RealGM

The following item on wiretap report:

The Cleveland Cavaliers are expected to make a trade between Dec. 15 and Jan. 10 with their trade exception, according to Brian Windhorst.

One target for the Cavaliers is Tayshaun Prince of the Memphis Grizzlies.

However, from what I can tell, CLE only has a TE worth 5.2M-ish and Prince makes 7.7Mish.

Is this bad reporting (aka a reporter who doesn't know trade rules trying to invent a trade idea that isn't really being discussed), to link CLE's intent to use their TE with a mention of Prince as a potential target? Or am I missing something?

I don't think you are missing anything DBoys. I contacted Brian Windhorst earlier today over it, in fact.

Yeah. Report has to be wrong. No way they can make that work with the TPE.

Actually if you go to ESPNCeveland on Twitter, Windhorst had two separate tweets: "I expect the #Cavs to make a trade between Dec 15-Jan 10 with their trade exception included." and "I've heard there's been interest from the #Cavs in Tayshaun Prince, who's fallen out of the rotation in Memphis."

He never actually says that the Cavs are interested in using their trade exception to get Prince, The juxtaposition of the two tweets leads the reader to reach that conclusion.

Dunkenstein wrote:Actually if you go to ESPNCeveland on Twitter, Windhorst had two separate tweets: "I expect the #Cavs to make a trade between Dec 15-Jan 10 with their trade exception included." and "I've heard there's been interest from the #Cavs in Tayshaun Prince, who's fallen out of the rotation in Memphis."

He never actually says that the Cavs are interested in using their trade exception to get Prince, The juxtaposition of the two tweets leads the reader to reach that conclusion.

Duly noted, but when you look at the CLE roster, and then consider what Prince should cost in trade, it's hard to believe that he had no intent for those back-to-back tweets to be seen as linked. RealGM certainly took it that way, on seeing a report that the Cavs were looking to use their TE followed by the mention of a specific name they were looking at.

And if it was not intended, what sort of trade for Prince adds up? Acquiring Prince using an assetless TE makes sense. But if you think of acquiring him in exchange for names like Thompson or Waiters, it's kinda absurd isn't it? I'm guessing BW's decided the Cavs are looking at a Miller-for-Prince swap, with the TE being used to balance the salaries - except, of course, he's screwed the pooch in "reporting" his trade thinking, since that's not allowed.

DBoys wrote:I'm guessing BW's decided the Cavs are looking at a Miller-for-Prince swap, with the TE being used to balance the salaries - except, of course, he's screwed the pooch in "reporting" his trade thinking, since that's not allowed.

I'm not understanding you, my friend. What is it that's not allowed?

Dunkenstein wrote:

DBoys wrote:I'm guessing BW's decided the Cavs are looking at a Miller-for-Prince swap, with the TE being used to balance the salaries - except, of course, he's screwed the pooch in "reporting" his trade thinking, since that's not allowed.

I'm not understanding you, my friend. What is it that's not allowed?

You can't combine the TPE with an outgoing player. The TPE has to be used by itself. I think that is what DBoys is getting at.

Marc Stein wrote this today:
"Waiters-for-Koufos is a trade scenario that has to be monitored. Even more so when you take note of the Cavs' interest in Grizzlies veteran Tayshaun Prince, as reported Friday by my ESPN.com colleague Brian Windhorst. The Cavs have the parts to assemble a deal to send Waiters to Memphis and take Prince's $7.7 million salary off the Grizzlies' hands in addition to acquiring Koufos."

Koufous's $3M salary could be taken into the Cavs TPE, while Waiters and Miller could be used to acquire Prince.

Dunkenstein wrote:Marc Stein wrote this today:
"Waiters-for-Koufos is a trade scenario that has to be monitored. Even more so when you take note of the Cavs' interest in Grizzlies veteran Tayshaun Prince, as reported Friday by my ESPN.com colleague Brian Windhorst. The Cavs have the parts to assemble a deal to send Waiters to Memphis and take Prince's $7.7 million salary off the Grizzlies' hands in addition to acquiring Koufos."

Koufous's $3M salary could be taken into the Cavs TPE, while Waiters and Miller could be used to acquire Prince.

Your "rest of the story" makes sense. Thanks for the help.

Yeah the rest of the report now makes sense, as to the legality of the move. As for why it makes basketball sense, that part I'm not seeing from the Memphis side. But that is another issue entirely!