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It’s no secret the Cavs have had financial struggles the past few seasons. However with Darius Garland traded, and James Harden restructuring for less, the Cavaliers finally have the opportunity to be under both the first and second apron.
The Cavaliers current salary situation has them with about $25 million in room before they hit the first apron. This is with 11 roster spots filled of the 15 that are required to remain compliant with the NBA.
This doesn’t leave the Cavs with much salary to utilize to fill out the roster, outside of veteran minimum players. Therefore, it’s more than likely that after LeBron has made his decision, the Cavaliers will make a trade or two for salary relief.
Clearing space
Initially, the first contract likely to be moved is Dennis Schroder. Schroder is a $14.8 million dollar cap hit for the Cavs, clearing his salary or bringing in a player on a smaller deal would give the Cavs a better chance at staying under both aprons.
The next contract plugging up a median value slot is Max Strus.
Strus has been widely debated as the piece that would need to be moved to bring in LeBron; and while it might not be entirely necessary, Strus’ cap hit of $16.6 million still makes his contract a hot candidate to become a cap casualty should LeBron return to Cleveland.
Retooling
Jarrett Allen might be the anchor of this Cavs team, but with Mitchell and Mobley both on max deals, Allen’s flat rate of $28 million would give the Cavaliers an opportunity to retool around a new roster.
Especially if LeBron chooses another team, the front office might feel required to shake up the roster anyways. Should that become reality, Jarrett Allen has long been sought after by other teams and would likely give the Cavaliers a chance to mix up the roster without reinventing the team’s entire identity.
While we await this quiet stretch of the offseason to break, expect the Cavaliers to begin figuring out their cap situation once LeBron has informed teams of his decision. Without that decision made, there is little the Cavaliers can do given LeBron's return would greatly effect the Cavs salary cap.
In the intermediary, expect Dennis Schroder to be traded for cap relief regardless of LeBron’s impending decision. Once LeBron’s decision has been made, expect the Cavs(along with other LeBron suitors) to immediately begin sorting their offseason plans.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/cavaliers/onsi as The Most Tradable Contracts on the Cavs Roster.
