Houston Rockets

The Cavaliers wanted Pablo Prigioni at the trade deadline

Published Jun. 9, 2015 5:04 p.m. ET

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Pablo Prigioni was surprisingly a legitimate contributor for the Houston Rockets during their run to the Western Conference finals. After Patrick Beverley went down with a season-ending hand injury, Prigioni, who the team acquired at the trade deadline, was an amazing insurance policy.

But they nearly missed out on him, because the Cleveland Cavaliers (who face a point guard injury of their own right now) tried to strike a deal for the former New York Knicks guard at the deadline. Here's the New York Post's Marc Berman with more:

"According to a source, the Cavaliers made a big pitch at the trade deadline for Knicks point guard Pablo Prigioni . The Knicks instead dealt Prigioni to Houston with a trade exception for a package that included Alexey Shved and two second-rounders. Prigioni helped Houston in the wake of Patrick Beverly’s injury and could have come in handy for the Cavaliers after the loss of Kyrie Irving."

Prigioni would be a perfect fit on the Cavaliers. They play slow and pride themselves on defense. Prigioni struggled a bit on that end during the playoffs, but he's a reputable defender who could provide a little depth behind Matthew Dellavedova.

It's not like he'd turn these Finals around, but Prigioni's intelligence and outside shooting would be appreciated by Cavaliers coach David Blatt right about now.

(h/t: New York Post)

Photo Credit: Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports