With less than two weeks to go until the 2024 NBA Draft, there's bound to be a ton of speculation regarding the future between Darius Garland and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Moments after Cleveland's season ended, it became publicly known that Garland would look for a trade if the Cavs could re-sign Donovan Mitchell this summer.
While Cavs President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman has made it clear that he doesn't see any wholesale change coming to Cleveland's roster, and league sources have shared that the Cavs aren't actively looking to trade Garland, the supposed trade demand still hasn't been retracted. Sources tell ClutchPoints that if Cleveland does entertain the notion of trading Garland, especially if there's a public demand, the San Antonio Spurs, the Orlando Magic, the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Utah Jazz will quickly swoop in to make the Cavs an offer.
While all the aforementioned teams make sense for Garland, the Spurs stand above the rest as his best possible basketball fit. Pairing Garland next to superstar big man Victor Wembanyama would be lethal on the court. Moreover, based on a recent mock draft by ClutchPoints, on the night of the 2024 NBA Draft, San Antonio could make an offer that Cleveland could consider.
What could Spurs offer Cavs for Darius Garland?
In a shocking draft night move, here's what the hypothetical trade proposes in a three-team deal between Cleveland, San Antonio and the Toronto Raptors:
Cleveland gets: Keldon Johnson, Tre Jones, the No. 8 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, the No. 35 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft
San Antonio gets: Darius Garland, Chris Boucher, the No. 20 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft
Toronto gets: Devonte Graham, 2025 second-round pick (via Cleveland)
Spurs would likely win this hypothetical trade
Overall, the Spurs would walk away from this trade the biggest winner since no player they can select with the No. 8 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft would ever have the immediate on-court impact that Garland could. San Antonio would also still have two selections on draft night, which in this mock draft has them taking Nikola Topic and Tidjane Salaun through several other draft night maneuvers.
For the Spurs to be able to walk away with a franchise point guard and two high-upside international prospects, it may seem like San Antonio may have robbed the ferry in Blackwater rather than the Van der Linde gang. Sure, the Cavs get a high-upside role player in Johnson and a reliable backup point guard in Jones to bolster their rotation in this hypothetical trade. But what really matters in grading this trade is what Cleveland does with the two picks they acquire from San Antonio.
In this mock draft, the Cavs take Colorado forward Cody Williams with the No. 8 pick, implying that Cleveland is banking on his upside. Sure, Williams is someone they have had their eyes on during the pre-draft process. He brings toughness and adds depth on the wing, but he is still a raw player who will need to develop further, likely in the G League, to unlock his two-way potential. But considering that the Cavs can't afford to move a franchise cornerstone for a development project like Williams, perhaps they could expand this three-team trade into a larger deal and acquire the star power needed to mitigate the loss of Garland.
Perhaps Cleveland could expand and facilitate a sign-and-trade to acquire Paul George from the Los Angeles Clippers. Or maybe the Cavs call up the Washington Wizards and gauge the availability of a package centered around Kyle Kuzma. The same mindset can be had when it comes to the New Orleans Pelicans and Brandon Ingram, the Timberwolves and Jalen McDaniels, or the Magic and Franz Wagner.
Sure, players like McDaniels and Wagner aren't readily available, and their respective teams will need a generous offer to consider trading them. Regardless, that should be the Cavs' mindset in a hypothetical trade like this. Similarly to chess, it isn't the initial return that Cleveland gets for Garland that matters. Instead, what matters more is what the Cavs do with the assets they obtain to find a star to pair with Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley.
Finally, the Raptors are happy to be involved in this deal and receive draft compensation for a big man who is not part of their future plans.
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