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Cleveland Cavaliers president of basketball operations Koby Altman had plenty of reasons to keep things the status quo with his basketball team this week.
Entering Thursday's NBA trade deadline, the Cavs sat atop the Eastern Conference with the second-best record in the league. They also boasted the top offensive rating in the NBA (121.5) and a top 10 defensive rating (111.5), two key trademarks of a championship caliber team.
Despite all that, Altman didn't rest on his laurels and presented with an opportunity to improve his team, pulled the trigger on a deal that sent Caris LeVert and Georges Niang to the Atlanta Hawks for versatile wing De'Andre Hunter.
The bold move by Altman proves just how motivated he is to win a championship.
"We're all in, we're trying to win this year and into the future, and that's the goal," said Altman of the deal. "And so that's our priority and that's our motivation."
The Cavaliers have experienced some playoff success in recent years. Two years ago, even losing in five games to the New York Knicks in the first round of the playoffs felt like a step in the right direction. That linear success continued in 2024 with the franchise advancing to the second round, where it lost to the Boston Celtics in five games.
In stepped first-year head coach Kenny Atkinson last summer, and a nearly identical Cavs roster has soared into another stratosphere. Altman didn't want to see the opportunity wasted, though.
"We've had some elite wins, we've had some tough losses against [the Knicks and Celtics]," Altman said. "This is when you get to a seven-game series against, you name the team, giving Kenny every tool in the box to use to win that series.
"And De'Andre can play small, he can guard fours, he can guard some fives, or you can switch with him, and then you can move him to the two or three. This just gives you a chance to move stuff around the chess board and be able to play multiple different ways in a playoff series, regardless of what that matchup could be."
Hunter's added versatility is likely to come in handy in April, May and potentially June. That doesn't mean pulling the trigger wasn't difficult.
So much has been said about the chemistry of this Cavaliers team. Losing guys like LeVert and Niang could have threatened that. It was something Altman considered before signing off on the deal.
"You don't start off 15-0 without chemistry, great continuity and great vibes," said Altman. "But at the end of the day, my job is to help this team get better and we can't just rest on our record. We can't just rest on chemistry and good vibes. We got to get better and it's an arms race in the east. It's very competitive and we know that this is not going to be easy, and so we wanted to set ourselves up with the best chance to be successful."
Read More Cleveland Cavaliers Coverage
MORE: Cavaliers Refused To Trade Several Key Pieces To Hawks, Per Report
MORE: Koby Altman Reveals When De'Andre Hunter Could Play For Cavaliers
MORE: Cavaliers Urged to Make Critical Move After Trade Deadline
MORE: REPORT: Cavaliers Set to Meet With Ben Simmons
MORE: Three Reasons Why De'Andre Hunter Is A Perfect Fit With Cavaliers
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Five-time NBA All-Star announces retirement
Former No. 1 overall pick and five-time NBA All-Star John Wall has announced his retirement in a video on social media. “I’ve been chasing a ball since I could barely walk. Driveways, parks, packed gyms, 5:00 am workouts,” Wall said over a video montage of his career highlights. “I gave this game everything I had, from Raleigh to Kentucky to the league. Every jersey I’ve worn meant more than just wins and stats. It was about representing something bigger, and it’s something I couldn’t do without you. “To my family, my mom especially, thank you for all your sacrifices. I hope I made you proud. To my teammates, trainers, and coaches, thank you for believing in me. And to the fans, you made me feel unstoppable. “Today I’m stepping off the court, but not away from the game. Basketball will always be in my life. As new opportunities present themselves, I feel now is the time to walk confidently into my next chapter. Thank you for every cheer, every moment. Retired, but never done, I’m doing it the Wall way.” Drafted first overall by the Wizards in 2010 after earning SEC Player of the Year honors as a freshman at Kentucky, Wall almost immediately emerged as Washington’s full-time starting point guard and finished second in Rookie of the Year voting. The 6’3″ guard, known for his speed and athleticism, remained in D.C. for 10 seasons, receiving five straight All-Star nods from 2014-18, making an All-Defensive team in 2015 and earning All-NBA third team honors (and MVP votes) in 2017. However, a series of leg injuries, including a torn Achilles, slowed down Wall during his last few seasons with the Wizards. He was traded to Houston during the 2020 offseason, but was limited to just 40 appearances across two seasons with the Rockets due to ongoing health issues. Wall’s last season in the NBA came in 2022-23, when he made 34 outings for the Clippers. In total, Wall appeared in 647 NBA regular season games, making 604 starts, and averaged 18.7 points, 8.9 assists and 4.2 rebounds in 34.9 minutes per contest, with a career shooting line of .430/.322/.776. Reporting as recently as December 2024 indicated that Wall hadn’t given up on making an NBA comeback, but after no opportunities materialized this past season, the veteran – who will turn 35 on Sept. 6 – has decided to call it a career. Shortly after Wall made his announcement, the Wizards put out a social media post congratulating him on his retirement and referring to him as “one of our franchise all-time greats.”
New report sheds light on how Cowboys view Micah Parsons situation
It is no secret that the relationship between Micah Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys is not on solid ground, but that does not necessarily mean it is tarnished beyond repair. On the latest episode of his podcast, which was released on Tuesday, ESPN's Adam Schefter predicted that Parsons and the Cowboys are "headed towards divorce." Schefter said the two sides have not spoken since April and that it seems like a matter of when — not if — they part ways. Longtime NFL reporter Josina Anderson was told the situation is not quite that grim, at least from the Cowboys' perspective. Anderson reported on Tuesday evening that the relationship between Parsons and Dallas "has not deteriorated to the point of an imminent divorce." "I did not detect any obvious tones of concern in my sourced conversation when I recently asked about ESPN's Adam Schefter's report stating he sees 'these two sides headed towards a divorce, in time.' ... I just feel Dallas has so much history with protracted (and) sensitive negotiations, thus my current impression is the club remains unrattled, at this time," Anderson wrote in a post on X. Parsons is earning just over $24M in the final year of his rookie contract this season. The 26-year-old had 12 sacks in 13 games last season and has 52.5 sacks in 63 career games. Parsons is arguably the best pass-rusher in the NFL when healthy. Although Parsons has formally requested a trade, the Cowboys maintain that they have no intention of dealing their four-time Pro Bowl defensive end. The only real leverage Parsons has is creating a headache in Dallas. He remains under contract, and the Cowboys also have the ability to use the franchise tag on him in each of the next two seasons. If Parsons were to sit out regular-season games, his contract would eventually toll. Even with Jerry Jones publicly taking shots at Parsons, one massive contract offer could change everything.
Raiders could and should end up being a name at the top of the list of candidates to trade for a former starter looking for a new situation
When you talk about the last 20 years of the Las Vegas Raiders and even the Oakland Raiders, it’s hard not to talk about how much they have come up short on their quarterback decisions. You have to mention the position while focusing on the last two decades. The Raiders have maybe the biggest draft bust of all time in JaMarcus Russell, and Derek Carr, while he was a franchise guy, was never good enough to win a postseason game, let alone get them there more than twice. So, it’s a position that has been pretty polarizing over the last two decades, but not for the right reasons. Getting Geno Smith is about as smart a thing as the Raiders could have done this offseason, considering what the QB market was in free agency and the NFL Draft. However, he’s getting up there in age. Sure, his body may not have a ton of wear and tear on it, but the body still does age. Smith can’t play forever, so while he may be the guy this year and next year, the Raiders will eventually have to address the position again. And that could end up being next offseason, or the one after that, for all we know. And when that time comes, do we really know if the Raiders will be bad enough to have a top pick in the draft to get their next quarterback, and do we want them to continue to get older quarterbacks that we be gone in 2-3 years? The answer is no. So, they could, and should, be a candidate to trade for a quarterback who is in a very unique situation right now, and just needs a new start. Raiders should trade for Colts QB Anthony Richardson I already know what everyone is thinking – don’t you think I know he can’t throw the ball and has made some very questionable IQ plays over the last few years? Yes, I know that, but I’m not asking the Raiders to trade for a guy who is going to come in and be the starter right away. I’m asking them to trade for a guy who needs to sit behind a veteran guy and learn some more. Anthony Richardson was the former No. 4 overall pick by the Indianapolis Colts. He started four games in his first year after getting hurt for the year, and started 11 games last year before, ultimately, getting benched, and he was banged up a bit, too. But, he was taken that high for a reason, and anyone in their right mind can see the potential he has, but everyone should also be able to see the work he needs to do. But first, how did we get here with Anthony Richardson in the first place? And, will the Raiders even be able to trade for Richardson? The Colts made a puzzling decision by naming Daniel Jones the starter over Anthony Richardson ahead of the 2025 season. Now the question everyone around the league will ask is: "Will Anthony Richardson be made available via trade?" It's a good question, and I think normally the player would be, the Colts don't seem to want to do that, though. Richardson could force their hand, though, by requesting a trade. If he does, I think the Colts would have to at least listen to teams around the league. The Raiders would make a lot of sense as a destination with Pete Carroll being someone that many believed was very high on Richardson during his draft process. I think it would still take more draft capital than people realize, just due to the stubbornness of the Colts' decision makers. If I had to guess a fourth-round pick and maybe a player at a position of need, such as S, LB, or a depth offensive lineman. - Destin Adams, A to Z Sports Indianapolis Hear me out: The Raiders want to trade Aidan O’Connell, and he has shown that he may have some potential that hasn’t been tapped yet. But, he is also probably going to be a career backup, and it seems like that is a position the Colts usually need – a backup quarterback. Maybe you test the waters with O’Connell so they are still getting a backup in return, along with another player of sorts, and then a pick, not one too high, though. And, doing this trade makes sense from the standpoint of everything I have already explained about needing a future franchise guy, letting him sit and learn, but also that Pete Carroll is a huge fan of Richardson. And, he has a track record of turning guys around and finding that untapped potential. Now, if the asking price is too outrageous, of course, you don’t do this trade. But if it’s just right, I see no reason why John Spytek shouldn’t pull the trigger on it. Richardson played a handful of college football games at Florida, and he still needs some time to develop. He’ll get to do that behind one of the best pure passers this game has in Geno Smith.
Giants have firm stance on possible Jameis Winston trade
The New York Giants have one of the deepest quarterback rooms in the NFL, and there has been speculation that Jameis Winston could be the odd man out when the regular season begins. It does not sound like Winston is going anywhere, however. Russell Wilson is expected to be the Giants' starting quarterback in Week 1. The big question is whether Jaxson Dart or Winston will enter the year as Wilson's primary backup. Dart has played well through two preseason games, and Brian Daboll and his coaching staff have raved about the former Ole Miss star. Some have wondered if the Giants could entertain trade offers for Winston should they decide they view Dart as their No. 2 quarterback. Assistant general manager Brandon Brown was asked about that on Tuesday, and he all but ruled it out. "I appreciate people that are interested, but Jameis is a New York Giant. The way that he's gone about his business from day one, he's made it very intentional of the fact that he wants to be here and he wants to be here for the long haul," Brown said. "Teammates love him. His preparation process, whether it's the off-field things that he does in terms of community relations, Bible studies, things in the locker room, galvanizing the group together — not just the quarterback room, but the offense as a whole. "He's been comic relief, but he's also been a really good example of how to be a pro and handle your business in terms of prehab, rehab and postgame care. So, I'm happy he's here, and he's gonna continue to do those things. He hasn't wavered, and he hasn't been shaken by any distractions at all." Winston signed a two-year, $8M contract with the Giants in free agency this offseason. The deal could climb as high as $16M with incentives, but he would need to play quite a bit to hit those. The Giants value Winston's extensive experience, just as they value Dart's upside. There is a reason they signed both Wilson and Winston and traded up to draft Dart. They believe in all three players, and they likely will not be inclined to trade Winston unless they receive an excellent offer.
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