Wakanda invading Cleveland?: WFNY Roundtable
December 7, 2018Baker Mayfield, Browns beat the Panthers, 26-20
December 9, 2018“If you love something set it free. If it comes back it’s yours. If not, it was never meant to be.”
Well Cleveland, it looks as though Matthew Dellavedova is ours and it was in fact meant to be. The Cavaliers made quite a splash Friday night, at least in The Land, when they acquired Matthew Dellavedova, John Henson, a 2021 first-round pick, and a 2021 second-round pick from the Milwaukee Bucks for George Hill and Sam Dekker, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Brian Windhorst.
The Bucks owe Phoenix a 2019 first-round pick protected 1-7 and 17-30 via Bledsoe trade, so Bucks will trade Cleveland their first-round pick two years after that one conveys to the Suns — with the protections going in this order. https://t.co/2bS051dP9z
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) December 7, 2018
There’s a reason the two teams tried to get a deal done prior to 6 p.m. on Friday:
The deal came together Friday in time for teams to be able to re-package players in other trades before February’s trade deadline. That was an impetus for getting the deal done now. The Cavs have been very aggressive in looking to move out veterans for future picks, now having acquired four future picks in the past 10 days including a trade that sent Kyle Korver to Utah.
It seems to be a win-win for both teams in the trade. For the Cavs, they get to bring back a fan favorite while also receiving a solid big man and draft picks. Delly might just need a change of scenery and at the worst, he will backup Sexton and help the young rookie develop, all while playing a role off the bench. For the Bucks, they save about $19 million in cap relief and now have much more flexibility this upcoming offseason, when three of their key players — Khris Middleton, Eric Bledsoe, and Malcolm Brogdon — will become free agents. Hill also gives the Bucks some much-needed depth in the backcourt.
Delly, who has struggled ever since the start of 2017-18 season, was averaging a career-low 8.1 minutes per game and had played in just 12 of Milwaukee’s 23 games this season. Sent to Milwaukee in a sign-and-trade following the Cavaliers’ remarkable title run in 2016, the 28-year-old signed a four-year, $38.43 million deal with the Bucks and is still owed $9,607,500 this season and next season before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2020. Like Dellavedova, Henson is also signed through next season. The big man will make $10.4 million in 2019-20.
Hill, on the other hand, is averaging 10.8 points, 2.8 assists, and 2.1 rebounds a night while shooting 51.4 percent from the floor and 46.4 percent from beyond the arc in 26.5 minutes per game.
Between Delly and Henson, the latter will likely make the biggest impact, but it will take a while to find out. Henson has been out since November 14 and is expected to be out several months following wrist surgery.
Hill was one of the Cavs’ biggest trade chips this season. With that said, Cleveland got back quite a haul for him and Dekker. With his departure, it now opens the door for Collin Sexton to officially take over the starting point guard role, which will give him plenty of experience in order to continue to improve during his rookie season.
One of the worst teams in the league, the wine and gold would be smart to eat some money in order to stock up on more assets, especially in the draft. Doing so while acquiring a fan favorite like Delly makes it even better. This will all but certainly not be the first trade the Cavs make this season, as they will look to offload players such as JR Smith and others to acquire more draft picks and/or younger players. It’s very likely that Smith’s team-friendly structure of his contract and Alec Burks — who the Cavs acquired from the Jazz in the deal that sent Kyle Korver to Utah — will be dealt prior to the deadline in February. So far, the Cavs have acquired a first-round pick and three second-round picks for Hill and Korver, along with some additional players as well.
Whether he turns it around or not, one thing is certain: Delly is home, you guys! What a time to be alive. He could not score the rest of the season and Cavs fans will still love him.
Have some Delly Fever? WFNY has you covered with some of our favorite Delly-related stories from his first stint with the Cavs.
Sampling of WFNY Matthew Dellavedova stories
Something about Maryboroughhttps://t.co/ez4J4vJtIq
Game 3: 2015 NBA Finalshttps://t.co/hhsuFaWPJ7
Delly Feverhttps://t.co/uA1iUSWhDJ
Return of The Unstoppableshttps://t.co/rQAudF7tNb
— WaitingForNextYear (@WFNYCLE) December 7, 2018