Cavaliers cutting waste at the deadline-Part One

It was pretty clear that whatever the Cleveland Cavaliers were trying to build for the 2017-18 season wasn't working, and with Kevin Love injured, things didn't appear to be getting better soon, despite an overtime win on Wednesday over Minnesota.

That made deadline day in the NBA even more important than usual and Cleveland under Koby Altman or whoever you believe is running the show (the names vary according to which NBA columnists you read) felt compelled to swing into action and when the smoke cleared in Cleveland-three trades were finished, six players were on the road out of Cleveland with four new Cavaliers headed into Northeast Ohio over the course of a frantic deadline day that saw even more dealings than anyone could have expected.
I'm going to write about one major deal now and hopefully the other major deal later tonight.

The flashiest deal was the Cavaliers punting the Isaiah Thomas trial by shipping the malcontented point guard along with veteran big man Channing Frye and the Cavaliers' first-round pick in this year's draft (Not the Nets pick obtained in the Kyrie Irving trade) to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The return was a popular one as point guard Jordan Clarkson and forward Larry Nance Jr. are coming to Cleveland.
Clarkson was averaging 14 points a game in 23 minutes as he was the first player off the Lakers' bench and brings the type of scoring that you'd expect from the modern point guard, with a playmaking ability that should be welcomed after watching Thomas and his struggles over his Cleveland tenure.
Nance returns home after growing up in the area as the son of Cavalier legend Larry Nance Sr, with averages of eight points and just under seven rebounds a game.

Like his father, Nance can play above the rim and will insert his share of highlights into game recaps, but most importantly, he can guard 4's and some 5's and will be able to give bulkier frontcourt opponents fits with his athleticism on both ends of the floor.

Both players are 25 and both are signed through next season, with Clarkson signed for two seasons, so this is not a temporary fix for the Cavaliers as they not only get younger and quicker for the present, they hedge a bet in case of a revamp if LeBron James walks away..

As far as the departed Cavaliers go-
Isaiah Thomas doesn't seem to be completely healed from his hip injury and although I cannot give him enough credit for trying to play through the pain, he clearly didn't fit into the Cavaliers system (or the locker room culture reportedly) and when you are a player that has to have the ball in his hands and being the top option in a team's offensive setup, your skills are going to be a difficult mesh with that of LeBron James.
I will miss Channing Frye, who was a plus in the locker room and when he occasionally got into one of those outside shooting rhythms, it was a pretty sight to see, but Frye was only playing a dozen minutes a game and his game on the defensive end isn't going to bring what Larry Nance will.
The first rounder was part of the price of doing business, and hopefully, these changes will enable that pick to be near the bottom of round one.

I plan on being back in a few hours with some thoughts on the other two trades by Cleveland and just how they could affect the stretch run.

Cavaliers add Channing Frye,lose the "WIld Thing"

The Cleveland Cavaliers attempted to add another weapon to the offense and yet shed salary as well as the team worked a three way trade to add Channing Frye from the Orlando Magic.
The cost to gain Frye and drop a contract was sending the Wild Thing-Anderson Varejao and their 2018 first rounder to Portland and Jared Cunningham to the Magic.

First,let's talk about the departures.
I always liked Anderson Varejao,his always happy attitude and the effort/hustle that came with his frenetic play.
Varejao wasn't afraid to do the dirty work and would be fearless in hitting the floor for loose balls.
However,he was extremely overpaid and still had two more years on the extension that he signed.
Considering that and the constant questions of could Varejao stay healthy for an entire season and it's easy to see why Cleveland selected Varejao to be the player that was moved.
It's sad when you consider all that the Brazilian had done for the franchise,but in the end-it is a business and the trade makes sense even if it was just done for the financial reasons,which it wasn't.
I also liked Cunningham in his limited action,which had dwindled to next to nothing over the last month or so,but there are always the guys on the lower end of the pay scale that make these deals work with the salary cap.

As for Channing Frye,he brings a unique set of skills and I was surprised to see that he is 32 and in his tenth year in the league.
I figured he was 28 and maybe six or seven years played,but it's true,..
Frye is under a reasonable contract at under eight million for each of the next two seasons and can play the four or five (although you might want to carefully spot his time at center) defensively.
The description most seen yesterday of Frye was of being a "Stretch 4",which basically means that he is a finesse' player that has effective shooting range out past the three point line.
The 6'11 Frye is shooting over 39% from behind that line,so he clearly is effective there and brings the Cavaliers yet another offensive weapon to their cache'.

One can argue that the Cavaliers still lack a true bruiser other than Timofey Mozgov and I'd agree.
The Cavaliers clearly are attempting to build a roster filled with players with varied offensive skills with a plan of attacking whatever team comes out of the West with a barrage of offense.
Channing Frye brings something unique and in adding this piece,Cleveland dropped salary.
It makes good sense on the floor and off the floor,although I'm sad to see the Wild Thing go after 12 years.

I plan on being back later with a brief description of where I've been over the last week....