NBA Trade Rumors: 3 teams that should target Jarrett Allen
Jarrett Allen had a brilliant debut season with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was traded to the team as part of the famous James Harden blockbuster trade. Allen averaged career-highs in several categories and established himself as a young center with incredible promise.
However, the Cleveland Cavaliers ended the season 22-50 and are in the lottery spots. The 2021 NBA Draft Lottery guaranteed them the third overall pick in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft. The consensus third pick is expected to be Evan Mobley of USC. He has been called a young Chris Bosh and if the Cavaliers do indeed land him, they might consider getting rid of Jarrett Allen and getting assets in return.
NBA Trade Rumors: Who should trade for Jarrett Allen in the 2021 NBA offseason?
Allen averaged a career-high 13.2 points per game on a 60/31/69 shooting split. He shot a remarkable 60.9% from the floor as most of his attempts were in the low post. Moreover, he rarely attempts three-pointers but whenever he does, he knocks down 31% of them. He also grabbed nearly 10 rebounds this season and has been averaging double-digit boards for the past three years. Allen has also consistently blocked 1.4 shots per night in the past few seasons. Whichever team acquires Jarrett Allen will certainly get a young star in the making, so let's take a look at three teams that can do so.
#1 Charlotte Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets are expected to pursue Jarrett Allen in the upcoming offseason. They have a first-round draft pick of their own, the 11th overall pick, and are expected to target big men and forwards. The Charlotte backcourt is quite deep. They have young stars in Terry Rozier, LaMelo Ball, Devonte' Graham and Malik Monk who get significant minutes in the rotation along with a few backup guards as well. However, they significantly lack a good frontcourt. Miles Bridges and Gordon Hayward have been great in the time they have played but their center Cody Zeller hasn't played at a high level.
Zeller averaged 9.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game along with 0.4 blocks per game. Jarrett Allen's averages of 13.2 points, 10 rebounds and 1.4 blocks are significantly higher and he also shoots 60% from the field on higher attempts. The Hornets' defense is lacking and Allen fixes that to a certain extent. If the Charlotte Hornets acquire Jarrett Allen, it would certainly make a formidable young team quite capable of entering the NBA playoffs.