The NBA trade rumors continue to haunt the Cleveland Cavaliers. For some fans it has become disrespectful of their team's achievements.
Even more players are being dragged into the rumor mill. Kevin Love was the staple of the rumor mill even after their title, simply because he was perceived as a poor fit.
For the longest time, Love was linked with every center in the trade market. DeMarcus Cousins was the biggest name but Love was also linked to the Philadelphia centers, Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel.
Now, the latest rumors have linked Love with a familiar face for LeBron James. The Miami Heat's Chris Bosh has always been perceived as a better fit for the Cavaliers and a trade between Love and Bosh has been speculated months after James returned to Cleveland.
According to Sir Charles in Charge, Bosh was seen hanging out with Maverick Carter in Los Angeles, and that is usually enough to start a discussion. The arguments for Bosh is the same: "Bosh is actually a better fit for the Cleveland Cavaliers than Kevin Love is. He's a better defender, better post presence and has been through the battles with LeBron before. He knows how to play the third fiddle better than Love, too."
The truth is, even with clearance from the Miami medical staff, Bosh remains a legitimate health risk. Kevin Love has also gone through the LeBron James' "initiation" and passed with a championship ring on his finger. We're not closing the door on a Kevin Love trade, but it's probably not for Chris Bosh.
The Iman Shumpert trade rumors are also interesting. Considering that JR Smith has not yet been signed, this was a real puzzler.
Various rumor sites like Parent Herald and Centrio Times carried the headlines of an Iman Shumpert trade. HNGN noted that the target was the Memphis Grizzlies Vince Carter. That seems improbable because Carter is on his last legs and the Cavs can't determine what "half-man, half-amazing" can offer them at this point. This is simply not the way to defend your title.
On the other side of the spectrum, sites like Chatt Sports Net claimed that Andre Iguodala was demanding a trade-which he later retracted. A further report mentioned that the Golden State Warriors were interested in trading Iguodala for Shumpert because of the "age factor."
Iguodala is such a vital cog in the Warriors' machine that they chose to let a younger, taller Harrison Barnes walk away in restricted free agency just to keep AI. Why would they trade him for Shumpert?
The Cleveland Cavaliers will likely explore trades during the season, but clearly, they are looking for immediate improvement. None of the trade rumors discussed would deliver that, except the Andre Iguodala trade. However, the Warriors became a championship organization by acquiring quality talent-the trade that involves him here simply contradicts that paradigm.