According to The Vertical, the Cavaliers are finalizing a deal with the Atlanta Hawks that would bring sharpshooter Kyle Korver to Cleveland.
Vertical Sources with @ShamsCharania: Atlanta is finalizing a deal to send guard Kyle Korver to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 6, 2017
Korver will be 36 in March and is in the final year of his $5.2 million contract. Korver is well-known for being an expert marksman in the NBA. For his 13-year NBA career, Korver is shooting nearly 43% from behind the three-point arc. This season, Korver is averaging 9.5 points per game while shooting just over 40% from behind the arc.
Adding Korver makes sense for the Cavs who are thin in the backcourt following an injury to JR Smith in December. Korver is an adequate defender and provides the Cavaliers with floor spacing for the likes of Kyrie Irving and LeBron James. When Smith gets healthy in late March or early April, the Cavaliers will have the ability to play both Smith and Korver in the same lineup, which may prove especially deadly, especially in lineups with James, Irving, and perhaps Channing Frye.
Who the Cavaliers are sending to Atlanta remains a mystery, for the time being. At the time the trade broke, Korver was on the floor as the Hawks tango with the New Orleans Pelicans. With the use of trade exceptions, there are a number of possibilities. Check back to Burning River Basketball for more as details emerge.
Update: Speculation is that the Cavaliers are trading Mo Williams and a first round pick to the Hawks for Korver’s services. If so, the Cavaliers would have to use a little over half of the money they have from Anderson Varejao’s trade exception to make the money work.
Not sure if this is out there yet – I hear Mo Williams is Atlanta bound along w/a heavily protected 1st from Cavs for Korver @BBallInsiders
— Eric Pincus (@EricPincus) January 6, 2017
Also, it seems as if Mike Dunleavy’s short time in Cleveland is over.
Sources: Atlanta and Cleveland are finalizing terms on Korver deal, with Mike Dunleavy Jr., likely moving onto a third team through Atlanta.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 6, 2017
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