This is why they are the Cleveland Cavaliers. It’s about compounding mistakes.
The Clippers and Cavaliers have agreed to a trade that sends point guard Baron Davis and a 2011 first-round pick to the Cavaliers for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon, according to Marc Spears at Yahoo.
This is a huge win for the Clippers. They have been trying to get out from under Baron Davis’ contract — he is owed $28.6 million for the two seasons after this one — almost since the day Davis signed a five-year deal three years ago. Mo Williams is owed $18 million over the next two years. With Moon’s $3 million expiring contract, the Clippers save about $9 million for next season.
The Cavaliers get… I don’t know why they did this. They get a first-round pick this season that likely going to be in the 7-10 range and they said this is the primary motivation. This is a draft considered to have some nice role players in it but no stars. Are they really willing to pay $9 million in salary for the chance to draft a role player?
The problem is the Cavs also get Baron Davis. Who will be a disaster for them, on the court and in the locker room. Sure, Mo Williams has his own issues, but Davis brings a larger, more expensive set of them. Yes, Davis is playing better this season (13 points, 7 assists per game), but he was always better when he was engaged and motivated (he’s good when engaged). Blake Griffin did that for him this season — Davis dropped weight and was in the best shape in years. He loved running and feeding Griffin ally-oops. But even with all that his balky knee was giving him problems.
But that is not the Davis the Cavs will be getting. Trust me, they will soon have disinterested Baron — the one that jacks up threes early in the shot clock despite the fact he shoots under 30 percent from three. The one that coasts through games without energy. The one that is little more than an orange traffic cone for the opposing team to dribble around on defense. The one that shot 37 percent two years ago and 40 percent last season, but kept firing away at a crazy pace. And remember, Davis played for Byron Scott with the Hornets back in the day and that did not end well.
The Clippers get Mo Williams, who in and of himself is inconsistent. But he can shoot the three, and the Clippers need that. They have Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and the slashing Eric Gordon to get points inside. They need to stretch the floor. Williams can do that.
The Clippers will miss that first-round pick but freeing up that salary will give them a lot more flexibility to get a quality player than the pick would have. The Clippers have their young core, they need to go out and get some better players to go around them. This move gives them the flexibility to do so.
It’s a smart move for the Clippers. For the Cavs… well, that’s why they are the Cavs.