Cavaliers players, coaches react to the Andre Drummond trade

Cleveland Cavaliers center Andre Drummond
Photo credit © Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Independence, OH (92.3 The Fan) - After yesterday’s NBA trade deadline passed, the Cavaliers still had their core veterans Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love on the roster. In fact, the Cavs found a way to bring in another veteran big man in Andre Drummond, who was traded from Detroit for John Henson, Brandon Knight, and a 2023 second-round pick.

With the two-time All-Star Drummond now in Cleveland, Cavs head coach John Beilein talked about creating a system around the big man.

“If you remember how he dominated us in the first game here…how skilled he is,” Beilen said Friday aftrnoon. “They let him bring the ball up the floor. He does so many things, so we will be playing through him a lot, even as just a passer, if not a low-post threat.”

Beilein compared Drummond’s potential use to that of Love’s and Thompson’s, as post players who can work around the rest of the court for the Cavaliers.

The 26-year-old Drummond is currently averaging 17.8 points per game (a career best), along with an NBA-high 15.8 rebounds a contest. The eight-year veteran has led the league in rebounds in three of the past four seasons and is currently 10th in the league in blocks per game.

Should Drummond opt-in for the 2020-21 campaign in his current contact, it would cost the Cavaliers $28 million. SI.com Cavs writer Sam Amico reported today that Drummond is expected to pick up the option after the season, viewing the Cavs as a long-term opportunity, although he is expected to let things play out.
CAVS REACT

The Cavaliers now have a potential starting lineup that includes Drummond, Kevin Love, Tristan Thompson, and Larry Nance Jr..

With a plethora of big men to choose from, the players expressed their thoughts on the Drummond deal at practice on Friday, and the belief seems to be that the Cavs’ rebounding prowess is about to hit an all-time high..

“I think the potential’s exciting, especially with guys like Larry and Tristan that can help clean up the glass, pass the ball, and do different things,” Love said.

Love also addressed the concern that the Cavs are going big in an NBA where many teams are tending to go small.

“We have young guys in the backcourt, but I think our bigs can really help exploit those mismatches, and if teams are going small against us, we have to try and bury them,” Love postulated. “We have a great chance to be one of [the best], if not the best, rebounding team in the league.”

Meanwhile, many around the team believed that Tristan Thompson could be traded from Cleveland by the deadline, but Thompson was still in wine and gold on Friday.

“I’m happy to be here today,” Thompson said. “[Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman] got another great big, one of the top centers in the league for our team, so that’s gonna help our team a lot. I’m excited for him to get here.”

“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” Thompson added on the addition of Drummond.

Thompson also addressed the Cavs going big in a small NBA world, expressing a similar line of thinking as Love.

“Bigs are definitely underappreciated a lot in our league. Besides Golden State, with three of the best five shooters in NBA history, not a lot of teams have that luxury, so you still need bigs to win games,” Thompson said.

ALFONSO McKINNIE
The Cavs made another move on Friday, signing forward Alfonzo McKinnie to a multi-year deal. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the deal.
The Athletic’s Kelsey Russo reported the deal to be for four years and $7.2 million.
The 27-year-old McKinnie was acquired by the Cavs off waivers last October, but was released on January 6th. He was res-signed, however, to the first of multiple 10-day contracts just three days later.

In 35 games this season, McKinnie has averaged 4.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.