Big men have been the headline makers this offseason. Between max contracts getting handed out to players like LaMarcus Aldridge and Marc Gasol to the recent DeAndre Jordan scandal, centers have been ruling the league over the past month. With most of the talent signed off the free agent market, trades are now coming into play. The Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns are all in the market for size and the Cleveland Cavaliers are hoping to capitalize.
According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Cavaliers would rather trade Brendan Haywood over Anderson Varejao this offseason, but certain deals might require the Brazilian to be involved as well. Haywood is about to get very popular. With Jordan heading back to the Clippers and Roy Hibbert having yet to be officially traded, interest in the Cavaliers' center could begin to grow as several teams look at him as a Plan C or D option.
The Mavericks could get involved quickly with the Haywood, Varejao talks. The team is without a center as Jordan denies his verbal agreement and goes back to Los Angeles. They have the salary cap space to take on Varejao's contract and they clearly trust players coming off Achilles tears as Wesley Matthews is recovering from the injury and still earned a multi-year deal. According to ESPN's Marc Stein, the Mavericks will first enter a bidding war for Hibbert and then test the waters of Haywood.
With talks heating up for Hibbert, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com is reporting that both the Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns are eyeing a deal for Haywood. At the moment, the Lakers believe they are getting Hibbert, but Dallas could sweep in and make the move. Regardless of whether or not Los Angeles gets Hibbert, they still need depth at the position which is where Haywood would come in handy. The Suns need size after missing out on Aldridge and trading Marcus Morris to the Detroit Pistons. Getting either player from the Cavaliers could help.
Cleveland is trying to make cap space in order to meet the contract demands of Tristan Thompson while also needing to sign LeBron James. Getting rid of Haywood is the first step and Varejao might be next. ESPN reported that Cleveland wanted Joe Johnson, but the Brooklyn Nets had no interest in Varejao. Teams like the Mavericks or the Lakers might end up being desperate enough to make the trade.
