Jalen McDaniels Is Establishing Himself A Market For The Offseason

The Charlotte Hornets have a situation on their hands. Well, they have several, but their current situation is that of Jalen McDaniels, who by season’s end will be an unrestricted free agent (UFA), who can sign with any team he wants.

McDaniels, who was selected in the second round in 2019, is currently playing in his fourth NBA campaign, under the same contract he signed after getting selected.

Per CBA rules, McDaniels is thus eligible for UFA status after serving four years. Had the Hornets not picked up his fourth-year option last summer, and allowed him to become a restricted free agent, they could have negotiated a new deal with the 6’9 forward, instead of giving him a pathway to leaving outright this coming July.

But that is what the Hornets chose to do, and this season McDaniels has broken out, averaging 11 points and almost five rebounds per game. The long, agile forward turns just 25 on January 31st, and immediately becomes a prime candidate to get snatched up in free agency by a team looking for help at the forward positions.

Enter the Cleveland Cavaliers.

It’s no secret that the Cavs are in dire need of a proper wing, and preferably one who fits the timeline of their current core consisting of Dairus Garland (23), Donovan Mitchell (26), Evan Mobley (21), and Jarrett Allen (24).

While Garland’s new deal kicks in that summer, both Kevin Love and Caris LeVert’s deals come off the books. The team presumably won’t have enough cap space to afford McDaniels outright, but having both Love and LeVert expire could provide enough wiggle room to enter into a sign-and-trade arrangement with the Hornets, without facing too steep a financial devotion to the roster.

By all accounts, McDaniels should receive offers north of $16 million per year given how the league has put a premium on two-way wings who can shoot, and play positionally fluid basketball.

McDaniels might not set the world on fire from behind the arc at 33.5% this season, but that percentage is undoubtedly affected by not sharing the court a ton with LaMelo Ball due to the time he missed with injuries this year. McDaniels have had to produce on his own accord quite a bit this year, which indicates he could find himself far more open, and far more selective with his shots, alongside Cleveland’s four starters.

Of course, in any sign-and-trade scenario, the Cavs would have to relinquish something, and they more or less sold the farm to Utah for Mitchell, which makes it challenging to find something the Hornets would be willing to take back, especially as they will have to match salaries.

Isaac Okoro would almost have to be included, as he stands to earn over $8.9 million next year. The Cavs may be forced to include veteran point guard Ricky Rubio and his $6.1 million, as well as fork over a second-rounder to Charlotte for the trouble.

Some might argue we’ve yet to see enough from McDaniels for him to slide in as a full-time starter on a good team, while earning over 10% of the salary cap. It’s understandable that players from poor teams tend to get downplayed as opportunities are ample in those situations. McDaniels, however, has done a lot of his own legwork, being assisted on only 53% of his two-pointers, and looking both sharper and more prepared than in years past.

The market might not yet be ready for him, and if that’s the case, all the better for Cleveland who could then use an exception to get him on board. If they re-sign Love to a minimum contract, they replace his cap hold with the value of his new minimum deal, but Love’s former, and larger, cap hold would indirectly get absorbed by Garland’s extension.

In essence, the Cavs are likely to have the non-tax mid-level available, which would be a strong offer to put in front of McDaniels, assuming the market remains lukewarm on him, given the circumstances in Charlotte.

For McDaniels, it’s about finishing this year off strong, and put himself in a good position to enter the market in July, where he can pick his own future. Picking the Cavs, a team that projects as an Eastern Conference powerhouse, wouldn’t be a bad call.

Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.