Report: Cavaliers interested in trading up into late first round in NBA Draft

The Cleveland Cavaliers currently only hold a second-round pick (No. 49) in the 2023 NBA draft, but they’ve been exploring ways they might be able to move into the first round, reports Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Sources tell Fedor that the Cavs have an “organizational desire” to trade up in the draft and have made calls to teams in the 20-30 range to determine what it would cost to move up.

As Fedor explains, there’s a belief that there will be some older prospects available in that range who might be ready to claim NBA rotation roles as rookies. Several of those players are wings, which would appeal to a Cleveland team that has been on the lookout for help at that spot over the last year. Fedor identifies UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez as one of several prospects who could intrigue the Cavaliers.

It may be tricky for the Cavaliers to put together a package capable of getting them into the first round, however. They dealt several future first-rounders away in last year’s Donovan Mitchell blockbuster and would probably only be able to offer second-rounders along with a player or two. Lamar Stevens, Cedi Osman, Dean Wade and Ricky Rubio are among the Cavs players who could be moved, Fedor writes, but none of them are likely to have substantial value on the trade market.

Here are a few more draft-related rumors from around the league:

• The Indiana Pacers and Utah Jazz are among the teams with multiple first-round picks who are worth keeping an eye on as the draft nears, writes Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Fischer notes that rival teams continue to mention Indiana's interest in packaging some combination of the No. 26, No. 29 and No. 32 picks in order to move up. Utah, meanwhile, has talked to teams about various trade scenarios involving the No. 9, No. 16, and No. 28 selections, Fischer adds.
• Sources who spoke with Sam Vecenie of The Athletic believe the Golden State Warriors may be focused on landing an older, more experienced prospect at No. 19 after getting mixed results when investing in young recent lottery picks. Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer has heard that Golden State have some interest in trading down from No. 19 or out of the draft entirely.
• Sources around the NBA have named the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks – in addition to the Cavaliers – as teams interested in trading up into the late-20's or early-30's to draft an NBA-ready player, Vecenie writes in a piece for The Athletic. Phoenix and Milwaukee would have to move up even further than Cleveland — their second-round picks are at No. 52 and No. 58, respectively.