to trade Garland. He’s the better player, which makes him the better trade asset, and Allen is on the much more team-friendly deal (Garland’s average annual value is 39.4 million over the next four years, and Allen’s is only 20 million next year before turning into 30.2 over the following three).
In any event, the Cavaliers have some huge decisions to make this offseason – the kind that could completely alter the landscape of the league – making them one of the most interesting teams to monitor over the next few months.