Cavs Hoping to Trade Haywood

The (Rakeem Christmas) trade gives the Cavs roster flexibility and an asset they can use to move (center Brendan Haywood and create a large trade exception in the next week. While a final decision hasn’t been reached, the Cavs have nearly come to the conclusion that they will not be able to find a suitable deal to use Haywood’s $10.52 million non-guaranteed contract, sources said.

The Cavs have also been concerned about taking on additional salaries because they are facing historic luxury-tax penalties this season. LeBron James, Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving and Iman Shumpert are starting huge new contracts, and free agent Tristan Thompson is expected to follow.

Source: Brian Windhorst of ESPN