The red-hot Cleveland Cavaliers have been surging despite not having Darius Garland and Evan Mobley on the floor lately, going 11-3 in their last 14 games. The Cavs have tons of momentum in their corner, with some thinking they could have a shot to make a deep run in the Eastern Conference come playoff time.

However, even when Garland and Mobley return to the floor, the Cavs realistically only have 12 players to lean on most nights. Sure, 10-day signees Pete Nance, Ty Jerome, and Damian Jones are on the roster. But Cleveland head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said that Nance will likely spend most of his contract with the Cleveland Charge, the Cavs' NBA G League affiliate. Meanwhile, Jerome hasn't played for Cleveland since their home-opening loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder and Damian Jones has been phased out of the rotation entirely in favor of veteran big man Tristan Thompson.

That's why the annual trade deadline is fast approaching; the Cavs will look to add more depth pieces to their rotation. According to NBA Insider Marc Stein, through his Substack The Stein Line, Atlanta Hawks forward De'Andre Hunter could be on Cleveland's radar before the deadline passes.

“Atlanta’s De’Andre Hunter is said to be another name to watch in Cleveland’s ongoing search for a 3-and-D upgrade — although absorbing Hunter’s contract (which has three seasons and $70 million left on it after this season) makes him a challenging payroll fit (and, frankly, difficult for the Hawks to trade anywhere).”

According to sources, this wouldn't be the first time the Cavs have tried to acquire Hunter since Cleveland was trying to acquire him and Darius Garland on the night of the 2019 NBA Draft. On paper, the fit would be seamless, giving the Cavs a player who could defend multiple spots on the floor, fire away from the perimeter, and fill their need for a bigger wing that can be at either forward position. Unfortunately, for those who are hoping to order a custom No. 12 Hunter jersey in wine, black, or gold, the Atlanta forward just isn't a realistic trade target for Cleveland.

The Cavs don't need to make a move for Hunter

JB Bickerstaff coaching the Cavaliers.

To Stein's point, Hunter is in the first year of his four-year, $90 million contract extension, with his current salary earning him $20.1 million a season. For the Cavs, who are limited asset-wise already, it would require stacking up multiple salaries to satiate the financial ramifications of acquiring Hunter.

To land Hunter, Cleveland would have to give up Jarrett Allen or a combination of either Caris LeVert or Max Strus, along with the smaller salaries of Jerome, Jones, or even Dean Wade. Trading Allen for Hunter would be a fireable offense for any team. Ditto for trying to send out one of LeVert or Strus, two of the team's most dynamic roleplayers. More importantly, the fact that the Cavs, a team that already is limited depth-wise to begin with would have to give up multiple players for just Hunter makes the juice not worth the squeeze for Cleveland. Teams only make moves on that level to acquire a superstar, which Hunter simply isn't.

It's also not hard for the Cavs to ignore Hunter's future financial guarantees. Again, he's just entering the first year of a four-year contract extension and for a team as thin on the margins as Cleveland, Hunter's contract could ruin everything they've built. Donovan Mitchell's future in Cleveland would become nearly impossible to function financially if the Cavs acquired Hunter. Ditto for possibly signing Jarrett Allen to another extension or even the money involved for the Cavs to sign Evan Mobley to a full-scale rookie contract extension.

With all that in mind, having financial flexibility in the future is far more important than an overpaid roleplayer like Hunter. There's a reason why the Hawks are struggling to unload his salary already, especially since teams that might be interested want to be able to make further moves while navigating the ramifications of the NBA's new Collective Bargaining Agreement.

So, as fun as the idea is for Cleveland to go nuclear and acquire Hunter, they should be looking for a smaller explosive to continue igniting their run. Sources say Brooklyn's Royce O'Neale or even Atlanta's Sadiq Bey could be more realistic viable options for the Cavs. But there's still some time left until Cleveland decides on the deadline. The clock is ticking.