Recent trade rumors have emerged that the Cleveland Cavaliers are coveting the services of veteran wingman Jared Dudley, but the Washington Wizards are said to be "not interested" in dealing with the reigning Eastern Conference champs.

SB Nation reported that the Cavs "have interest" in the 30-year-old combo forward, however, the Wizards "don't seem interested in making a deal".

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It should be noted that Cleveland tried to deal for Dudley last summer when he was still with the Milwaukee Bucks, but his former team had chosen to give him away to Washington in July of last year in exchange for a protected future second-rounder.

Dudley is a decent bench scorer, efficient three-point shooter, and quality defender who is also a great veteran presence in locker rooms, which may be the reasons why Cleveland has been trying to snag him for quite some time now.

He is also a reliable small-ball power forward that stretches the floor with his outside shooting, a perfect substitute for Kevin Love, and an "on-court improvement over James Jones".

However, all those advantages mean nothing if the Cavs will not be able to convince Washington to a deal.

The 22nd overall pick of the 2007 NBA Draft is averaging 9.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in more than 28 minutes a night in 49 games for the Wizards this season, a slight increase from his 7.2 points, 3.1 boards, and 1.8 dimes averages last season for the Bucks. This means that with the right system, Dudley can surely contribute more than expected.

He is also in the final year of his five-year, $21.2 million contract signed with the Phoenix Suns before the 2011-2012 season, which will make him an unrestricted free agent this summer. It would be ideal for the Cavs because if the deal with Dudley does not work out, then they could simply let him go in the offseason.

CBS Sports suggested 7-foot-1 Russian Timofey Mozgov could be a potential trade piece for the Cavs to try and get Dudley. Mozgov is certainly a huge interior presence who is still young enough to make a difference in the postseason, as he had shown in last year's NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors.

TagsNBA Trade Rumors, cleveland cavaliers, Washington Wizards, Jared Dudley, Timofey Mozgov