While the Spurs wait to find out who will survive the Eastern Conference finals and face San Antonio for the NBA championship, 27 teams are already fully immersed in their plans for 2013-14. That will begin with the draft on June 27, though there are usually a handful of moves made in the days leading up to that night. This year, with the draft board offering seemingly more depth than star power, it will be interesting to see how that affects the draft trade market.
Will teams at the top of the draft try to trade down to add an additional pick or a veteran? Will teams further along in their development try to move into position to target players who fill specific rotation holes? The uncertainty begins at the top, where the Cleveland Cavaliers are open for business when it comes to the draft's top pick.
With that in mind, here are three trade scenarios that could make everybody happy. I did this last year, and the teams didn't listen to any of my proposals. Probably for the best, though I still like that Bulls-Kings scenario, which would have left the Bulls with an Omer Asik-Andre Drummond center combo. And the Grizzlies did eventually deal Rudy Gay for a lower-usage small forward, so you never know.
Note that in each of these scenarios, smaller pieces may need to be added to make the deals work under the cap. I've listed the main pieces for the framework of each proposal.
1. The Cleveland Cavaliers trade Anderson Varejao and the Nos. 19 and 31 picks to the Chicago Bulls for Luol Deng and Marquis Teague.
Deng
If Cleveland is going to make a push to bring LeBron James back to Ohio during the summer of 2014, that process begins on draft night as the Cavaliers craft their roster for 2013-14. Part of that is going to involve adding a veteran to the rotation while young players Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, Tristan Thompson and Tyler Zeller are all playing on their rookie contracts. Once some or all of those contracts are extended in a few years, the cap wiggle room will get tight.
Varejao had an excellent rapport with James when they played together before, but he's superfluous at this point. Thompson showed signs of becoming a younger and more athletic version of Varejao, though they don't really play the same position. However, Cleveland has Zeller around to man the middle, with top draft pick Nerlens Noel getting a full development year behind him once he's able to play. Teague gives Cleveland a much-needed backup for Irving.
Also, let's not forget how James has thrived while primarily playing the 4 in Miami this season. There is no reason whatsoever he and Deng couldn't play together in a small, quick starting lineup or even as the wings in a big lineup.
From the Bulls' standpoint, the deal accomplishes a couple of things. They would save about $5 million in the difference between the salaries of Deng and Varejao. Chicago could subsequently use the amnesty provision on Carlos Boozer a year earlier than expected, creating a beastly defensive big-man rotation of Joakim Noah, Varejao and Taj Gibson. That trio would make a nice eventual complement to European sharpshooter Nikola Mirotic, whom Chicago is expected to bring stateside in 2014. Jimmy Butler moves into Deng's spot, which he occupied so well during this season's playoffs.
After buying out Richard Hamilton, the Bulls would be able to retain Nate Robinson and Marco Belinelli, and would have draft picks at Nos. 19, 20 and 31 to fill out the roster. Varejao has a partially-guaranteed season remaining on his contract for 2014-15, which could be the deal-breaker. That's if Gar Forman and John Paxson are really planning to swing for the fences and go after a max-type player in 2014. Even as it is, the Bulls would have to do some serious cap tap dancing to make that happen. To proactively move Deng rather than wait for his contract to expire after this season makes sense.
2. The Cleveland Cavaliers trade the No. 1 overall pick, Dion Waiters and Tyler Zeller to the Sacramento Kings for DeMarcus Cousins.
Cousins
Let's say the new regime taking over the Kings decides that in order to turn the page from the Maloof years, it has to begin by moving on from the Cousins-Tyreke Evans years. Evans will be a restricted free agent, and that is a separate issue. Cousins is entering the last year of his rookie deal, making him eligible for an extension in October. If the Kings are ready to pull the plug on the talented but undisciplined center, then no team could offer a package of young assets more attractive than what Cavaliers general manager Chris Grant could send their way. And doing so would likely further strengthen Cleveland's position when it comes to re-signing James.
Chad Ford also mentions this possibility in his NBA draft blog entry today, including several juicy rumors.
If Cleveland pulls off both trades in these scenarios, then it'd be left with a 2013-14 lineup of Irving, Cousins, Thompson, Deng and a 3-and-defensive wing to be named. Beyond that, Cleveland would still have nothing but team options and Alonzo Gee's $3 million player option on the books for 2014-15. Deng's cap hold and a possible extension for Cousins might mean that Grant has to move some pieces around to make room for a max deal for James, but it could be done and the foundation in place would be superior to anything the King had to work with in his first stint with the Cavaliers.
Besides, even if the James plan is a pipedream, an Irving-Cousins-Thompson-Deng core is a really nice starting point for a team on the rise, especially since Deng could likely be retained with an average annual salary much lower than his current $13-14 million level.
3. The New Orleans Pelicans trade the No. 6 pick and Greivis Vasquez to the Boston Celtics for Rajon Rondo.
Rondo
If Danny Ainge is ready to hit the reset button in Boston, it's going to have to start with gathering young pieces while he gets his long-term payroll in order. Vasquez was one of the league's most improved players and offers a pretty fair amount of the same kind of production the Celtics have gotten from Rondo over the years. Plus, he's cheap and the lottery pick could be cashed in on a much-needed big man or shooting guard.
Boston also owns the No. 16 pick. Given that the Celtics were competitive without Rondo, this deal works even if Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett end up back in Boston for another run, and it gets the Celtics under the tax line.
For the Pelicans, the idea is to accelerate the development of a very nice young roster. Rondo, Anthony Davis, a hopefully healthy Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson and Robin Lopez is an excellent foundation. Meanwhile, Austin Rivers could be developed as a sixth man. Like Cleveland, the time for New Orleans to add veteran pieces is coming sooner than you think. Gordon is already locked up with an eight-figure per year deal, and Davis will be getting one before you know it.