Thu, Jun 28, 2012 at 9:22pm

ZELLER TO CLEVELAND

The Cleveland Cavaliers acquired forward Tyler Zeller and guard/forward Kelenna Azubuike from the the Dallas Mavericks for the 24th, 33rd and 34th picks in the 2012 draft.

What does it give the Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavs do a nice job here of adding another talented and mature young player to their fast-improving core. Zeller can take pressure of second-year big man {P Tristan Thompson} (who's been playing out of position at times at center) and lets Thompson move to his more natural power forward. With {P Dion Waiters} also now in the fold, Cleveland is set to field an exciting (if very green) starting five of Zeller (depending on what happens with {P Anderson Varejao}), Thompson, {P Kyrie Irving}, Waiters, and {P Alonzo Gee} (presuming he re-signs). Azubuike is a talented veteran swingman who can give the Cavs needed depth at shooting guard and small forward (assuming he can stay healthy).

What does it give the Dallas Mavericks
Dallas is a veteran team full of highly-paid stars, and at this point it seems they're still in contention mode (despite their playoff disappointment). Zeller might have been the long-term answer they need at center but he wouldn't have been ideal for their oldies-but-goodies group right now, so getting some less expensive, later picks is probably a solid move by them at this point. That said, further down the road they may well regret letting Zeller go.

Fantasy impact