The rest of the year is going to be fun and hopefully these guys gel.
That said, I can't help but think about how this trade impacts the future. Obviously, the big question is, "does it move the needle and convince LeBron to stay?".
However, these trades are particularly intriguing when I look at the future salaries we took on (particularly Hill $18-20m per through 2020 and Clarkson $13m per through 2020).
For next year ('18-'19), let's make a few assumptions that probably go hand-in-hand: a.) the "new" team clicks and works works well together, and b.) LeBron chooses to stay in CLE (yipee!). Looking at the roster, we'd have:
- LeBron signs a max deal (assume $35m)
- Hood needs to be resigned. I'm going to assume a JR-type contact of $15m per. Yes, this could be debated....
- We have the Brooklyn pick (assume $4m)
- We have a MLE (assume $5m per year)
- We have 2 vet min slots to fill (assume $2m each)
Total payroll sums in the range of $165+ million. Luxury tax on that is, by my calculation, somewhere in the $195 million range (HOLY SHIT!). Note: please someone check my math. I don't care how much money Dan has, he's not paying $360 million in salaries+tax.
With this in mind, I have to imagine the Cavs are going to need to be active to keep the roster affordable. In my mind, we would need to be looking at trading some combination of JR, Thompson, Clarkson, Hill, and picks for cheaper/younger talent. The problem is, as evidenced by the trade market yesterday, there isn't a demand for overpriced role players.
The good part is, we have the rest of this year/playoffs to see who fits and who is expendable.
Something to chew on over the next several months while were watching this team, hopefully, make another strong run.
