Some major names pack their bags in the NBA trade carousel.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have not been shy about shopping guard Dion Waiters on the trading block, and today they have finally closed in a deal. In a three team trade that involves the Cavaliers, Oklahoma City Thunder and New York Knicks, Waiters has been shipped to OKC, where he will be play alongside Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, while the reeling Knicks send guards J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert to Cleveland. For their part, the Knicks receive a future first-round pick from the Thunder, while acquiring rookie Center Alex Kirk from the Cavs.
The story was first reported by of Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports:
The Cleveland Cavaliers have reached an agreement in principle to acquire New York Knicks guards J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert in a multi-team trade that also sends guard Dion Waiters to the Oklahoma City Thunder, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
Oklahoma City will send a protected future first-round draft pick to the Knicks, league sources said. As part of the trade, Cavaliers rookie center Alex Kirk also will be sent to the Knicks, sources said. Cavaliers forward Lou Amundson and Thunder guard Lance Thomas also could be included in the deal.
So far this reason, Dion Waiters has struggled to find his footing amongst the all-star cast of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, having been moved to the bench and averaging just over 10 points a game. Smith and Shumpert were New York mainstays who underperformed this season, landing the Knicks with a current record of 5-31, among the worst in the league.
