Cleveland Cavaliers rumors 2016: Russell Westbrook an option for NBA champs?

As the summer continues in the National Basketball Association, various rumors continue to flock; some are more realistic and others seemingly outrageous.

And recently, Game N Guide revealed that there are suggestions that could pit the Cleveland Cavaliers to enter their name into the Russell Westbrook lottery.

It's surprising that the recent NBA champions are in the trade rumor at this stage, given that the player on the block for them is a superstar in Kyrie Irving.

According to the report, the Cavaliers can only acquire Westbrook if they open up some money for him and that would mean dealing Irving.

However, this could be a deal that is unnecessary given that Irving was vital in handing the Cavaliers the championship last season.

He outplayed MVP Stephen Curry and was clutch in the closing moments of the decisive Game 7.

Furthermore, Irving now has the championship pedigree that Westbrook is still searching for. While both are undoubted superstars, Irving has achieved the one thing that Westbrook has yet to find.

The two players are different in many aspects, as Irving has smooth handles as he combines his dribbling skills and quickness to leave defenders in the dust. On the other hand, Westbrook is an aggressive guard who wants to attack the basket and challenge the opponents.

As the Cavaliers already have LeBron James who operates like Westbrook, Irving remains to be the best option to complement the entire squad.

Now, looking at the comparison between the two, their numbers aren't too far apart.

In his career, Westbrook averages 21.5 points while Irving has 20.8. Westbrook has the slight edge on the rebounding category with 5.6 while Irving only gets 3.4 a game. As for the assists, Westbrook also holds the edge 7.6 over 5.5 for Irving.

However, Irving is the younger of the two players at 24 years old, while Westbrook is approaching his peak at 27.

It would be the biggest shock in the season so far if the two traded places, and this rumor is very unlikely to happen.