5 trade destinations for Kyrie Irving, now that he wants to leave Cleveland
By John Buhler
Miami Heat
East, Southeast
Minnesota and Denver might have better return packages coming Cleveland’s way for Irving, but the Miami Heat have Pat Riley in the front office, and that matters. Could Irving be taking his talents to South Beach from Cleveland? Trades are different than free agency, but expect Irving jerseys to burn like wildfire on the shores of Lake Erie.
Point guard Goran Dragic would have to be going Cleveland’s way in a deal. Like Teague potentially going to Cleveland from Minnesota, Dragic would be a solid, stop-gap point guard for a contending Cavaliers team. Miami would have to send another player or two like Justise Winslow, Dion Waiters, maybe even Hassan Whiteside, plus a pick to pull off the deal.
Keep in mind that Miami is by far and away the best free agency destination in the Eastern Conference, and it isn’t particularly close. South Beach, Riley, no state income tax and three Larry O’Brien Trophies tell free agents all they need to know. Erik Spoelstra is an elite coach in his prime. Miami has the reputation of getting deals done to become overnight champions.
The rift that would exist between Miami fans and Clevelanders would be beyond hostile in the coming years. There’s nothing wrong with reigniting another NBA rivalry. It was fun for a few years after LeBron took his talents to South Beach, just maybe not until the prodigal son returned home in 2014.
By forcing a trade to the Heat, Irving would re-emerge as the franchise cornerstone he was before LeBron came home in 2014. He would have the opportunity to star for Spoelstra and build a championship team around him that he can call his own with the help of Riley.