Love/Wiggins Trade Revisited

[Steve_424]

Get ready for Wiggins >>> LeBron

And the many highlights of LeBron abusing Wiggins?

 

[Taiter]

I hated the Wiggins trade but I'm not a Love hater.

I wanted to keep Wiggins because I saw a lot of potential on a cheap contract, a guy who'd be ready to assume the star mantle as Lebron's sun started to set...possibly a 12-15 year period of contention. And from what I've seen so far, Love is a very good player but I've been a little disappointed. Wiggins meanwhile has been better than I expected this early.

That said, I hope the Cavs win a few titles (heck, after watching this team for almost 40 years I'd take one title) with Love and I get to look back and say it was worth it.

 

[MirORich]

If you're mad that we traded Wiggins for Love, don't be mad at your fellow Cavs fans.

Be mad at LeBron, Gilbert, Blatt, and Griffin. They all wanted to make the move from day one. With our future over the next five years, I doubt any of them are losing any sleep over it.

As far as Wiggins, I would love to see him end up in Toronto in either 4 or 7 years. In fact, I'd love for all of those Canadian born players to collude and end up in Toronto. That would be pretty epic. And they'd be good too. Hopefully that wouldn't happen until the Cavs had already won 2-3 Championships.

 

[Birdy89]

possibly a 12-15 year period of contention.

That is the big let down of the entire situation.

We at this point have basically Lebron's window and that's it now. It was pretty clear when Lebron was out how far a Kyrie/Love led team ever has a chance of getting, and we are still woefully dependent on Lebron.

We could of had a Lebron/Wiggins passing of the torch situation like SA had from Robinson to Duncan that kept the window open for over a decade as well as taking some of the pressure off Lebron as he aged.

 

[kovanovich]

Good game by Wiggins tonight against the Cavs in a losing effort. Good to see improvement from him. Seems like a good kid.

The trade had to happen. LeBron will be near elite for what, 3-4 years tops? Maybe 2-3? Cavs had a chance to get a legitimate star in his prime and they had to do it.

Will the trade work out? We don't know. No one has a crystal ball. In my mind, if the Cavs win even one championship, it will have been worth it, even if Wiggins becomes a superstar. Some may disagree, and I understand that.

To make a comparison with Cavs' history, this is not like the Harper-Ferry trade. That was a bad trade the day it happened. It was a bad trade a year later. And a bad trade for each of the 10 long years of Ferry's contract.

We don't know the details of the negotiations, and whether there was any chance that Cavs could have made a slightly more favorable deal, such as not including the Miami pick, or maybe giving up the less favorable of the Miami and Cleveland/Chicago pick. But any deal would have had to include Wiggins. Don't let anyone tell you the Cavs could have switched Waiters for Wiggins if they had negotiated harder. Flip would have just held on to Love until Golden State decided to trade him Klay. Or something else had come along.

Also, some were arguing last summer the Cavs should have traded Thompson rather than Bennett. This was absurd because, for all his limitations, Thompson was clearly ready to be an important player on a contending team. Bennett could be nothing more than a bad contract. Bennett might not have even gotten on the court with this team. (I know, no one is arguing the Cavs shouldn't have traded Bennett, but they did manage to clear him from the roster in the deal.)

 

[Chris]

That is the big let down of the entire situation.

We at this point have basically Lebron's window and that's it now. It was pretty clear when Lebron was out how far a Kyrie/Love led team ever has a chance of getting, and we are still woefully dependent on Lebron.

We could of had a Lebron/Wiggins passing of the torch situation like SA had from Robinson to Duncan that kept the window open for over a decade as well as taking some of the pressure off Lebron as he aged.

So this makes the ridiculous insinuation that Wiggins will ever be even half as good as LeBron James. Something I doubt very much.

 

[Steve_424]

Here's my thoughts on the Wiggins deal:

1) I agree with those who are saying LeBron/Love was a package deal. I think LeBron stays in Miami for another year or two if Love isn't acquired.

2) It's way too early to tell who "won" the deal. It is, of course, also possible that both end up winning out (which is what I think will happen).

3) If the Cavaliers win a championship over the next five years, the trade was a win for the Cavaliers. Andrew Wiggins could end up in the Hall of Fame and it's still a win. This franchise has never won a championship. The city of Cleveland hasn't won a championship in fifty one years. If Kevin Love plays a major role in getting one (I don't see them winning one if he doesn't) then it's a win on the Cavaliers side.

4) It could also be a win for the Timberwolves. They pounced on this opportunity and received more than they probably even expected to get for Love, due to his contract. Wiggins has incredible upside. He's benefited from a much higher usage rate than he would have had in Cleveland. However, I do think people are getting ahead of themselves right now and base assumptions on highlights. I believe he'll be a star, but there are no guarantees.

5) This could end up similar to the Pau Gasol trade. The Lakers received Pau and won two rings. The Grizzlies received the draft rights to Marc Gasol, who has become one of the best big men in the league. I don't think either team regrets the move. Hopefully, for the sake of both franchises, this trade ends up the same way.

 

[Sebastian]

That is the big let down of the entire situation.

We at this point have basically Lebron's window and that's it now. It was pretty clear when Lebron was out how far a Kyrie/Love led team ever has a chance of getting, and we are still woefully dependent on Lebron.

We could of had a Lebron/Wiggins passing of the torch situation like SA had from Robinson to Duncan that kept the window open for over a decade as well as taking some of the pressure off Lebron as he aged.

There is no reason to think the Cavs can't bring in someone when LeBron retires. Hopefully a title or two and a winning culture within the organization, along with Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving still in their prime, will be an enticing situation.

 

[tocov]

It's a win-win. Minny got someone to build around, we got a role player that fills up specific needs in our team.
It's not about who is the better player, but what the teams get to help them. And here I think both teams got exactly what they needed.

 

[CanadaEh]

That is the big let down of the entire situation.

We at this point have basically Lebron's window and that's it now. It was pretty clear when Lebron was out how far a Kyrie/Love led team ever has a chance of getting, and we are still woefully dependent on Lebron.

We could of had a Lebron/Wiggins passing of the torch situation like SA had from Robinson to Duncan that kept the window open for over a decade as well as taking some of the pressure off Lebron as he aged.

And a Kyrie/Wiggins led team would have gone on a winning streak when LeBron was out, right? The team would be worse with Wiggins this year and at this point in LeBron's career he's going for championships with experienced, proven players not 19 year old talented and potential filled rookies. We're not winning a title with Wiggins, end of story and debate. Let him be the man and develop somewhere else because it sure wasn't happening here.

Plus, who knows if Lebron comes back if Love isn't being traded for. I'm all for difference of opinion but the opinion that the trade was a bad idea is laughable and so incredibly wrong.

 

[Pioneer10]

I didn't mind the trade but always felt losing that damn Miami pick on top of Wiggins was a lot to swallow. Boston gave away a #5 pick for a prime Ray Allen and Big Al for KG. Really Wiggins should have been enough or put in some protections so that pick would have been the worst of our picks this year.

Oh well water under the bridge: I suspect now that the defense has improved we can now start putting some effort to get Love in the high post and on the block to fully use him. For all the Love haters, Love was putting up these type of games for years in Minnesota that Wiggins just had. It's a tough move to move to a contending team particularly when that contending team has had bigger issues then getting you integrated into the offense till now

One last point: Love is a lot more critical to this team then Wiggins just because of bodies. We still only have 3 viable bigs and the Waiters trade bringing in two quality role playing SG's has really taken care of any perimeter needs. Trade value for SG's seems really low

 

[tocov]

What is even more laughable is the head to head comparison between the two players. Like they fill the same role on their teams, play with the similar squads or even the same position.

 

[Stark]

Ask me in four years.

 

[tedginnjr]

If you already have two high usage perimeter players, how much more valuable is Wiggins compared to Shumpert? Now what's the jump from Marion or Tristan at PF to Love?

Can't believe anyone thinks Wiggins gives us a better chance at a title than Love on this roster...

 

[Real Deal]

It's a win-win. Minny got someone to build around, we got a role player that fills up specific needs in our team.
It's not about who is the better player, but what the teams get to help them. And here I think both teams got exactly what they needed.

I question your knowledge if you think 17-10 is a role player. Mozgov, TT, Shump, JR, those are role players.