How could they take on Leonard to save us money though?
By taking back a player with an expiring contract that that also gets us under the luxury tax threshold for this year.
Frye is exactly that player.
McCollum + Leonard = $33,867, 068
Love + Frye = $30,063,262
Difference = $3,803,806
POR is currently $2,849,291 over the tax threshold. This trade gets us under the threshold this year. So, we would not be paying any tax, and would actually get a share from the teams that are. Plus, it postpones year one of any potential repeater penalty by another year.
And, Frye is an expiring contract we could let walk. Meyers has another two years and $21.7 million left on his contract.
Unfortunately, CLE is hot to get George Hill from SAC and need Frye's contract to make that deal work. Maybe we can work out a 3-team trade where we get Love and Frye, Meyers and Crowder go to SAC and C.J. and Hill go to CLE.
That works salary wise, but other bits and pieces would be required to make it worth it to POR and SAC as they would be gift wrapping a much improved backcourt to CLE. A 3-guard rotation of Thomas, Hill and C.J. would be perfect for CLE. Hill can play both on and off the ball and is an excellent defender. So, he fits well next to both Thomas and C.J. With Crowder gone, they move LeBron back SF, Love back to PF and insert Tristan Thompson back into the starting line up at center. They get J.R. Smith, who has been miserable this year, out of the starting line up (replaced by C.J.) and maybe out of the rotation all together (they still have Wade and Korver to provide scoring off the bench).
BNM
