This is the type of change that catapults you into title contenders, not right now but in the near future. Acquiring Deng shows the young guys that we are done losing and that we are turning the corner as a franchise. That has to be so exciting for guys like Kyrie and Dion who have been on a shitty team since drafted. And don't tell me Dion isn't excited because Deng will take away shots because last time I checked in here people were saying Dion wants to win more than anyone else on the team.
We now have a nice, solid group of young guys (including Deng at 28 in his prime) to build around. And this group could be good enough to entice LeBron to come back, and if we can work it out to keep Deng and still sign LeBron we would win no less than two championships within 5 years, hell maybe more. Kyrie, Dion, Deng, LeBron, TT, Karasev, Zeller, CJ, Jack, a decent 2014 draft pick... That's a talented and pretty deep roster. We could also probably get some solid ring-chasing vets for cheap.
This is the trade that turns the corner for the franchise, if LeBron returns and we win multiple championships, we can look back and thank this trade for those championships. We needed to start winning eventually, now that we got Deng that will start soon. This was a stepping stone for the future, now only a few more pieces need to fall into place for us to be a championship contender. It may take a year for that, it may take 3-5 years but we are heading in the right direction. Even if LeBron doesn't come back, we are still in a great position for future success.
