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Los Angeles Lakers: Grading the trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers

By Dominic Torres

CLEVELAND, OH - FEBRUARY 3: (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - FEBRUARY 3: (Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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Los Angeles Lakers: 3 reasons trading Jordan Clarkson is the right move
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 19: (Andrew D. Bernstein/ Getty Images) /

Cleveland Cavaliers: F

The Cavaliers have improved at point guard with Clarkson either running the show in the starting lineup or coming off the bench. Clarkson has grown into a pure scorer, and started off the season with high expectations for Sixth Man of the Year.

Akron-native Larry Nance, Jr. has fallen off to a degree since being moved to the center role in the bench. Still, Junior improved in multiple categories to career-best levels, including points per 36 minutes (14.1), field-goal percentage (60) and player efficiency rating (19.7). Add in his ball-hawk status, and Cleveland has a clear upgrade on defense as well.

So why the low grade?

For one, the Cavaliers will be stuck in a spot where they will have to pay Jordan Clarkson handsomely at $12.5M in 2019 and $13.5M in 2020, per Spotrac. This wouldn’t be a problem if Clarkson could envelop himself as the main point guard for Cleveland, as they sought him out as a valuable piece. Instead, they buried him with George Hill and Rodney Hood, who Cleveland acquired just an hour later. Jordan is currently having the best season of his career. Clarkson’s .532 true shooting percentage is still far below the league average of .556, per NBA Advanced Stats.

Jordan is 6’5,” which should be enough to be an average defender. However, the Lakers are worse on defense when he is on the court, per CleaningTheGlass. ESPN’s real plus minus statistical line shows Clarkson as the tenth worst poiny guard defender in the league, so this isn’t much of an upgrade overall on defense over IT, if any.

Nance is the sweetener in the deal. He’s cheap and easy to value. The problem? The first round pick received by Los Angeles. Whoever Los Angeles takes could be another Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart, or Larry Nance, Jr. value. If I were Dan Gilbert, (because he supposedly runs every single basketball operation in the franchise), I would have personally consider Tyreke Evans as an expiring contract candidate.

Hood and Hill were enough. Receiving Clarkson and Nance could be the trade sending LeBron James out of Gilbert’s office once, and possibly for all.

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