NBA News: Cleveland Cavaliers Ship Newly Acquired Keith Bogans To Philadelphia 76ers
Training camps are underway and yet the Eastern Conference favourites Cleveland Cavaliers are not yet done wheeling and dealing. The heavily loaded are positioning to acquire another veteran quality player such as Ray Allen or a backup big man as they have sent Keith Bogans and a 2018 second round pick to the Philadelphia 76ers for a $5.3 million trade exception and a protected 2015 second round pick. Bogans' salary of $5.3 million this season and $5.5 million the next year are not guaranteed, ESPN reports.
With the move, the Cavs are expected to stay below the luxury tax line and can add another salary if they choose to improve depth. The perceived frontrunners in the conference are looking for a backup big man as they ate thin upfront. Currently, they only have Kevin Love, Anderson Varejao, Brendan Haywood and Tristan Thompson to rotate in the power forward and center spots. LeBron James has been used in the 4-spot in the past as well as Shawn Marion, but it is unclear if the Cavaliers will head to that direction.
Another big body will serve as an insurance policy once Varejao or Haywood, both oft-injury players, is sidelined during the course of the 82-game season. They can also dangle Haywood's expiring contract valued at $10.5 million (fully unguaranteed by 2015-2016) in a trade. Most importantly, this will move the needle below the tax threshold.
For the rebuilding 76ers, the rebuilding squad inches up back to the salary minimum. They will still be around $20 million below the cap line and around $13 million from the floor. If the team does not approach the floor salary, it would have to divide the difference among its current roster.
There is no actual depth chart right now for the squad but it could use the services of veteran guard Bogans to deliver some of its young guns. Even rookie of the year Michael Carter-Williams has no timetable for return just yet because of the surgery he took during the summer to repair his ailing shoulder. For now, fans would have to endure another year of being bottom dwellers as they continue to develop talent such as Carter-Williams, a returning first-round pick Nerlens Noel and, if possible, the man with the highest upside in the recent draft, Joel Embiid.