At this writing, the NBA Finals are at 1-1 from the respective teams of the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors. At first it appeared to be the Warrior's series for Game 1 and the follow-up, but the Cleveland Cavaliers managed to tie it up as they won game 2. Considering that these teams have been playing like...champs this year, there has been a lot of NBA Trade Rumors for both the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors.
According to Sports World Report, the Cleveland Cavaliers should have Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson back on the team with a new contract. Matthew Dellavedova might have a chance as well, especially as he stepped up after Kyrie Irving's injury.
During the coming off-season, Kevin Love can opt out of the deal. If Love does opt-out, it will have to be before the June 30th deadline. Being out with a shoulder issue has clearly affected him this season, but he will be healthy next season and has stated many times his intention of staying on with the Cavaliers.
As for Thompson, he is a restricted free agent. The Cavaliers can match any offers that he will receive during the summer, and there will probably be many. His performance has been quite strong including 15 rebounds at the NBA Finals Game 1 against the Warriors.
Lebron James speaks very highly about Thompson, believing that "he'll be here for a long time". Should Thompson get the max deal, the Love will need to wait or go elsewhere. The Cavaliers have been considering others such as JR Smith, Iman Shumpert, and Timofey Mozgov, which means that Love could not bet getting any love for a max deal and might have to go elsewhere. So who would replace him? Perhaps Tyson Chandler, Al Jefferson, and Larry Sanders are some good names to drop to replace the forward, but we will see.
As for the Golden State Warriors, there has been little to be heard about any NBA Trade Rumors. Being in the NBA Finals has really put them on the map this year, and having Stephen "Steph" Curry making the NBA 2K16 cover, a most coveted spot for NBA players, was also a huge thing.
The Golden State Warriors GM Bob Myers is really going to have to make some interesting trades to compete for the 2015 season. According to Chat Sports, the Golden State Warriors could use "a bit more stability at the center position moving forward, especially since the effectiveness of the team's defense relies so heavily on having a massive deterrent in the middle of the lane". Something that could change that would be the introduction of new players like Kentucky's Dakari Johnson or Washington center Robert Upshaw. There is even talk of adding current LSU player Jarell Martin to the mix.
Of course, there is also talk that the Warriors could abandon their frontcourt needs altogether are get another shooting guard, and that man could be Arizona's Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
It is very clear that with the NBA Final games tied up, it really could be any team's championship. You had better believe that these players' value just went up just by participating, and it will be very interesting to see what happens as the NBA trade rumors really start to fly during the month of January.
