Cavaliers active in trade talks as deadline approaches

To say the Cavaliers are active in trade talks is an understatement. They've already pulled off one deal and they don't appear to be done yet. The NBA trade deadline is 3 p.m. Thursday and talks could go right to the wire. Cleveland shipped off De'Andre Hunter to Sacramento on Saturday for guards Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis. The latest report is a Darius Garland-for-James Harden deal. This one is a little mind-boggling since Garland is 26 years old and the Los Angeles Clippers point guard is 36. Their salaries line up and even though Cleveland is over the second apron of the luxury tax, they can make the one-for-one trade. The holdup might be the Cavs insisting on a draft pick in return from the Clippers in the possible deal. If the Clippers succumb, this trade could happen. Harden is a better player and at 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, a lot bigger than Garland. Garland has several attributes to like and could blow by Harden with ease on the court. Neither player is very good defensively. Teams target Garland on defense and his 6-1, 192-pound size is a detriment. But, again, his athletic ability and quickness are outstanding and almost impossible to stop from getting to the basket. Harden also gets to the rim quite often but does it in a different manner: Using his big body. He gets to the foul line as much as any player in the league. Both players are very good perimeter threats and have 3-point accuracy. Garland has been injury-prone for most of his career. He's currently on the shelf with a sprained right big toe. He missed considerable time after having surgery on his left big toe. The injuries through the years have been plentiful. When he's healthy, he's been very productive and a two-time All-Star. But staying healthy has been a major problem. Garland would be missed in the locker room, as he's one of the most popular players on the team. Harden, known as "The Beard," won the league's Most Valuable Player award in 2017-18. He has been a three-time NBA scoring champion and twice led the league in assists. Harden has been an 11-time All-Star and eight-time All-NBA player. He's averaged 24.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 7.3 assists in his 17-year career. He's shot .438 from the field, .362 from the 3-point line and .863 from the foul line. Harden has a player option on his contract next year, which might be appealing to Cleveland. It could move on from him and try to reload with a more friendly cap situation. The Cavs are also in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes. The Milwaukee Bucks star seems to be on the brink of leaving the Bucks via a trade, and Cleveland has reportedly made an offer. But it's not going to be easy to pull it off. The Cavs would have to first get under the second apron before they could assemble enough talent to send to Milwaukee. That could be accomplished by shipping off Max Strus and taking back little in return to get under the second apron. Then, they'd have to send power forward Evan Mobley and several other players to the Bucks. Trading Mobley is risky. He's one of the best young bigs in the league, even though he's not quite in Antetokounmpo's class. That would be the type of player Milwaukee could build around. If Mobley eventually turns into a power, Cleveland's front office might have egg on its face. If Antetokounmpo helps the Cavs win a championship, it would be worth it. Many believe the Bucks want swingman Jaylon Tyson included in the deal. That's where the Cavs might balk. Cleveland is also trying to deal guard Lonzo Ball, as Washington and Charlotte appear to be interested. Those teams want the Cavs to include a draft pick in the deal for offloading Ball's $10 million salary. That might be a slight holdup. Bob Finnan can be reached at rfinnan30@gmail.com. Follow him @BobCavsinsider on X.