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Although Austin Carr owns the title of Mr. Cavalier, Zydrunas Ilgauskas has to be a close second.

Maybe that is why the realization that, for the first time since 1996, Ilgauskas is not a part of the Cavaliers’ organization is leaving so many fans uneasy.

There is little question the Cavaliers, who are currently at the top of the NBA standings with a 43-11 record, needed to pull the trigger to acquire Antawn Jamison on Wednesday night. Jamison embodies exactly what the team’s starting lineup was missing — a stretch forward — and will fit into the locker room perfectly.

Still, giving up Ilgauskas was not easy, even for Cavaliers’ general manager Danny Ferry, a teammate of the 7-foot-3 Lithuanian for a few years back in the late 1990s.

“The guy is a world-class person and world-class player and he has been incredible for this organization and city,” Ferry said at a press conference on Thursday afternoon. “But in order to add a player, you need to make some tough decisions.”

Ilgauskas has been a fan favorite in Cleveland for years.

From the chants of ‘Z’ when he enters games, to the ovation he got earlier this season when he broke the team record for games played, it seems the lanky center do no wrong in Northeast Ohio.

That is precisely why trading him, especially in a season where the Cavaliers look like the favorite to win the NBA Finals, is so difficult.

Ilgauskas has been a mainstay here in Cleveland, no matter how successful or pathetic the team has been.

Fans have seen him at his best — when he made the All-Star team in 2003 and 2005 — and at his worst — when he went through foot surgery after foot surgery early in his career.

He was there when the Cavalier made the 1998 playoffs. He was there when Ricky Davis tried to ’steal’ a triple-double against the Jazz. He was there when the Cavaliers went 17-65. He was there when LeBron James scored 29 of the Cavaliers’ last 30 points against the Pistons. He was there last season when the team won a franchise-record 66 games, only to be ousted by the Magic in the Conference Finals.

He has been there this season too, although in a lesser role than ever before.

The addition of Shaquille O’Neal during the off season severely decreased the 34-year-old’s playing time (he is averaging just 20.5 minutes per game) and moved him out of the starting lineup. The result has been career-low averages in nearly every statistical category, including points (7.5), rebounds (5.3) and blocks (0.8).

Through everything that has happened within the Cavaliers’ organization over the past 14 years Ilgauskas has been the ultimate pro, even upon hearing of his trade on Wednesday.

“(Spoke to) Zydrunas last night to let him know what was going on, that he was going to be traded,” Ferry said. “It was not a fun conversation. But he was very professional, like you would expect.”

There has been talk that the Wizards plan to buy Ilgauskas out of his contract, which would save them money and allow him to sign with a contender. The buy-out is not something new to the NBA — see Joe Smith and Antonio McDyess last season — so it would not be surprising if Ilgauskas is on the open market soon (There is a 30-day waiting period once a player is bought-out). This would open up the Cavaliers to signing their former first-round pick and reuniting him with the city that came to think of him as one of their own.

Here’s hoping for a parade through downtown Cleveland in June, especially one that includes Big Z.