Tweet of the Night: The Cleveland Cavaliers plan to sign Andrew Wiggins this week

As free agency winds down and the new landscape of the NBA has started to take shape, there are still a few major dominos still standing.

And sticking with the theme of the 2014 offseason, both of them are involving the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

With rumors swirling around trade talks with the Minnesota Timberwolves, as of Sunday night, the Cavs have not yet acquired Kevin Love. Flip Saunders is playing his hand aggressively now in an effort to drive up the price for his All-Star forward between the Cavs and Golden State Warriors.

By forcing the Warriors and Cavs to compete against each other, he is trying force Cleveland to include their most prized asset, Andrew Wiggins.

Bob Finnan of The Morning Journal reported earlier in the week that the Cavs were willing to include Wiggins — along with last year’s No. 1 pick, Anthony Bennett — in a deal for Love. Oddly, not only does Finnan’s latest report state that the Cavaliers have not agreed to include Wiggins in a deal, but ESPN’s Brian Windhorst is now reporting that the Cavs plan to reach a deal to sign him this week:

Sources: Cavaliers planning to sign Andrew Wiggins this week (via @WindhorstESPN). http://t.co/kLVXOqQB8apic.twitter.com/vM8f9s0y07

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) July 20, 2014

Here’s more from Windhorst:

Sources told ESPN.com that the Cavaliers’ delay in signing the former Kansas star has nothing to do with the prospect of Wiggins being dealt to the Minnesota Timberwolves as part of Cleveland’s ongoing trade discussions for Kevin Love.

The Cavaliers, sources say, are merely exploring options for using their estimated $1.4 million in remaining cap space before signing Wiggins to a contract that will pay him in the neighborhood of $5.5 million as a rookie.

The Cavs and Timberwolves have been discussing a Love trade since the return of LeBron James, with sources saying that Minnesota is insistent on getting Wiggins back in any deal that sends Love to Cleveland.

Once Wiggins signs, though, league rules stipulate that the Cavs must wait 30 days before trading him.

To clarify what this means in terms of trading for Love, Finnan states:

The Cavaliers insist rookie swingman Andrew Wiggins has not been offered in a possible trade for Minnesota Timberwolves power forward Kevin Love.

No one involved would guarantee it wouldn’t happen at a later date, but for now the Cavaliers will proceed in Love negotiations without using the mercurial Wiggins as a trade chip, a source told The News-Herald.

Another source told The News-Herald last week the Cavaliers would be willing to deal the No. 1 pick in the 2014 draft in a trade for Love — and that might still happen. ESPN the Magazine’s Chris Broussard and USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt also reported the same thing.

If Cleveland stands firm on their position on Wiggins, then they might miss out on Love if Golden State agrees to include Klay Thompson. Fortunately for the Cavaliers, the Warriors are also holding out in the hopes that they can swing a deal without including their starting shooting guard.

Finnan breaks down the potential trade implications as they currently stand:

The Warriors have maintained they won’t trade shooting guard Klay Thompson in any deal for Love. If they budge on that stance, that might force the Cavs to reconsider with Wiggins. Joe Kotoch of Pro Basketball Draft and Sheridan Hoops reported the Timberwolves would prefer Thompson over Wiggins — if it comes to that.

 

 

Tweet of the Night: Andrew Wiggins has not been made available 

Ben Baroff is a basketball journalist who blogs for SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter here.