The Cleveland Cavaliers recently traded De’Andre Hunter in a three-team deal involving the Chicago Bulls and Sacramento Kings to acquire Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, bolstering their guard depth.
Former NBA champion Jeff Teague is a fan of the trade. He believes that Schroder, in particular, gives the Cleveland Cavaliers that edge they’ve been missing in the past few seasons, while Ellis gives them another solid two-way player.
“I think this really put them back in the playoff hunt. Keon Ellis is a really good pick up. He’s a quality wing, makes shots, and defends at a high level. But Dennis Schröder, bro, every team he go too when he come off the bench, he turn them up. He bring this kinda of energy,” Teague explained on the Club 520 podcast.
“He bring this feisty competitive energy. He going to talk sh*t and he going to do all that. The Cavs was missing that,” he added. “The Cavs were kinda looked at as a soft team… Dennis Schroder is a complete opposite of that, and you need that in the playoffs.”
Cleveland Cavaliers News: Lonzo Ball could be on his way out, per insider
The Cleveland Cavaliers now have a backcourt logjam after acquiring Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, and NBA insiders Jake Fischer and Marc Stein believe that Lonzo Ball has become the odd man out.
“Sources say there has been some preliminary conversation between the Cavaliers and Hornets about Ball trade constructions that could furnish Charlotte with second-round draft capital and thus enable the Hornets to pair the elder Ball with his younger brother LaMelo,” as written on The Stein Line.
“Charlotte, Brooklyn, and Utah, according to league sources, are all teams that have been looking to facilitate multi-team trades or take on unwanted salary in exchange for draft pick compensation,” he added.
