The NBA trade rumors continue and despite the absence of blockbuster names, it should not be ruled out.
There is one big trade that is being recommended by ESPN Insider Kevin Pelton-one trade that could rock the core of two of the better teams in the NBA.
This is a trade exchanging Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chris Paul of the LA Clippers. His rationale is that the Clippers would not be able to win the title now, while the Cavs have a "now of never" sense of urgency.
"Perhaps the only Paul trade that would make sense for both teams is swapping him for Kyrie Irving (and a deep Cleveland reserve, needed to make the trade work financially," Pelton said, and he also gave details of the trade in the NBA Trade Machine.
This trade could only happen when one of the teams (the Clippers, in this case) waves the white flag on this season. While Kyrie Irving is not a bad piece in any way, he is not as "championship ready" as Chris Paul.
"That deal would give the Cavaliers a better chance of beating the Golden State Warriors or San Antonio Spurs now and allow the Clippers to wait out this period in which those two teams dominate the Western Conference while developing a younger core of stars. If the two teams are feeling desperate about their current situations, a deal might help both of them.
This is not, by any means, the first time this was explored. In a Grantland column by Chris Ryan last summer, this was already pondered, albeit in a wishful manner. It was inspired by a vacation picture which showed LeBron James, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade on a banana boat. The three are close friends even off the court.
