Why the Cavs should trade for Al Jefferson

Realizing that my opinion matters to just about no one, and that I know precious little about the inner workings of exactly how the NBA trade process works, I believe that I have a great idea. The Cleveland Cavaliers should trade for Al Jefferson. I know this has been talked about for a while, and that the Cavs passed on him last year because they felt he wasnt a game changer (at best a no. 2 option on a title team), but I really think this trade could be an incredible trade for them.

Look at the offense. The main thing we lack in the motion offense is a reliable post presence. Jamison has shown flashes, but we need him to be effective and efficient in order for the offense to do well. Frankly, I'm not confident in that, and I dont think anyone else is either. The Cavs do have Varejao and Thompson but both are realistically best suited to play power forward, and there is no real, alive center on the roster. Al Jefferson is actually the perfect player for that role because he is a good two way center with proven post up ability and solid defensive ability.

Al Jeff clearly fills a need with the Cavs, but what do they Cavs have that Utah wants? Guards. Specifically, Ramon Sessions. I know he has been effective this year for us, but I really dont see him as being a long-term option for this team because he is terribly flawed and one dimensional, and the first overall pick in the last draft plays his position. As such he is one of three great trade assets they have, the others being Varejao and Jamison's expiring contract. A perfect trade would be Jamison's contract, and Ramon Sessions for Al Jeff and a $4 million dollar trade exception. Would the Jazz take it? I think so, they want Jefferson moved and want a guard in return, Sessions gives them some instant offense from the guards and Jamison is a major cap boost. Would the Cavs? I just dont really think that they like Al Jeff as much as they should, because he is a very effective player when used correctly.

As I mentioned before, Jefferson would make a great addition to the Cavs, but why exactly? The motion offense relies in part on low post ability and off ball movement to create mismatches and open looks. Since the Cavs dont have that post presence the opposing defense can keep one-on-one match-ups on the bigs and prevent open looks from happening as often. Al Jeff can change that because when he plays well, he is a fantastic post player. He is also an effective rebounder, which is always a plus. And although he can certainly play the 4, he is much more suited to play center, allowing Thompson and Varejao to play the 4 and use their superb cutting ability when the defense collapses on Jefferson.

I honestly think that the most underrated part of this trade would be on the defensive end. Al Jefferson is no slouch on defense; he has the ability to hold his own against most NBA big men, which is way more important than you think. When the Cavs play larger post players like Dwight Howard, Al Jeff can be the main one guarding them while Varejao does all the dirty work and makes their life hard. Tristan Thompson could then use his athleticism as a weakside blocker while playing with him. That is an ELITE frontcourt defense as I see it, something that the Cavs could really use at this point.

So what is stopping them from making this trade that seems so smart? I said it earlier, the cavland clevaliers really dont seem to have any a lot of love for him, which is mind boggling to me. I think they dont see him as someone who can significantly help a team, but think that he would help too much to get a high draft choice. Its very unfortunate because Al Jefferson is really the best player on the market for the cavs, unless Dwight Howard decides he wants to come to cleveland because he reads ESPN blogs, which is unlikely to happen. Unfortunately, this is probably one of those moves that wont happen, but for a lot of reasons really should. For what its worth, I hope that it happens because Al Jeff is an underrated, reasonably young player who can give the Cavs a major boost and take pressure off Kyrie Irving when he is having trouble. And for those worried about the draft, there are plenty of fantastic wings available later in the 1st, and we could always make another trade to move up. Lets hope Chris Grant wises up and makes the trade, even if its late in the year, because it would be a great move.