NBA Rumors: Rockets Could Trade Anderson, Onuaku, & Draft Picks To Cavs For Kevin Love, Per ‘Bleacher Report’
After failing to sign LeBron James, the Houston Rockets are expected to be in the market for another superstar to pair with Chris Paul and James Harden. The Rockets obviously need more star power on their team, especially after the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors acquired DeMarcus Cousins in free agency.
According to Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report, one of their potential targets on the trade market is Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Now that LeBron James is gone, the All-Star forward is expected to be the next superstar to leave the Cavaliers. Love will be a great addition to the Rockets, giving them another reliable option on the offensive end of the floor.
In the 59 games he played last season, Love averaged 17.6 points and 9.3 rebounds on 45.8 percent shooting from the field, and 41.5 percent from beyond the arc. Spending three seasons playing with Kyrie Irving and LeBron James, Love won’t have a hard time being the Rockets’ third scoring option next to James Harden and Chris Paul.
In the suggested trade scenario by Bleacher Report, the Rockets would send Ryan Anderson, Chinanu Onuaku, and 2019 and 2021 first-round picks to the Cavaliers for Kevin Love. The proposed trade deal works on ESPN‘s NBA Trade Machine. The trade is undeniably a win-win situation for the Rockets as they will acquire another superstar while getting rid of Anderson’s contract.
“In this deal, the Rockets would finally get off their worst contract, as Anderson is owed nearly $42 million over the next two years. The Cavaliers can afford to take that back since they won’t be in the market for a marquee free agent for years to come. Love fits the Rockets’ offensive identity, which focuses on shots inside the paint and outside the arc. The 29-year-old hit 2.3 threes per game at a 41.5 percent clip for Cleveland this past season.”
Cavs would need to be “blown away by an offer” to move Kevin Love ahead of the upcoming season https://t.co/CumELR17y6 pic.twitter.com/qFyYRmrmIu
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 8, 2018
Aside from the future first-round picks, it remains questionable if the Cavaliers are willing to part ways with Kevin Love to take Ryan Anderson and Chinanu Onuaku. Onuaku is a young and promising talent, but the Cavaliers already have Ante Zizic as their center of the future. An NBA executive also told Terry Pluto of Cleveland Plain Dealer that the Cavaliers will only move Love if they got “blown away” by an offer. The NBA executive believes Love’s trade value will increase during the 2018-19 NBA season, especially before the February, 2019, NBA trade deadline.
