Cavs fail to retain starting small forward in free agency

The Cleveland Cavaliers have lost defensive-first starting small forward Dean Wade in free agency. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that he will be joining former Cavs general manager Mike Gansey with the Philadelphia 76ers on a four-year, $39 million deal.

Not being able to retain Wade’s services isn’t all that surprising on its own. The Cavs were the only team over the second apron last regular season and are making a concerted effort to get well under it this offseason so that they can reshape their roster. Considering the number of suitors it was reported Wade had, it was likely that one of them could offer more than the Cavs.

What is surprising is the amount Wade signed for. His new contract with Philadelphia has an average annual value of $9.75 million, and could be structured to pay less money the first year. That isn’t an outrageous amount or one that would significantly hinder the Cavs from getting under the second apron if they had matched it.

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The Cavs’ choice to presumably not match that amount would be curious if they don’t have other moves or possibilities lined up. The small and power forward positions are the groupings with the least amount of depth on the team. Wade was a stopgap at both positions and was by far the best perimeter point-of-attack defender on the team. This comes on the same night defensive specialist Keon Ellis signed with the Brooklyn Nets.

Cleveland was already in need of additional help at the three and four spots. Now, that is even more true, and they don’t necessarily have an easy path to doing so. With how the salary cap works, just because the Cavs didn’t offer Wade that money doesn’t mean they can offer a different free agent that amount. Cleveland could have exceeded the salary cap to sign Wade because they had his Bird rights. They can’t do so with free agents coming from other teams.

There is a former Cavalier out there who could sure up the wing that would make everyone forget about the loss of Wade. But if they aren’t able to procure LeBron James’s services, they will have an uphill struggle to find both an additional wing and help at backup power forward.

Wade first signed with the Cavs on a two-way deal as an undrafted rookie during the 2019-2020 season. He progressively earned more minutes and cracked into the starting lineup for stretches of the last several seasons. Wade started 38 of his 59 games with the Cavs last regular season and 14 of the team’s 18 playoff games.

This past season, Wade averaged 5.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game on .439/.362/.711 shooting splits.