Cleveland Cavaliers center Andre Drummond is well aware of the trade rumors surrounding him in recent weeks. But he isn’t letting these speculations affect his game.
Drummond delivered his best performance in a Cavaliers’ jersey Sunday night, leading the team to a 106-103 win against the New York Knicks. The 27-year-old star put up an impressive double-double with 33 points and 23 rebounds while adding three assists, two blocks, and two steals.
Speaking with reporters after the game, Drummond said that he doesn’t pay much attention to trade talk and that he’s just focused on playing basketball.
“I play the same way each and every night,” said Drummond. “The trade, it is what it is. There’s nothing I can do about that. If I do get traded, I don’t control that either. I’m just here to play basketball with whatever jersey I have on. That’s all I can focus on right now.”
Despite Andre Drummond’s fine form in recent games, the Cavaliers are believed to be highly-motivated to trade him before the February deadline.
The Cavs may not see him as a player for the future, since they recently acquired the talented Jarrett Allen from the Brooklyn Nets and will likely want to give him more playing time. Also, Drummond is on an expiring contract and could walk out for free in the summer.
However, if they want to move Drummond, Cleveland might have a hard time finding a market for him. He is currently owed $28.7 million for 2020-21 and there aren’t many teams that would be willing to take on that much money for a possible rental. The challenge with Drummond is also that he’s an old-school center whose skillset isn’t much appreciated in the modern NBA.
