There have been rumors about a trade between Jordan and the Cleveland Cavaliers for some time, but there has been no substantial action. According to previous news, the chips the Cavaliers are willing to pay are Tristan Thompson and the 2018 Nets first-round draft pick plus one more player.
In fact, with Kyrie Irving leaving the team, the Cavaliers' lineup is aging, center Tristan Thompson's condition has declined seriously, and Iman Shumpert's efficiency has declined and he has been plagued by injuries. Regarding the Cavaliers' pursuit Rumors of the deal never stopped. But every rumor is inseparable from the Nets' 2018 first-round draft pick, which is also one of the valuable chips the Cavaliers obtained from the Irving trade.
The importance of draft picks has a very important relationship with the decision of star LeBron James this summer. Once James commits to staying with the team, the Cavaliers are very likely to send out this first-round pick in exchange for A reliable player to strengthen the team to compete with the Warriors; but James has not made a commitment to stay on the team, which makes the Cavaliers very cautious. They have lost the young Kyrie Irving. Once James leaves the team, they will have another Without the draft picks, the Cavaliers would fall into an abyss and would not know where to start in rebuilding, so at this time, the draft picks become very important.
But at the same time, the Brooklyn Nets' record this season exceeded outside expectations. Although generals Jeremy Lin and D'Angelo Russell were injured successively, the Nets still ranked with a record of 15 wins and 24 losses. Ranking 12th in the Eastern Conference, which is better than at least 7 teams in the league, and Russell is about to come back, the Nets' strength will be even higher. In other words, the value of the Nets' signing is constantly declining.
To put it simply, the first-round pick, that is, the 2018 Nets pick, has the greatest connection with James’ decision. If he stays, the first-round pick is just a bargaining chip; but if he doesn’t stay, this pick is right. The Cavaliers are very important, although his value is constantly declining.