The Portland Trail Blazers have acquired Cleveland Cavaliers forward Rodney Hood.. The Blazers will send the Cavaliers two second-round picks, one in 2021 and one in 2023, along with the expiring contracts of guards Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin IV. Hood had to agree to the trade because his signing of a one-year, $3.4 million qualifying offer last summer with Cleveland granted him veto rights. He'll lose his Bird rights in summer free agency, but his enthusiasm for joining the Blazers on a playoff push allowed for his approval of the deal, league sources said. Portland can still re-sign Hood using one of its exceptions. The Blazers are 32-20 and fourth in the Western Conference. The Cavaliers are continuing to add draft assets and are still pursuing trades for guard Alec Burks and JR Smith before Thursday's trade deadline. With in-season trades of Hood, Kyle Korver, George Hill and Sam Dekker, Cleveland has acquired seven draft picks -- including a first-rounder and six second-round choices. Hood, 26, has started 45 games for the Cavaliers this season, averaging 12.2 points, just under his career average. He spent three-plus seasons with the Utah Jazz before getting to Cleveland a year ago as part of a three-team deal. ESPN front office insider Bobby Marks contributed to this report.<doc-sep>4 Cleveland Cavaliers with highest chance of getting traded next by Eli Mooneyham The Cleveland Cavaliers reportedly traded Rodney Hood to the Portland Trail Blazers today, and that was a good start to the time surrounding the upcoming NBA trade deadline. It makes sense for the Cleveland Cavaliers to be having a “selling” approach when it comes to the time near the upcoming February 7 NBA trade deadline. They started off the time near the deadline with a quality move, in reportedly trading Rodney Hood to the Portland Trail Blazers, in exchange for guards Nik Stauskas, Wade Baldwin, and a pair of future second-round picks, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Portland has agreed to a deal to acquire Cleveland forward Rodney Hood for guards Nik Stauskas, Wade Baldwin and two future second-round picks, league sources tell ESPN. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 3, 2019 Sources: Portland is sending Cleveland a second round pick in 2021 and 2023 for Hood. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 3, 2019 This is exactly what I want to see from Cavs general manager Koby Altman, when it comes to using an expiring contract (in Hood, who is playing this season on a one-year qualifying offer), and bringing back, most importantly, future draft assets. Two second-round draft picks for Hood is a solid return, and ESPN’s Bobby Marks emphasized how Altman is really building a nice stockpile of future draft assets in the coming years through good trades this season, when it comes to dealing veterans such as Kyle Korver, George Hill, Sam Dekker and Hood. Cleveland has turned Kyle Korver, Rodney Hood, George Hill and Sam Dekker into 7 draft selections (1 first and 6 2's). https://t.co/OPpPxb1ktF — Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) February 3, 2019 Hood had some really good games this year for the Cleveland Cavaliers and averaged a respectable 12.2 points per game, but the writing seemed to be on the wall when it came to him getting dealt by Cleveland by the trade deadline, given his team-friendly contract being a clear target for postseason contenders. With him having “veto power” on trades given him playing this season on the one-year qualifying offer, as Wojnarowski highlighted, it was beneficial that Altman was able to find a partner that would suffice for Hood, who was said to have “enthusiasm for joining the Blazers on a playoff push,” again, per Wojnarowski. This sort of deal was a no-nonsense move for the Cavs, who now have a good number of future second-round draft picks in the near future, which could allow them to gradually build their roster better and get a younger core in the coming years. It’s unclear as to how Stauskas and Baldwin will fit into the Cleveland Cavaliers’ rotation, but that’s a minor issue, considering Cleveland isn’t focused on winning games the rest of this season, realistically, anyway. Stauskas, a shooting guard, is a decent mainly catch-and-shoot role player off the bench, as evidenced by his 6.1 points on 51.3 percent effective field goal shooting in 15.3 minutes per game this year, per Basketball Reference. He could provide some decent minutes for Cleveland’s bench occasionally next to Matthew Dellavedova or Jordan Clarkson. Baldwin, a reserve point guard, has only played in 16 games this season, and has averaged 1.9 points and 0.8 assists in 5.9 minutes per game, per NBA.com. I wouldn’t expect him to have much of a role with Collin Sexton, Dellavedova and Clarkson taking the vast majority of perimeter playmaking duties in front of, but we’ll see. Could Clarkson be moved in the next few days? As our own Eli Mooneyham noted, Sam Amico of Amico Hoops noted that there is “interest in Clarkson” on a recent podcast with Chase Smith of “Cavs on the Break.” It would seem that dealing Clarkson near the deadline could feasibly add to the future draft stockpile even more, given that Clarkson has led qualified Cavaliers in scoring this season with 16.8 points per game on 54.4 percent true shooting, per NBA.com. In addition, as Wojnarowski emphasized in an above tweet, it would make sense that the next player Cleveland could be trading soon is guard Alec Burks, who has an expiring contract and could help contenders, just like Hood. Burks has been a steady player for the Cavs since being traded to them by the Utah Jazz in December, as he’s averaged 11.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game in 33 appearances, per Basketball Reference. According to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, the Houston Rockets shown interest in Burks and (would have in a Hood trade), noting that “Houston will peddle a future first-round pick attached to Marquese Chriss and Brandon Knight until the buzzer.” Lowe said that the two sides have “discussed sending Knight and a pick for Burks.” He then followed that up by saying “those talks have quieted,” per sources, but the narrative is clear. The Cleveland Cavaliers will almost certainly be moving Burks, who can help contending teams, and they are focused on building for the near future by acquiring future draft picks. Want your voice heard? Join the King James Gospel team! Write for us! Altman is doing the right thing right now for Cleveland, and that’s all you can really ask for in regards to jump-starting Cleveland’s full-rebuild.<doc-sep>The Cleveland Cavaliers acquired some new faces on Sunday afternoon, as they traded away Rodney Hood to the Portland Trail Blazers. As part of the return, they received Wade Baldwin IV. But who is Baldwin? When the Cleveland Cavaliers reportedly traded Rodney Hood to the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday (per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski) the question on Cleveland fans’ minds revolved around what kind of return the franchise received for him. A talented guard that could never find consistency or aggression would only bring back so much. With that being said, it shouldn’t have been a shock when the assets ended up being Nik Stauskas, Wade Baldwin IV, and two second-rounders. Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman has made it a known point that he’s doing all he can to acquire as many draft picks as possible right now, he just hasn’t physically spoken those words. With a rebuild in the beginning stages, it’s imperative to net as many picks in the next few Junes to hopefully piece together a playoff-contending team once again. So the two second-rounders should be looked at as a good thing, though not anything to get overly excited about. Stauskas has been looked at as a three-point shooter that is alright in most areas. He isn’t going to blow you away with one facet of his game, be that offensively or defensively. However, maybe a fresh start with the Cavaliers could help give his career a boost, as our own Robbie DiPaola highlighted. But what about Baldwin? It’s weird to think that a third-year pro has as much uncertainty about him as a couple of second-round draft picks. Baldwin’s essentially an unknown commodity at this point until the Cavaliers prove otherwise. Until then, here’s what we know about Baldwin thus far. He helped Vanderbilt make the 2016 NCAA Tournament Vanderbilt basketball is not known as a powerhouse of any kind, especially in the ever-competitive SEC. But Baldwin helped the Commodores reach new heights while he was with the ballclub. The Commodores, led by Baldwin’s team-high 14.1 points and 5.2 assists, were able to finish the regular season with a 19-14 record, going 11-7 in conference play, per Sports Reference. Though the win-loss record was far from staggering and Vanderbilt was bounced from the SEC Tournament with a first-round loss to Tennessee, the team was able to sneak into the NCAA Tournament. Vanderbilt’s dreams came to an end with a 70-50 loss to Wichita State in the First Four. He was drafted 17th overall by the Memphis Grizzlies Baldwin was involved in the 2016 NBA Draft after playing two years at Vanderbilt University. After a couple of campaigns with the Commodores, the then-20-year old was being slotted as a first-round pick. The Memphis Grizzlies made that come to fruition by selecting Baldwin with the 17th overall pick in the draft. While Baldwin only spent a season with Memphis that saw him appear in just 33 games, it’s worth noting that the Grizz saw more promise in him than the likes of Caris LeVert, Pascal Siakam, and Dejounte Murray, all who went within the next twelve picks of Baldwin. He’s had a nice stretch of G League performances this season Baldwin has spent some time in the G-League as his contract with the Trail Blazers allowed him to go back-and-forth between the developmental league and the big show. It’s done some good things for him, as he’s shown flashes of what he can do with extended playing time. In six games for the Texas Legends, five of them starts, Baldwin has posted 22.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.2 steals, per Basketball Reference’s G League statistics. That’s an all-around effort that would absolutely be welcomed by the Cavaliers, who are looking to find talent in any way they can. Want your voice heard? Join the King James Gospel team! Write for us! Now with a lottery-bound Cleveland squad, it’ll be interesting to see how much time Baldwin gets on the court and what he does with said time.<doc-sep>With the NBA trade deadline days away, the Cleveland Cavaliers lay claim to an 11-42 record. CLEVELAND -- Making three trades involving four teams and a total of 11 players over the course of just a few hours, the Cleveland Cavaliers were indisputably the biggest mover and shaker at last season's NBA trade deadline. One year later, the phone lines at Cleveland Clinic Courts once again figure to be busy -- albeit occupied by very different types of conversations. With the Cavs laying claim to an 11-42 record, their objective at the trade deadline has changed. As much was evident on Monday, when Cleveland announced the first of what could be many trades to come between now and Thursday afternoon. Sending Rodney Hood to the Portland Trail Blazers, the Cavs parted ways with one of the players they had high hopes for when they overturned their roster a year ago. Only Cleveland's latest deal wasn't about Hood or even the two players it acquired, Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin, each of whom are scheduled to be free agents at the end of this season. Rather, the most coveted piece of the trade for the Cavs comes in the form of a pair of future second-round picks. Although general manager Koby Altman and owner Dan Gilbert have been shy to use the word "rebuild" this season, their actions have indicated otherwise, with Monday's trade being the latest indicator of Cleveland's post-LeBron James plans. In all likelihood, Monday's trade will have a marginal impact -- if any -- on the Cavs' future. Neither Stauskas nor Baldwin's careers in Cleveland will likely extend beyond this season and the success rate of second-round picks is so low that neither selection (due in 2021 and 2023) should be considered a prized possession. Nevertheless, one could argue this is exactly the type of move the Cavs should be making at the moment. With a return to contention still years away -- at least -- Cleveland would be wise to invest more in the future than in the present. And while it may be unlikely that either of the Cavs' newly acquired second-round picks amount to much, there's a better chance that they play a part in the team's future than Hood -- who will also be a free agent this summer -- would have. This isn't the first time Altman has taken such approach. In December, the team traded another acquisition from last year's trade deadline, George Hill, to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Matthew Dellavedova, John Henson and a future first-round pick. The deal didn't make Cleveland better on the court and actually required the team to take on more long term money. But all of that was secondary to the future first-round pick the Cavs acquired in the trade -- another asset aimed at improving the team's future. According to RealGM.com, in addition to the Bucks' 2021 first-rounder, Cleveland is currently owed six future second-round picks, five of which have been acquired since the end of last season.<doc-sep>
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to a trade sending Rodney Hood to the Portland Trail Blazers for Nik Stauskas, Wade Baldwin and a pair of second-round picks, league sources told cleveland.com Sunday afternoon. According to league sources, the Cavs will receive Portland's 2021 and 2023 second-round selections, both of which are unprotected. Stauskas and Baldwin are both on expiring contracts. Hood, who had veto power over any deal because he signed a one-year $3.4 million qualifying offer this summer, has signed off on the trade. League sources told cleveland.com Saturday night that Hood, one of the most coveted wings on the trade market, would only waive his no-trade for a playoff contender that provides a clearly-defined role. The Blazers fit both parameters, as they have been seeking another offensive option to take pressure off Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. The Blazers have the fourth-best record in the Western Conference. Stauskas, a 2014 first-round pick of the Sacramento Kings, is averaging 6.1 points on 41.9 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from 3-point range in 44 games during his first season with the Blazers. He signed a one-year minimum deal this summer. A first-round pick of the Memphis Grizzlies in 2016, Baldwin, 22, has been in Portland the last two seasons. He has appeared in just 23 games over the past two years, spending some of his time with the G League's Texas Legends. The Cavs entered the season hoping to stockpile future assets for veterans who didn't fit the team's long-term plans. They have now added seven draft picks, including one first-rounder, in separate deals for Hood, Kyle Korver, Sam Dekker and George Hill. Cleveland, which has received plenty of interest in Alec Burks since acquiring him from Utah in late November, is still fielding calls on Burks ahead of Thursday's 3 p.m. deadline. The Cavs are also still trying to find a deal involving exiled swingman JR Smith. Hood, 26, was Cleveland's fifth-leading scorer, averaging 12.2 points in 45 games.