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The Cleveland Cavaliers really want another all star player to put on the court with Kyrie Irving. As soon as they landed the #1 overall pick at the NBA Draft Lottery, the Cavs have been working the phones in attempts to get an established player to bring to Cleveland. Needless to say, they haven't been very successful. According to ESPN's Chad Ford, the Portland Trail Blazers promptly rejected the Cavs' offer of the #1 and #19 picks for LaMarcus Aldridge.
What are the Cleveland Cavaliers seeking in exchange for the No. 1 pick? Sources say they reached out to the Portland Trail Blazers in an attempt to land LaMarcus Aldridge for the Nos. 1 and 19 picks. The Blazers quickly rebuffed them.
This shouldn't come as much of a surprised. We knew that the Cavs have been chasing Aldridge and we also knew that Portland wanted much much more for their all star big man. Ultimately, this isn't much of a story but it's definitely something that we're going to keep hearing about until the Cavaliers (or somebody else) actually makes the first pick in the draft.
Chad Ford also reported what he knew about the Cavs' interest in Nerlens Noel. He maintains that they he is the logical pick and continues to believe that they will take him. He basically reinforced a lot of the ideas that we've been preaching for a while now. Noel has a ton of upside and scores very well in the advanced analytics. While these aren't the only factors that the Cavaliers consider, they have been common themes in recent years.
Ford also mentioned that three new teams might be trying to move up to the #1 pick. The Blazers, Timberwolves, and Thunder are all reportedly interested, although it doesn't seem like anything is going to get done before draft night.
They are engaged in trade talks with a number of teams. Sources say the Thunder, Timberwolves and Blazers have been the most proactive in trying to get the No. 1 pick -- but so far neither team has persuaded the Cavs to move out of the top pick.
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