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CLEVELAND, OH – FEBRUARY 7: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers with his teammates huddle before the game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on February 7, 2018 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images
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The Cavs blew up their squad — and Twitter

Cleveland traded six players and a draft pick before the NBA trade deadline

Aaron Dodson @aardodson
Topics:
NBA LeBron James Derrick Rose Cleveland Cavaliers Dwyane Wade Iman Shumpert Isaiah Thomas George Hill Rodney Hood Jordan Clarkson Larry Nance Jr.

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    3:29 PMFor the foreseeable future, Feb. 8, 2018, will be remembered as Judgment Day in Cleveland. In a matter of 61 minutes in the lead-up to Thursday’s annual NBA trade deadline, the Cavaliers dealt six players and one draft pick to three teams in return for four players and a draft pick as part of a complete roster rebuild less than a week before the start of the All-Star break. As Cleveland blew up its entire squad, Twitter fingers percolated and popcorn was ready.

    The swift moves executed by Cavs general manager Koby Altman began at 12:05 p.m. EST, when ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported that the Los Angeles Lakers were sending point guard Jordan Clarkson and power forward Larry Nance Jr. to Cleveland for power forward Channing Frye, point guard Isaiah Thomas (whom the Cavs received from the Boston Celtics in the blockbuster Kyrie Irving trade last summer) and a 2018 first-round draft pick. Thomas’ career in The Land lasted only 15 games, after he sat out the first few months of the season with a hip injury.

    At 1 p.m., the Cavs sent point guard Derrick Rose and forward Jae Crowder to the Utah Jazz, and guard Iman Shumpert to the Sacramento Kings, in a three-team deal that landed forward Rodney Hood and point guard George Hill in Cleveland.

    Six minutes later, Cleveland traded future Hall of Fame shooting guard Dwyane Wade to the Miami Heat for a second-round draft pick.

    The 36-year-old Wade, who was drafted by the Heat in 2003, will presumably finish his career in Miami, and his wife, Gabrielle Union, couldn’t be happier.

    Neither could Wade’s now former teammate (again) LeBron James, whom he played with in Miami from 2010 to 2014.

    Now, only four players from Cleveland’s 2016 NBA championship-winning squad — James, J.R. Smith, Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson — are left on the team. So what does this all really mean for the Cavs? Perhaps the franchise is preparing for a future without James, who could opt out of his contract and become a free agent this summer. Or maybe Cleveland is just reloading its tainted roster with a crop of younger, more athletic and more defensive-minded players who will be needed if the team plans to make a run to the NBA Finals for the fourth straight year.

    Regardless, Thursday left us all feeling like Earl Smith (aka J.R.) …

    Aaron Dodson is a sports and culture writer, primarily covering footwear endorsement deals and sneaker culture.