Empty the Bench

Rumor: Jermaine O’Neal could be traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“The Cleveland Cavaliers could trade Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Anderson Varejao and the No. 19 pick to Indiana for Jermaine O’Neal.”

Source: Waiting for Next Year

Analysis:

If healthy, Jermaine O’Neal can be the type of dynamic low-post defensive presence and interior scorer that the Cavaliers sorely need. When playing at full strength Jermaine is one of the NBA’s better shot blockers and his skills would seem to fit very nicely alongside LeBron. “If healthy” and “When playing at full strength” are major caveats here though. A healthy Jermaine O’Neal is like a dodo bird: I’m convinced it simply doesn’t exist anymore. Any trade involving the 6-11 PF/C is caveat emptor , and that’s before you look at his inflated contract.

As hard as it may be to believe, O’Neal in his 11th season already and is just a year younger than Kevin Garnett. In those 11 seasons he’s never played all 82 games. Over the last four seasons his games played totals have been 42, 69, 51 and 44. And even among those few games actually played a majority have been at less than full strength.

Of course the Pacers are all too eager to unload the injury ravaged big man. They’ve got a new core of young players centered around Mike Dunleavy, Jr. and Danny Granger. O’Neal looms large in their legers as well, owed over $44 million the next two seasons. His contract stands as their only major impediment to true rebuilding.

Jermaine O’Neal and LeBron James Photo Credit: Icon SMI

I know he has some big fans out there, but I don’t consider Anderson Varejao to be an impact player by any means. He’s just another niche Cavalier player who can’t put the ball in the basket. It’s also conceivable that his effectiveness will be greatly reduced with increased attention paid to flopping in the coming season. The No. 19 pick is a nice piece, but it’s unlikely to net any player who will come in and make an immediate difference. Cleveland is focused in the short term on keeping LeBron happy and doing whatever it takes to keep him in Ohio.

The Cavs know there is a distinct possibility of LeBron donning a Brooklyn Nets jersey as early as 2010-11. That’s why it’s especially troubling that Big Z’s name is included here. On an offensively challenged team like Cleveland where the Celtics defense didn’t have respect for anybody but ‘Bron, Ilgauskas was one of the only Cavs who could knock down his open jumpers. He was also one of the few players on the roster who did more than just one or two things well. Also, Varejao and Big Z can come off the books as early as next summer, giving the Cavs much needed cap space to lure in a sidekick for LeBron.

So why would the Cavs want another big man with a litany of injury problems and an albatross contract? I don’t know. Again, when healthy he brings an inside presence on both ends that nobody else on their roster provides. This is a three-time All-NBA player and six-time NBA All-Star who finished third in the MVP voting for 2003-04. He’s a skilled individual. But GM Danny Ferry has to know he’s also irreparably damaged goods, right? And with only three players on the books past the upcoming season, they wouldn’t take on another major contract for an aging player, right?

Then again, this is the franchise that agreed to pay Ben Wallace over $28 million for the next two seasons…

Related: Jermaine O’Neal, LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers, Zydrunas Ilgauskas