The Cleveland Cavaliers have already struck a deal in the final hours before the trade deadline, but reports indicated that the Cavs are not yet done dealing.
Several reports indicated that the Cavaliers are still aggressively shopping veteran forward Luol Deng, whom they acquired from the Chicago Bulls in the deal involving Andrew Bynum last month.
ESPN reported that Cavaliers interim general manager David Griffin has been very aggressive in looking for a taker for Deng in hopes of acquiring key assets in return. Sources indicated that Deng's impending free agency is the main reason why the Cavaliers are trying to move the 28-year-old veteran.
"Cleveland isn't determined to trade Deng, but with his impending free agency a concern, acting general manager David Griffin is testing the market for the veteran forward," ESPN reported.
Reports indicated that the Cavaliers had preliminary talks with the Phoenix Suns and Washington Wizards about a potential trade for Deng before the deadline.
ESPN insider Marc Stein revealed that the Wizards are expressing strong interest in Deng. Washington also tried to acquire the ten-year-veteran before the 2013 NBA Draft, but the Bulls decided to hold onto him.
"Hearing: Wizards -- who tried to acquire Luol Deng from Bulls at last NBA Draft -- are among teams in Deadline Day talks with Cavs on Deng," Stein posted on his Twitter account.
The Suns, on the other hand, have been looking for an impact player that could help them heading into the playoffs.
Phoenix is considered as the most likely landing spot of Deng because the Suns have attractive assets to entice the Cavaliers. The Suns could have four first-round picks in the 2014 NBA Draft, and one of those picks could be packaged in a trade for Deng.
However, Deng's impending free agency could be a deal breaker. Interested teams are reportedly asking for a long-term commitment from Deng before agreeing to a deal, but the former Duke standout is not yet ready to sign an extension anytime soon.
According to sources, the Cavaliers are not confident with their ability to re-sign Deng when he becomes a free agent this summer. Deng is expected to be targeted by several teams who have enough salary cap space, including the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks.
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