NBA Trade Rumors: Sexton, Simmons, Gordon, Pacers, Pelicans

Collin Sexton had his best season as a pro during the 2020-21 season, though that doesn’t mean he has a long-term future in Cleveland. Jason Lloyd of The Athletic writes that Sexton is “very available” in trade talks ahead of the draft and free agency.

This jives with previous reports that the franchise has financial concerns about a potential Sexton extension. The Alabama product is eligible for a deal that could pay him as much as $168 million over five seasons. It seems unlikely it will take a max deal to ink Sexton to an extension but anywhere close is still hindering the Cavs’ future flexibility given Jarrett Allen‘s potential deal and a looming deal for Darius Garland next year.

Sexton has only missed 12 games in his entire three-year pro career, all of which came last season. He carries career averages of 20.2 points, 3.4 assists, and 3.0 rebounds while shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 38.5 percent on three-pointers. He is a career 83.1 percent shooter from the free-throw line.

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There’s “no chance” that the Cavs can pull off a Ben Simmons deal with Sexton as the centerpiece, Lloyd adds (same piece). Simmons’ value remains high around the league, as FortyEightMinutes recently reported, and any Cavaliers deal for the 2016 No. 1 overall pick would likely require a third team to get involved.
The Pacers are willing to give up the No. 13 pick in the upcoming draft for a player who can contribute right away, J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star hears. Indiana and Houston had talks about the selection, presumably about Eric Gordon heading to the Pacers since the team is targeting players with at least two seasons remaining on their contract.
The Pelicans had talks with the Cavs about a trade for Sexton, longtime journalist Landon Buford reports. Any talks were in the preliminary stage, though with rumors of restricted free agent Lonzo Ball being too pricey for New Orleans, perhaps the franchise believes inking Sexton to an extension will be a more reasonable task.
The Cavaliers’ interest in trading up to No. 1 is real but they aren’t alone. The Rockets are reportedly “fixated” on Cade Cunningham in the upcoming draft. Houston owns the No. 2 overall pick and has gauged what it would take to pull off a trade with the Pistons for No. 1.