Cavaliers Could Pursue Top Eastern Conference Scorer In Offseason Trade

Could the Cavaliers try and get creative by swinging a trade for Kyle Kuzma this summer?

Jan 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Dean Wade (32) defends Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma (33) in the third quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports / David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Due to salary cap constraints, the Cleveland Cavaliers are going to have to get pretty innovative in order to seriously improve their team this offseason. That means examining potential trades.

The Cavaliers could definitely use another wing scorer, particularly one who can play both forward positions. So, it's no surprise that King James Gospel has named Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma as a possible trade acquisition for Cleveland.

Kuzma finished 12th in the Eastern Conference in scoring this season, averaging 22.2 points per game on 46.3/33.6/77.5 shooting splits. He also posted 6.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists a night.

Sure, Kuzma is not the most efficient scorer in the world, as he lays claim to a lifetime true-shooting percentage of 54.5 percent. That's actually considerably below the current NBA league average, which was 58 percent during the 2023-24 campaign.

However, Kuzma is a guy who can score points in bunches, which is something the Cavs absolutely need—especially at Kuzma's position. The Cavaliers tried to capture that with Marcus Morris this season, signing him after he was waived by the San Antonio Spurs in March. But Morris logged just 5.8 points per game over 12 appearances in Cleveland.

The Cavs could always try to re-sign Morris this summer, but he will be 35 years old by the time next season starts and is clearly declining.

Meanwhile, Kuzma turns 29 next month and still has plenty of years left in the tank.

Of course, the question is whether or not the Cavaliers would be comfortable adding his contract on to the books. Kuzma's deal isn't particularly expensive, with an average annual value of $22.5 million. The problem is that it runs through the 2026-27 campaign with no options in between.

All of that being said, Kuzma is someone who could absolutely add value to Cleveland. He has averaged over 20 points per game in each of the last two seasons, and he would also bring a championship pedigree to the table. Remember: he won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.