Rebuilding Cavs trade forward Rodney Hood to Trail Blazers
CLEVELAND (AP) — Rodney Hood made minimal impact on the Cavaliers’ postseason run last season. He’ll get a chance to do more with Portland.
Hood was traded Monday by the Cavaliers, who acquired guards Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin — and their expiring contracts — along with second-round picks in 2021 and 2023 from the Trail Blazers.
Before the trade could be completed, the Cavaliers needed Hood to agree to the deal because he signed a one-year $3.4 million qualifying offer this summer. The 26-year-old waived his no-trade clause to join the Blazers, who are 32-20 and have the fourth best record in the Western Conference.
Hood will give Portland some more scoring punch and can take some pressure off guards Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. He is averaging 12.2 points and 2.5 rebounds this season.
The Cavaliers acquired Hood at the trade deadline from Utah last season, and they envisioned him being another scoring option to complement LeBron James and Kevin Love. However, the 6-foot-8 forward never fully fit in with the Cavs, and after starting Cleveland’s first playoff game, he was pulled from the rotation by then-coach Tyronn Lue.
The rebuilding Cavaliers are collecting draft assets following a four-year run to the Finals. It is possible they will deal Alec Burks or J.R. Smith before Thursday’s trade deadline. Stauskas and Baldwin have expiring contracts, which will allow the Cavaliers to clear more salary-cap space to pursue free agents.
Cleveland has added seven draft picks this season in deals for Hood, Kyle Korver, Sam Dekker and George Hill.
To make roster room for Stauskas and Baldwin, the Cavaliers released guard Kobi Simmons from his 10-day contract.
Stauskas averaged 6.1 points and 15.3 minutes in 44 games for Portland this season. He also has played for Sacramento, Philadelphia and Brooklyn. The Kings selected him with the No. 8 overall pick in 2014.
Baldwin has played in 16 games for the Trail Blazers this season. He also has been with Texas Legends of the NBA’s G League.
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