A future Basketball Hall of Fame member has been traded for the fifth time in his career.

On Feb. 3, James Harden was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Darius Garland. 

Harden played three seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. In the 2024-25 season, he made the All-Star team with a 22.8 points per game average. Garland had played his whole career with the Cavaliers before this trade. He made two All-Star appearances with the team.

Harden was drafted by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2009 NBA draft. He became a star after being traded to the Houston Rockets. He requested a trade from them during the 2020-21 season. Since then, he’s played short stints with the Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and Clippers. 

Harden won an MVP in 2018 and has made 11 All-Star appearances. Despite not being an All-Star this season, he’s averaging 25 points per game, his most since the 2019-20 season. 

Harden said that he didn’t request a trade from the Clippers. Meanwhile, ESPN reported that he did. 

Even in his older age, Harden is a clear upgrade over Garland. Harden is a better scorer, passer, rebounder and defender. Even if none of that was true, he’s more durable than Garland.

Garland gives the Clippers a young piece to rebuild around long-term. The Clippers don’t have control over most of their future first-round draft picks due to a trade with the Thunder. 

The Cavaliers are desperate to win before Donovan Mitchell’s team option after the 2026-27 season. Harden may be the biggest move they can make to help Mitchell. The Cavaliers may need to take more shots to truly be competitive. Meanwhile, the Clippers likely don’t have any more moves they can make due to salary restrictions and a lack of draft assets.

LeBron James was left speechless and “crushed” after learning about Kyrie Irving‘s transfer from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Boston Celtics in 2017, former head coach Tyronn Lue revealed recently.

During a podcast with Shannon Sharpe, Lue recalled what happened with Irving following the Cavaliers’ 2017 NBA Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors. Lue said he “begged and pleaded” with Irving to stay with the team, but said it was the nine-time NBA All-Star who made up his mind on leaving Cleveland.

However, it was James’ reaction while signing jerseys for an event that stuck with the former Cavaliers boss.

“I come sit next to Bron,” Lue said. “We sitting there, hand him the phone, SportsCenter: Kyrie Irving has just been traded to the Boston Celtics. Bron dropped the marker and just laid back in his chair for about 10 minutes and doesn’t say a word. Just pissed off. Bron was crushed.”

Lue coached the Cavs for two and a half seasons, winning an NBA Championship during the 2015/16 campaign. James and Irving were teammates during that time, but that ended in the summer of 2017 when the team traded the former Duke point guard to the Celtics.

Lue also said James would have stayed in Cleveland had Irving continued to play for the Cavaliers.

Irving joined the Cavs in 2011 after being drafted as the first overall pick. He spent six seasons in Cleveland, linking with James in 2014 and winning the championship two years later against the Warriors. The Cavs became the first team in NBA Finals history to win after trailing 3-1, winning a dramatic Game 7, which saw Irving and James both make huge plays late in the match.

One year after Irving departed, James also packed his bags and joined the Los Angeles Lakers, where he’s been ever since. James added another ring while with the Purple and Gold, winning the 2020 NBA Finals against his former team, the Miami Heat.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been officially eliminated from the playoffs following their 114-105 loss to the Indiana Pacers in game five of their Eastern Conference semifinals series.

Despite winning 64 games in the regular season, the second most in franchise history, the Cavs’ early departure from the playoffs comes as a disappointment. Cavs star Donovan Mitchell knows his team needs to be better.

“Getting beat down like this and y’all are gonna write some s— about us, man,” Mitchell said. “And that’s gonna be fuel. Fuel for everybody. Y’all gonna say a lot of sh–. Y’all are. And that’s what it takes. I’ve been here. So, I understand, we understand, and we just gotta use it for fuel for next year.”

The Cavs started the playoffs on a hot streak, dominating the Miami Heat in a series that had the largest point differential for a sweep all-time.

Then, Cleveland hit a wall against the Pacers.

The Cavs started game five with a 31-19 lead after the first quarter and led by as much as 19 at one point. The Pacers were able to weather the storm and send the Cavs home early.

Mitchell finished game five with 35 points and nine rebounds. Evan Mobley finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds.

As a team, the Cavs shot under 40% from the field and under 30% from three. Max Strus, who reportedly sent an inspiring message pregame to the team’s group chat, finished with zero points on 0-9 shooting.

“We had to find a way to match it [physicality],” Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson said. “We didn’t. I think we’re built for it, but we weren’t ready for that.”

A fight erupted between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Indiana Pacers early in game four of their Eastern Conference semifinals series.

With less than five minutes left in the first quarter, the Pacers’ Bennedict Mathurin appeared to strike De’Andre Hunter in the midsection while the Pacers were attempting to inbound the ball.

In response, Hunter shoved Mathurin to the ground and a fight ensued.

Mathurin was assessed a flagrant 2 foul and was ejected from the game. Hunter and Myles Turner were given technical fouls for the altercation.

Mathurin was ejected after only playing a single minute. He finished with zero points and one rebound.

“It’s a learning experience for him,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said about Mathurin. “Playoff series’ are chippy and personal. We’ve got to stay out of the weeds.”

Mathurin’s ejection was just about the only thing that went wrong for the Pacers on Sunday night. The Pacers won 129-109, taking a 3-1 lead in the series.

The Pacers led by as much as 44. At halftime, the Pacers led 80-39. The Cavaliers never led.

Pascal Siakam, Obi Toppin and Turner all finished with 20 or more points. Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton only finished with 11 points and five assists in 26 minutes.

As a team, the Pacers shot 52.7% from the field and 42.9% from three.

“I was really proud of our performance,” Haliburton said. “There’s still a lot of work to do. Feel good about this for tonight and move on.”

The Indiana Pacers stormed back to stun the Cleveland Cavaliers 120-119, taking a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Late-game heroics from Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton saved the game.

The Cavaliers led the entire game, at one point leading by as much as 20 points. The Cavs opened the game with a 32-15 first quarter and entered the fourth quarter with a 98-84 lead.

Cleveland was playing the game without DeAndre Hunter and Evan Mobley. Darius Garland, who has missed the past four games with a toe injury, didn’t play either.

Despite missing two starters, the Cavs led 119-116 points with 12.1 seconds left. Haliburton was shooting two free throws at the line. He made the first free throw and grabbed the rebound after missing the second. He ran out to the three-point line and made a step-back three to ice the game.

“I have all the confidence in the world to make these shots,” Haliburton said. “Just trying to make plays out there.”

Haliburton finished the game with 19 points on 7-11 from the field.

The Cavaliers were led by Donovan Mitchell, who finished the game with 48 points on 15-30 from the field. Mitchell took 21 free throws, going 17-21 from the line.

The series heads to Indiana on Friday when the Pacers, up 2-0 in the series, will try to go up 3-0 over the one seed in the Eastern Conference.

Only 34 teams, or 7.4% of teams, have come back to win a series from down 2-0. No team in history has come back from down 3-0.

Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley has won the 2024-25 NBA Defensive Player of the Year, claiming the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy.

Mobley, now in his fourth year in the league, has won his first NBA Defensive Player of the Year—the first Cavalier ever to do so.

Mobley joins elite company as the fifth 23-year-old to be named Defensive Player of the Year, joining the likes of Alvin Robertson, Dwight Howard, Kawhi Leonard and Jaren Jackson Jr. No player younger than 23 has ever received the honor.

Mobley finished the regular season ranked sixth in blocks (1.59) and 13th in defensive rebounds (7.0), while also contesting 10.4 shots a night, third among players who appeared in 70% of their team’s games.

The Cavaliers were eighth in defensive rating and third in opponent shooting percentage this season — and even better with Mobley playing, good enough for second in the league with a defensive rating of 108.6.

Mobley was twice named the Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month and also made his All-Star debut this season.

In 71 games, Mobley averaged 18.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists, in 30.5 minutes a night and led the Cavaliers to a 64-18 record, second-best in team franchise history and No. 1 in the East.

The Cleveland Cavaliers advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals, giving the Miami Heat a beatdown among the worst in franchise history.

The Cavaliers beat the Heat 138-83, at one point leading by 60. The 55-point win is the fourth-largest in NBA playoffs history.

The series finished as the most lopsided in NBA playoff history, with the Cavaliers outscoring the Heat by 122 points through four games – 92 of the 122 points came in games three and four on Miami’s home floor.

Game three was the worst home playoff loss in Heat history, until game four.

At halftime, with the score 72-33, the TNT crew didn’t hold back on criticism for the Heat.

“This might be the worst game I’ve ever watched,” Ernie Johnson chimed in.

As a team, the Heat finished with more turnovers than assists. The Heat were outgained in just about every statistical category.

Donovan Mitchell finished with 22 points and five assists in just 25 minutes. Jarrett Allen finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Allen led the Cavaliers with a plus/minus of +42.

For the Heat, Tyler Herro had arguably the worst game of his professional career. He scored four points on 1-10 shooting and was either equal in scoring or outscored by 13 Cavaliers players.

The Heat’s one bright spot was Nikola Jovic, who had previously struggled in the series. He finished the game with 24 points and five rebounds.

Changes are likely coming in Miami. A team that has held the same core for so long could see some vital changes to the roster.

The Cavaliers will play the winner of the Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks series. The Pacers are currently ahead 3-1.

New Orleans Pelicans forward Javonte Green came to terms on a contract buyout Wednesday that will allow him to go to another team. After he clears waivers, he reportedly plans to sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Cleveland’s plans for Green are clear, as the team is preparing for a prospective playoff matchup with Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Green and the Boston Celtics. Defending the perimeter against the most prodigious three-point shooting team in league history will be necessary if the Cavs plan to make a surprise run to the NBA Finals. Green is the second forward the team has added recently, following De’Andre Hunter’s arrival at the trade deadline.

Green hasn’t lit up box scores in New Orleans this season, scoring 5.8 points per game. He hasn’t been able to significantly help the Pelicans’ defense either, as the team’s larger struggles have outweighed his individual efforts. With Cleveland, however, Green’s role would be more defined, as the team already has one of the best defenses in the league. His paltry offensive contributions won’t be a hindrance either, as the Cavaliers’ offense is already deeply potent.

At this level, small moves can make massive impacts. Cleveland already has Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. The team is 44-10, well on its way to the first seed in the Eastern Conference. With an elite core in place, adding players like Green and Hunter are fine-tuning moves. Mitchell acknowledged their long-term potential while also noting inevitable growing pains.

“Adding Dre and Javonte will be very different for us,” Mitchell said Thursday. “Continue to implement them into what we’ve got going. We have a lot of weapons. But this isn’t 2K. Don’t just plug and play. Gotta get out there and see what things look like.”

Regardless of how many games the Cavaliers win in the regular season, they will enter the playoffs as underdogs. Fans and insiders alike are collectively taking a “wait-and-see” approach as several teams in the East try to build the roster that falls Boston in a series. Cleveland has the record and seeding on its side, but in the hunt to beat the reigning champs, the team is one of many.

The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 129-122 on Wednesday, improving to 32-4 to maintain the best record in the NBA. The Thunder remain second best with a similarly dominant 30-6 record, but Cleveland came out on top in the rubber match between conference leaders.

In many ways, the game was a distillation of the exact play styles that have made both teams powerhouses in the 2024-25 season. The Thunder leaned heavily on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the MVP front-runner who delivered again in a 31-point performance. Forward Jalen Williams also came through with 25 points and nine assists. 

But while the Thunder, stocked to the brim with young talent, were as effective as ever on offense Wednesday, the team’s elite defense could not contain Cleveland. Instead of counting on one star, the Cavaliers were efficient from top to bottom, relying on seven different players to put up double-digit points totals. Star guards Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland performed well but took a back seat to forwards Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. Allen scored 25 points with 11 rebounds, while Mobley scored 21 with 10.

While the Thunder appear to be next in a long line of traditional championship contenders, building around superstar Gilgeous-Alexander, the Cavaliers are unique in their surprise run to the top of the Eastern Conference. Instead of relying on a single playmaker, the team instead focuses on elite efficiency and playmaking ability from everyone on the floor.

To defeat a team like the Thunder, opponents must choose one of three approaches: try to contain Gilgeous-Alexander, isolate him from the rest of his team, or run the Thunder’s historically strong defense off the floor with lights-out shooting. All three options have proven immensely difficult this season, but Wednesday’s game proved that defeating the Cavaliers in their current iteration is even harder. 

There is no clear target on Cleveland’s offense, no obvious focal point. Trying to contain the team is like trying to plug too many holes in the side of a boat. The Thunder remain the best defense in the league, but the team was completely hapless for long stretches against the Cavaliers, who stunned them with one of the most well-rounded attacks in the NBA’s recent history. In a league dominated by selfish basketball, Cleveland has developed a many-headed monster.

Of course, many insiders speculate that the Cavaliers are still doomed to also-ran status when the postseason arrives. From a long-term perspective, the criticisms come easily. The team has too many moving pieces and is too dependent on shooting efficiency. It’s a house of cards. Players get hurt; players go cold. The Celtics and Thunder have more bankable superstars and stronger defenses. The Cavaliers will rack up wins now but won’t be able to sustain momentum in a series. 

Looking at it months in advance, all of it checks out. They’re all logical things to say. But no one wants to play Cleveland tomorrow, and the number of days until the postseason is rapidly receding with each and every victory.

Well on the way to a blowout defeat Wednesday night, Los Angeles Lakers head coach J.J. Redick acquiesced to Cleveland Cavaliers fans and put Bronny James in the game late in the fourth quarter. James responded by scoring his first NBA basket on a midrange jumper, earning a roaring ovation on the road in his home city.

The Cavs went on to win 134-110 and are now 5-0 to start the season, but Wednesday’s game will go down in history for James’ feat. The 20-year-old Cleveland native finished his second NBA appearance with two points, two assists and a steal in five minutes. Though he did not react to the crowd’s support in the moment, he admitted afterwards that he was touched.

“It was insane,” Bronny said. “Much more than I anticipated for sure. But it’s all love. It was insane. It was a nice moment. The chants really got me. I was straight-faced, but I felt it and it felt really good, especially coming from here.”

James’ early reputation in the NBA has been closely tied to claims of nepotism, with many arguing that Lakers star LeBron James influenced Los Angeles’ decision to draft him. In limited appearances since the summer, Bronny has struggled to adjust to NBA-caliber play but demonstrated Wednesday night that he has a shot of finding his way. His father, who began his career in Cleveland and won a championship in the city in 2016, commended him for handling the crowd’s expectations.

“He’s better than I would have been in that situation … 20,000 fans screaming my name to get in the game and wanting me to be in the game, and if the role’s reversed, I don’t know if I would have been able to handle it,” LeBron said. “To see him get his first NBA basket in this arena where he grew up not too far away from here, it’s an unbelievable moment.”

The Lakers’ loss to Cleveland was more on LeBron than Bronny, as the 39-year-old star scored 26 points but also committed six turnovers. Anthony Davis scored 22 points and rookie Dalton Knecht impressed with 18 points off the bench, but the team’s role players simply didn’t do enough to back up the two stars.

On Monday, GM Kolby Altman hired Kenny Atkinson as the next head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs were the second-to-last team in the NBA to hire a new headman after firing J.B. Bickerstaff, who spent four years with the team but never advanced out of the second round.

The search came down to New Orleans Pelicans assistant James Borrego and Atkinson, but his age and championship experience gave him a leg up. Only the Detroit Pistons are missing a bench boss after firing Monty Williams one season into his six-year contract.

This is Atkinson’s next attempt as a head coach in the NBA, and his first opportunity since leaving the Brooklyn Nets in 2020 after spending four seasons with the team. However, he did not get a fair chance as Brooklyn tore down its roster during his reign. Atkinson spent the last three seasons as Steve Kerr’s top deputy, winning an NBA championship in his first year with the team. The Richmond alum almost left the West Coast to take the Charlotte Hornets job before getting cold feet and retracting his agreement. The 57-year-old worked on the New York Knicks, Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Clippers benches throughout his coaching career.

The Cavaliers hope that Atkinson can be the answer to getting the team over the hump. While Cleveland had linear progress over Bickerstaff, advancing one round further in the playoffs each year, the front office felt he did not get the best out of the roster.

ESPN reported that the Cavs will offer star SG Donovan Mitchell a max contract, so Atkinson will have plenty to work with. Along with Mitchell, Evan Mobley, the # 3 pick in the 2021 NBA draft, carried the roster during their playoff series against the Boston Celtics and looks to take the next step in his development.

Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love, once a key part of Cleveland’s 2016 NBA Finals team, is expected to leave the team soon. Reports suggest that the team is finalizing options to buy out his contract, a four-year, $120 million deal which expires at the end of the 2022-23 season.

Before the trade deadline, Cavaliers president Koby Altman denied rumors of a buyout but confirmed that Love was missing out on opportunities in Cleveland.

“It’s not easy for Kevin, I’m sure,” Altman said. “I’ve had conversations with him. He wants to play. I think he’ll have an opportunity to play again this year. But where we’re at now, I think [head coach J.B. Bickerstaff] is really comfortable with the rotation that we have.”

Love has not appeared in 12 straight games for the Cavaliers and will miss another Thursday night against the Philadelphia 76ers. A report from the Athletic’s Shams Charania suggest that the buyout will be finalized following the game.

After years as a starter on Cleveland’s roster, Love assumed a bench position in the 2021-22 season and has served as a reserve ever since. As the Cavaliers continue building around a young core of players, buying out Love’s contract could give them space to acquire new talent or retain younger members in the offseason.

Coming off the bench last season, Love managed to score 13.6 points per game with 7.2 rebounds, but the 34-year-old’s production has suffered this season. Though he has only managed 8.5 points per game, it’s likely that other teams would be interested in signing him if he becomes available.

The Miami Heat has already been rumored to be a potential suitor, and though that has been the only organization rumored to be interested thus far, analysts also speculate that the Suns, Lakers and others could also use his services. As a paint presence off the bench, Love could still prove useful for a number of teams fine-tuning their rosters before the postseason.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have lost five straight and Coach J.B. Bickerstaff is blaming the team’s hot start for a lack of recent results. At a time when things may or may not be contentious in the locker room, it would be unfortunate if he used a grabby animal metaphor that overshadowed his concrete ideas to stop the skid.

“I think honestly we got kind of a fat cat mentality,” Bickerstaff said at a press conference Wednesday night. “We went out and won eight games in a row, everybody was giving us love and praising us, and we got really comfortable.”

Ah. Oh well.

In Bickerstaff’s most recent press conference, he did not blame the Cavs’ recent troubles on their hot start alone, but he did cite it as the epicenter. He went on to say that the team’s defense began to slacken because of the offense’s stellar efficiency through the first nine games. He even said that his players’ confidence in their offense was deserved. But he also called himself and his players fat cats, and that’s a claim worth analyzing.

Through the Cavaliers’ first nine games, the team undoubtedly took care of business on both sides of the floor after an opening day loss to the Raptors. But upon closer inspection, the only highly touted team Cleveland played after Toronto was the Celtics, who they defeated twice on Oct. 28 and Nov. 2.

On paper, the Celtics are a superior team to the Cavaliers, which would make Bickerstaff’s claim of a hot start and subsequent regression seem legitimate. But in context, Cleveland’s two overtime victories over last year’s Eastern Conference champs make more sense in the early regular season. Either could have easily ended in defeat, and the Cavs matched up well with a Celtics team that was missing defensive contributor Robert Williams and entrenched in drama surrounding Coach Ime Udoka. The return of Cavs point guard Darius Garland from injury for the second game was also extremely timely and proved to make a difference in a 114-113 win.

Beyond those two wins against Boston, Cleveland have beat the Bulls, Wizards, Magic, Knicks, Pistons and Lakers. None of those six teams rank highly in either offensive or defensive efficiency and all are considered outsiders at best in terms of playoff contention at this point in the season.

Bickerstaff said that he first noticed the team’s complacency when they traveled West, but the team soundly thumped the Lakers on Nov. 6. The trouble actually began against the Clippers, a team sorely missing Kawhi Leonard but nevertheless finding success this season through improved defensive play. The two evenly matched teams played to the buzzer but Los Angeles rallied late to eke out a 119-117 win. It happens.

With the Cavs’ streak busted, a bounce-back performance against the Kings could have kept public perception high. But Sacramento’s highly efficient run-and-gun offense was unlike anything Cleveland’s defense had to deal with earlier in the season. The team got run off its feet in a 127-120 defeat.

The Warriors were next. Steph Curry scored 40 and Cleveland lost. Go figure. It was best for everyone to move on quickly to the Timberwolves, but Cleveland ran into some injury trouble and had to compete without starters Donovan Mitchell and Jarrett Allen. Despite a Herculean 51-point effort from Garland, an alleged fat cat, Minnesota won 129-124.

After four straight losses, all of which were sensible in their own ways, the Cavs had to face the Bucks in a matchup that would have been a nightmare regardless of the circumstances. Still without Allen down low, the team somehow managed to hold Giannis Antetokounmpo to 16 points, but Brook Lopez and Jordan Nwora made up the difference with brutalizing 29- and 21-point performances, respectively. The Cavs lost again 113-98.

All this fat cat business is starting to feel a little silly, huh?

Maybe it’s true that the Cavaliers went from a giant-slaying, tenacious 1-seed to the league’s complacent turnstile in the span of two weeks. Maybe Bickerstaff is right. But maybe, just maybe, teams running through Giannis and Curry are a little bit better than the Magic and Pistons. Maybe Cleveland is stronger with Mitchell and Allen on the floor every night.

The Cavaliers started the season hot, but a tougher schedule on the West Coast and a few poorly timed injuries have gotten the better of them in recent games. It’s hard to evaluate their performance and conclude otherwise from an outsider’s perspective, and that’s the point.

They’re an exciting young team with a legitimate shot at a playoff spot, and the coaching staff is going to do everything in their power to shake things up and get back on track. It’s their job to expect more than anyone else. But the reality of the situation is that the Cavaliers aren’t the best team in the Eastern Conference, nor are they fat cats riding on their reputation. They are what they are.

Despite a botched trade to the Knicks and questions about his past in Utah, Donovan Mitchell said Wednesday that he is completely focused on making his new team in Cleveland a winning one. He will join Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen on a team full of rising stars.

“We could really build something special,” Mitchell told ESPN. “I’m just excited to play with this team, play for this city, play with these guys and just get out there and just compete and win.”

After arriving in Cleveland Wednesday, Mitchell participated in an unofficial practice with his new team. At one point this offseason, the chances of him joining the Cavaliers seemed remote, but he is now getting to know teammates and buying into one of the most energetic teams in the league.

Looking back at all the trade talk involving the Knicks, even Mitchell expressed surprise that he didn’t end up going to New York. With an inside look at the entire process, Mitchell didn’t give away details but confirmed that the Jazz and Knicks were “very close” to a deal. As a native New Yorker, he nearly got a chance to return home.

“I was truly excited when I got traded [to the Cavs], but we were, it was, it was close [to the Knicks],” Mitchell said.

Trade talk for Mitchell began following an underwhelming year for the Jazz, a team which went 49-33 in the regular season before making a first-round exit in the playoffs. Compatibility issues between stars like Mitchell and Rudy Gobert became a common source of blame for the team’s struggles. Both players were traded away over the summer.

Recently hired Jazz CEO Danny Ainge seemed to agree that his old players didn’t mesh well, saying earlier this week that they “didn’t believe in one another.”

Mitchell disagreed with this assessment, however.

“I said at the end of the season, don’t trade [Gobert]. Let’s figure this out, let’s do. And that didn’t happen,” Mitchell said. “For him to say that after six months around the team, I disagree. But you know, at the end of the day, that’s his decision.”

For most of the offseason, Mitchell’s future was completely uncertain as the Jazz deliberated between multiple systems and trade partners. With the chaotic sweepstakes out of the way, Mitchell is content to learn the ropes in his new home. The way forward seems clear and bright.

When Colin Sexton was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, he looked to be the franchise player to lead Cleveland following the departure of LeBron James. He was athletic, explosive and tantalizing, everything you would want from your #8 overall pick. He flourished alongside other young pieces but now, after his fourth season in the NBA, it looks like Sexton will not be part of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ future plans.

Sexton, who is a restricted free agent, is reportedly not willing to take the Cavs offer sheet for a three-year, $40 million contract. Going into this offseason, it was said that the 24-year-old was looking for $20 million+ per year, but the offer of about $13.3 million is not at all what he may be worth. Sexton had averaged 24.3 points per game during the 2020-21 NBA season and looked to take another step this past season before a torn meniscus caused him to miss much of the last season.

In his absence, the Cavs young core blossomed. Darius Garland became an All-Star as the primary ball-handler, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen become one of the best frontcourts in the NBA, and players like Issac Okoro, Dean Wade and Lauri Markannen became key contributors for a team that made the postseason without Sexton.

Sexton has not explicitly said that he wants out of Cleveland, however, the salary offered would make him the 30th highest-paid point guard in the NBA, far below what a player of his caliber should be making.

If any team wants to take a flyer on him though, the Cavaliers reserve the right to match any offer sheet given to him, which they would most likely do.

Teams such as the Indiana Pacers and the San Antonio Spurs are the only teams that have enough cap space to procure a potential trade, therefore, this means that a sign-and-trade would be his only possible exit from Cleveland.

If Sexton is keen on leaving for greener pastures, he can sign a one-year qualifying offer and can become an unrestricted free agent after next season.

The Cavaliers beat the Raptors 104-96 Sunday evening to remain in sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings, but the win came at a high cost: Their All-Star C Jarrett Allen sustained a fractured finger and will be sidelined indefinitely.

Allen only played 10 minutes, but that was enough to do it. He added six points and two rebounds in the bittersweet victory.

As of yet, it’s unclear the severity of the injury, but it comes at an inopportune time for the team, which is in the midst of a playoff push. With the win, Cleveland is 37-27 and as of now wouldn’t have to play in the play-in tournament—seventh place does, though.

The Cavs have a three-game lead over Toronto for the sixth seed. The playoffs start in a month.

Allen was having perhaps his finest season: Over 55 games he’s averaged 16.3 points, 10.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.3 blocks. While he’s out the team will most likely use rookie Evan Mobley, veteran Kevin Love or even Ed Davis at center.

The rarest of the rare: A three-team NBA trade.

The Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers pulled off the swap Monday, with the centerpiece being two-time NBA champion point guard Rajon Rondo heading from Los Angeles to Cleveland.

Rondo went from the Lakers to the Cavs, and Denzel Valentine went from the Cavs to the Knicks, who then waived him. For the Lakers, it was more of a move to free up the salary and open a roster spot.

The move comes on the heels of Cavs point guard Ricky Rubio tearing his ACL.

The 6’1”, 180-pound Rondo played in 18 games for the Lakers this season. Throughout his 16-year NBA career, he’s appeared in 936 games (732 starts) with the Lakers, Clippers, Hawks, Pelicans, Bulls, Kings, Mavericks and Celtics.

He boasts career averages of 9.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 1.6 steals in 30.1 minutes per game. His 7,481 assists rank 14th all-time in league history and are fourth best among active players.

The veteran has also led the league in assists three times (2012, 2013, 2016) and steals once (2010) while registering 32 career triple-doubles and 236 double-doubles.

Houston Rockets‘ Jalen Green shined in his NBA Summer League debut against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Green spent last season playing for the Ignite in the G League and declared for the 2021 NBA Draft. Green was drafted by the Rockets with the second pick. Using his experience from the G League, he was able to make an impressive Summer League debut. Green scored 23 points, five rebounds and two assists in their 84-76 win over Cleveland. Green shot 9 of 18 from the field. The guards’ 23 points led all the starters.

“The ultimate goal for the G League Ignite was to be a pro and learn the game as much as we can before we head up to the NBA,” Green said after the game. “I think we accomplished that. We learned how to be a pro on and off the court. I think I showed it tonight.”

Green sure accomplished that with his scoring in the first game of the Summer League. Fellow teammate Alperen Sengun also shined in the game. Sengun recorded a double-double in the game. Sengun was the 16th pick of the draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder and traded to Houston. The Turkish player scored 15 points and brought down 15 rebounds in 27 minutes played. He also had four blocks in the game.

The Rockets were without guard Armoni Brooks, who was out due to COVID-19 protocols.

Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal will sit out the team’s next two games, the team announced.

Beal suffered a left hamstring in Washington’s game against the Indiana Pacers last Saturday.

“Bradley Beal has been diagnosed with a left hamstring strain following MRI testing conducted yesterday,” the team announced on Twitter. “He will miss the team’s next two games before being re-evaluated on Friday.”

Washington will reevaluate Beal on Friday before their home game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Wizards will conclude its regular season two days after their Cleveland game with a home game against the Charlotte Hornets.

This is bad news for Washington who is hoping to make the playoffs. The Wizards are currently ninth in the Eastern Conference and are trailing the Hornets by one game for the eighth seed. For Washington to make the playoffs, they must win two games to have a chance to get the last spot. Losing Beal hurts their chance of making the playoffs. Washington will have to rely on their other superstar Russell Westbrook, who is averaging 26.2 points, 16.4 assists and 15.8 rebounds per game in May.

For Beal, missing two games will hurt his chances of winning the scoring title this season. The Wizards star is currently averaging 31.4 points per game. He is currently in a neck-and-neck competition with Stephen Curry, who is averaging 31.9 points per game. With Beal sidelined, Curry now has the edge for the scoring title race.

The Houston Rockets have had a very unremarkable season, with a paltry 16 wins compared to 47 losses. They lost star big man Christian Wood for a part of the season, they parted ways with Demarcus Cousins and John Wall is now out for the remainder of the season. It’s reasonable to assume when James Harden was traded earlier this season from the Rockets to the Brooklyn Nets, one assumed that there wouldn’t be a lefty combo guard dropping a 50-point double-double in the Toyota Center for a really long time. Boy, was everyone wrong.

Kevin Porter Jr, traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers for just a second-round pick, scored 51 points and added 11 assists in the Rockets’ 143-136 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Porter Jr. became the youngest player of all time with a 50-point, 10-assist game, surpassing LeBron James, who did it at age 23. Porter Jr. was also the fourth-youngest player of all time to score 50 points, behind elite scorers James, Devin Booker and Brandon Jennings. This was a truly remarkable game for a player who was fined over 50 grand just a day ago, for entering a strip club.

Porter Jr is clearly a very talented player. In just his second season in the NBA and first with the Rockets, he averaged 15.2 points per game, as well as 6.2 assists per game on 41% from the field. His issue lies off the court. Going back to his college days, he’s frequently been suspended or fined for disorderly conduct and poor actions. If Porter Jr. can get his head on straight, he could be the start of a great young nucleus going forward. With an assuredly high draft pick this upcoming draft due to poor play this year, star center and most improved candidate Wood and Porter Jr. could lead the Rockets to being a contender again in just a few seasons. They own the majority of Brooklyn’s draft capital as well. The future appears to be very bright in Houston.