Trade Proposal Sends Brandon Ingram, Cole Anthony To Cavaliers, Darius Garland To Magic, Wendell Carter Jr., Caris LeVert To Pelicans
Former NBA exec John Hollinger, who now writes for The Athletic, proposed a “fake trade” between the Cleveland Cavaliers, New Orleans Pelicans and Orlando Magic.
Check it out:
Brandon Ingram and Cole Anthony to Cleveland; Darius Garland to Orlando; Wendell Carter Jr., Jett Howard and Caris LeVert to New Orleans
Ingram averaged 20.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.6 blocks for the Pelicans in 2023-24 while shooting 49.2% from the field, 35.5% from beyond the arc and 80.1% from the free-throw line.
Ingram is in the final year of his contract. He’ll make $36 million in 2024-25.
The Pelicans are open to trading Ingram, but teams are hesitant to acquire the Duke product since he wants a $200 million extension, multiple NBA sources told Hoops Wire.
Garland averaged 18.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.1 blocks for the Cavaliers in 2023-24 while shooting 44.6% from the field, 37.1% from beyond the arc and 83.4% from the free-throw line. He’ll make $36.7 million next season.
Garland doesn’t have a no-trade clause in his contract. There have been rumors that Klutch Sports Group will ask the Cavaliers to trade Garland since they won’t want him next to Donovan Mitchell, but Rich Paul hasn’t submitted a trade request (yet).
LeVert averaged 14.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.5 blocks for the Cavaliers this past season while shooting 42.1% from the field, 32.5% from 3 and 76.6% from the foul line. The swingman will make $16.6 million next season in the final year of his contract.
For the Magic, Carter Jr. averaged 11.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.6 steals and 0.5 blocks in 2023-24 while shooting 52.5% overall, 37.4% from 3 and 69.4% from the free-throw line. The big man will make $11.9 million next season.
Finally, Anthony averaged 11.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.5 blocks in 2023-24 for the Magic while shooting 43.5% overall, 33.8% from 3 and 82.6% from the free-throw line. The guard will make $12.9 million next season.
The Cavaliers lost to the Boston Celtics in the second round of the 2024 NBA playoffs in five games, the Magic lost to the Cavaliers in the first round in seven games and the Pelicans got swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round.
