The curious case of Tristan Thompson continues. The Cleveland Cavaliers are in a hard place with the power forward as he continues to demand a contract the team is unwilling to agree to. As the two sides remain at separate ends of the spectrum when it comes to contract talks, will the Cavaliers be forced to make a trade in order to not risk losing Thompson next season for nothing in return?
According to ESPN's Marc Stein, Thompson and the Cavaliers were close to agreeing on a contract that was worth $80 million over five years and then the power forward backed out. Michael Grange of Sportsnet is reporting Thompson wants a worth upwards or $94 million from the Cavaliers or he will simply play on the one-year qualifying deal of $6.8 million and then leave next summer. That means the Cavaliers would losing one of the top developing players in the league for nothing. This is where the idea of a trade comes in.
King James Gospel brings up several ways the Cavaliers and Thompson could part ways this year and one of them is a trade. Several teams would love to get Thompson onto their roster and while there are no definite talks that a deal could actually end up happening, the Cavaliers certainly have options in front of them. Josh Hill of KingJamesGospel.com reports that a trade with the Phoenix Suns involving Markieff Morris could please everyone.
Morris made headlines by publically demanding a trade from the Phoenix Suns following a deal involving his brother who was sent to the Detroit Pistons in the offseason. Many believe there is no way Morris begins the season with the Suns and the Cavaliers could certainly make a trade work. Hill poses the idea that the Suns and Cavaliers negotiate a sign-and-trade that would send Thompson to Phoenix along with the $8 million player exception and Cleveland would receive Morris in return.
Morris is entering a second year of a four-year, $32 million contract which Cleveland could easily take on. The issue would be that Phoenix would have to be willing to meet the contract demands of Thompson. Morris would be a solid fit to fill the void of Thompson while the Suns get a young player that could be a major piece moving forward.
Ideally, the Cavaliers keep Thompson. LeBron James told the media that Thompson was critical to the team last year and the Cavaliers needed to get a deal done. However, financially the Cavaliers will have a hard time making that happen following the deals to Kevin Love, James, Iman Shumpert and JR Smith. Either Thompson will have to cave on his demands or the Cavaliers will have to part ways.
