Russell Westbrook (Photo : Getty Images)
The Cleveland Cavaliers could bring Russell Westbrook to counter the newly-formed super-team in the Bay Area.
Kevin Durant's decision to join the Golden State Warriors has drastically changed the landscape of the NBA. It bodes bad news to teams around the league and a major threat to any the Cavs' hopes of defending their title.
Surely, the Cavs will need all the help they can get to match the Warriors' immense talent, but with the market already dried up and Cleveland's very limited budget to add key players, the only chance they have is to explore potential trade deals. According to Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post, trading for Russell Westbrook could be an option for the Cavs.
In Bontemps' trade scenario, the Cavs would send Kyrie Irving to the Thunder for Westbrook, who has been in the heat of trade rumors following Durant's move to join the Warriors. While Bontemps admitted trading Irving won't happen, pursuing Westbrook would make sense for the Cavs, who aside from securing LeBron James, have yet to acquire any significant addition to their championship roster.
Bringing Westbrook would give the Cavs a dominant scorer and an-all around guard who can wreak havoc on the open court. Westbrook averaged 23.5 points, 10.4 assists and 7.8 rebounds per game for the Thunder last season, and while he may not bring the same numbers playing alongside James and Irving, he could still be as effective as he has been in OKC.
Bleacher Report's Howard Beck claimed during his appearance on the site's Team Stream Now that one NBA general manager told him that instead of focusing on defense to halt the Warriors' juggernaut offensive prowess, it could be wise for the Cavs to negate Golden State by outscoring them. Westbrook would seamlessly fit into that category, having been known as one of the dominant scorers in the league.
With Irving highly likely untouchable to be dealt, trading Kevin Love may entice the Thunder to move Westbrook, a deal approved by ESPN's trade machine.
There is no way the Thunder plan to lose another star without getting valuable assets in return. Adding Love would secure them of a prolific scorer who could perfectly complement the Thunder's defensive frontcourt of Steven Adams and Enes Kanter.
The Cavs' only means of improving is thru trading Love, who has struggled playing behind James and Irving. On the other hand, the Thunder need pieces essential for their rebuild, with Westbrook, who enters the final year of his five-year $78.5 million contract with the Thunder, also expected to leave next summer.
It could be a long-shot for the Cavs to acquire Westbrook, but the need to match the Warriors' level may force Cleveland to pull off all the stops, including trading Love.
