Cavaliers Rumors

Eastern Notes: Jefferson, LeBron, Covington

March 9th, 2016 at 8:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

LeBron James informed team management that he was willing to switch to power forward if it helped the Cavaliers land Joe Johnson after he agreed to a buyout with the Nets and became a free agent, Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group writes. James confirmed that he made the offer, telling Haynes, “All I care about is winning. That’s all that matters to me. A piece like Joe, you know what it does to your team and if he was concerned about playing time or concerned about starting, then I’ll sacrifice. I’ll sacrifice to get a guy like that to help us try to win a championship.” The 31-year-old hasn’t been too keen on the idea in the past and wanted to avoid the nightly pounding that goes along with playing the four spot, Haynes notes. But the chance to add a player of Johnson’s caliber trumped any of his concerns, Haynes adds.

When asked if he would have considered such a move earlier in his career, James was non-committal, Haynes relays. “I don’t know. I don’t know. I can’t answer that, but I know I’ll do it now,” James told the scribe. “I mean, you’re trying to make a push. We’re in March. You get a guy like Joe Johnson, you get a guy that can change your team for the better. I wouldn’t have a problem with [moving to the four]. If he wanted to come in and start and we wanted to keep J.R. Smith in the starting lineup and if Double-T [Tristan Thompson] or Mozzy (Timofey Mozgov) had to come off the bench in order for Joe to start and slide Kevin Love to the five, I would have done it.”

Here’s the latest out of the East:

Hornets big man Al Jefferson has no issues with coming off the bench as he continues to make his way back from knee surgery, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer relays. “I’ve been telling people all week I kind of like coming off the bench,” Jefferson said. “You kind of see how the game is going and you get to play against the backup center most of the time. You kind of know what you need to do or what you shouldn’t do, and I kind of like it. If coach wants me back in the starting lineup, I’d be fine with that. But off the bench, I’m fine with that right now, getting myself in better shape.” The 31-year-old is set to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, so his willingness to adapt to a new role is certainly a positive sign for the team if it wishes to re-sign the center.
Robert Covington is one of GM Sam Hinkie‘s best finds during his tenure with the team, but the Sixers need to add more offensive firepower via the draft and free agency so coach Brett Brown can utilize the combo forward as a role player rather than a starter, something he is better suited to for the long-term, Jake Hyman of RealGM opines.

Cavs Sign Jordan McRae To Two-Year Deal

March 9th, 2016 at 12:36pm CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 12:36pm: The signing is official, the team announced. The Cavs refer to it as a multiyear arrangement, which jibes with McMenamin’s report that it includes a team option for next season. Cleveland didn’t have the cap space or exception necessary to give him a contract that goes past next season, so it’s two-year deal.

12:51pm: The pact is to include a team option for next season, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com.

TUESDAY, 12:08pm: The Cavaliers will sign Jordan McRae to a deal that covers the rest of the season after his 10-day contract expires tonight, reports Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The team was eligible to sign him to one more 10-day, but the sides have evidently decided to skip ahead to the next step. McRae has totaled just 14 minutes in three appearances so far, but the Cavs have been impressed with the positional versatility he’s shown in practice, Haynes writes.

The deal would give the 6’6″ rookie, who turns 25 later this month, about $100K, depending on when the official signing takes place. It would cost Cleveland about $850K in combined payroll and projected taxes. Still, the Cavs saved about $10MM in their deadline deals, theoretically giving them the flexibility to reinvest that money. Cleveland has an open roster spot even with McRae aboard.

McRae, the 58th pick in the 2014 draft, is already on his third NBA team since October after splitting last season between Australia and the D-League. He signed the required tender the Sixers had to offer this past summer to retain his draft rights, but Philadelphia waived him just before opening night, forfeiting those draft rights. The Suns later signed him to a pair of 10-day contracts, the last of which was actually a 12-day deal because it bridged the All-Star break. He averaged 5.3 points in 11.7 minutes per game for Phoenix, but he didn’t stick with the Suns, who turned to Phil Pressey instead.

Are the Cavs wise to add younger players like McRae, or should they target veterans instead? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Central Notes: Lawson, LeBron, Irving, Moore

March 8th, 2016 at 3:20pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Rockets were willing to replace Ty Lawson with Michael Beasley, which underscores the risk the Pacers assume with their new point guard, according to Nate Taylor of the Indianapolis Star. Taylor nonetheless believes Lawson and Indiana need each other. Much depends on how Lawson performs down the stretch, Taylor believes, and his debut for the team Monday was inauspicious, since he left after five minutes with a sprained foot, as Taylor notes in a separate piece. Lawson is day-to-day, coach Frank Vogel said, according to Taylor. See more from the Central Division:

LeBron James and Kyrie Irving don’t have a personality conflict, but a disconnect exists between their games on the floor, said several scouts and coaches who spoke with Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. It’s one of many challenges facing the Cavaliers who face a situation James couldn’t have envisioned when he returned, with a stacked roster that still hasn’t found a groove, Mannix writes.
The Bucks are giving Giannis Antetokounmpo minutes at point guard, but they probably don’t envision him as a full-time solution at that position, as the key for the team down the stretch is simply to see how Antetokoumpo and Jabari Parker can continue to mesh together, Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says in a video. Injured starting point man Michael Carter-Williams has a “murky” future with the team, leading Gardner to believe Milwaukee will look for a point guard this summer.
E’Twaun Moore delivers at both ends and at both guard positions, making him indispensable for the Bulls as he enters free agency this summer, opines K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.

Nets Hire Trajan Langdon As Assistant GM

March 8th, 2016 at 10:07am CST by Chuck Myron

The Nets have named Cavs front office executive Trajan Langdon as their assistant GM, Brooklyn announced via press release. The 39-year-old Langdon had just joined Cleveland as director of player administration and basketball operations this past September. He’ll rejoin new Nets GM Sean Marks, his former colleague in the Spurs front office, where Langdon worked as a pro scout from 2012 to 2015. Marks indicated via Brooklyn’s statement that the Cavs green-lighted the in-season move.

“We are very pleased to welcome Trajan and his family to the Brooklyn Nets,” Marks said in the statement. “Trajan is someone I worked with closely at the Spurs, and he brings a unique combination of NBA and European experience to the position. Trajan’s recent front office post with Cleveland added to his professional resume, and I want to thank the Cavs for their cooperation in this effort. The Nets look forward to Trajan’s contributions.”

Langdon is most well-known for his time playing at Duke, the alma mater of former Nets GM Billy King. The native of Alaska has further connections with Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov, board member Sergey Kushchenko and rumored coaching candidate Ettore Messina, all of whom were affiliated with Russia’s CSKA Moscow when Langdon had a successful run as a player for that team, NetsDaily notes (on Twitter).

The Cavaliers drafted Langdon 11th overall in 1999, though he spent three only seasons as an NBA player, all of them with Cleveland. He was with the Clippers for training camp in 2004 but didn’t appear in the regular season for them.

Frank Zanin already holds the title of assistant GM for the Nets, who previously carried two assistant GMs when they employed Zanin and Bobby Marks, with whom the team parted ways last spring. It’s unclear what the hiring of Langdon means for the future of Zanin, who ran the front office while the team searched for King’s replacement.

Cavs Notes: Shumpert, Johnson, Lue

March 7th, 2016 at 4:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavaliers privately deny that they were making Iman Shumpert available in trade talk before the deadline last month, but some in the organization think he might be doing too much to justify the four-year, $40MM contract he signed last summer, reports Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. The fifth-year swingman is averaging career lows in points and field goal percentage since returning in December from a preseason wrist injury, and he often turns the ball over when he tries to drive to the hoop, Lloyd writes.

“His biggest thing for us is defending the best player every single night,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “His shot is going to come and go. Some games, he’s going to get six or seven shots, some games he gets two shots. I’m not really worried about his shots and his scoring. He just has to step up and shoot them with confidence. But for the most part, for Shump and for us, his value is every single night guarding the best player, which he’s done a great job of.”

See more on the Eastern Conference leaders:

Some Cavs players were convinced that Joe Johnson would sign with the team and were already talking about the sort of lineup they could play with him on the roster, Lloyd writes in a separate piece. Johnson instead signed with the Heat after earlier reports that he envisioned joining the Cavs.
Tremendous weight is on Lue’s shoulders as he navigates his first NBA head coaching job and deals with immediate expectations of a title, but he’s keeping perspective, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com examines. “I want to win and I know I’m supposed to win, but I think the biggest thing for me is I have to do the best job I can do, but then also enjoy it,” Lue said. “I just can’t put the pressure on of winning a championship, winning a championship, because then I’d never be able to sleep.”
The “word is” the Cavs signed Sasha Kaun last summer to give since-deposed coach David Blatt an ally in the locker room, according to Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Haynes reported last week that Cavs players were angry that the team decided against re-signing Kendrick Perkins to instead do the deal with Kaun. Perkins played the role of enforcer for Cleveland last season, and LeBron James and Kyrie Irving say having someone to fill that gritty capacity is vital, Haynes notes. Still, it’s “laughable” to suggest that Cavs players don’t think they have enough to win the championship as is, McMenamin opines.

And-Ones: Anthony, Marks, Lucas, Tavares

March 6th, 2016 at 11:08pm CST by Arthur Hill

Five years later, no clear-cut winner exists in the blockbuster trade that sent Carmelo Anthony from the Nuggets to the Knicks, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. The teams have combined to win just one playoff series since the 12-player deal, Bondy notes, when New York defeated the Celtics in 2013. The Knicks got the superstar they wanted, but Denver wound up with two young but frequently injured players in Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler. The Sixers benefited, as the Knicks’ first-rounder was sent to Denver, which later traded it to the Magic, which dealt it to Philadelphia, which ended up with the rights to Dario Saric.

There’s more from around the basketball world:

Sean Marks, whom the Nets hired as GM last month, said he has tried to learn something important during every stop in his NBA career, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. As a player, Marks spent two seasons under current Heat president Pat Riley from 2001 to 2003. “The vision of it’s not about me,” Marks said. “Pat Riley’s, ‘The disease of me,’ I’ve obviously taken that from him.”
John Lucas III, who played briefly with the Pistons last season, has been waived by the Pacers affiliate in the D-League, tweets Chris Reichert of Upside and Motor. The move took place because he has plans to sign with an overseas team, Reichert hears.
The Hawks sent center Edy Tavares to the Austin Spurs in the D-League, the team announced today. Tavares has appeared in 12 games with Austin this season, but also two with Canton and two with Bakersfield because the Hawks don’t have a direct affiliate. He is averaging 9.6 points and 9.1 rebounds in D-League play.
The Clippers have assigned guard C.J. Wilcox to the Cavs affiliate in the D-League. The Clippers also don’t have a direct affiliate, so Wilcox has played for Canton and Bakersfield in two prior D-League stints this season. His D-League averages are 17.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 15 games.

Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 3/4/16

March 4th, 2016 at 11:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

LeBron James famously broke the hearts of Cleveland fans in 2010 with his “decision” to take his talents to Miami and the Heat. The move paid off handsomely for James, who helped guide the franchise to four straight trips to the NBA Finals, garnering two championships for his troubles. His return to the Cavaliers last season was supposed to be a homecoming of sorts, but the team has had its struggles despite reaching the NBA Finals in 2014/15. Adding to the intrigue and turmoil in Cleveland is James’ preference to ink one-year deals that afford him the opportunity to leave Ohio once again for what he may perceive as greener pastures if he is unhappy with the state of the franchise.

James and his Cavs teammates reportedly don’t have great chemistry, which only adds fuel to the fire for those who speculate that James may end up departing after this season. LeBron turned some heads this week with his decision to take a jaunt to Miami during consecutive off days to work out with his friend and former teammate Dwyane Wade. “What do I go there for? Go there ’cause I want to,” James said. “I would love to go to L.A., but I’ll take two and a half [hour flight] over four and a half. I’ve got a house in L.A., but it makes more sense for me to go south than go west. But I go because I want to.”

If LeBron wanted to defuse the situation, regardless of whether he felt he needed to or not, he didn’t help things with a series of cryptic tweets he posted a short time later. “Can’t replace being around great friends that reciprocate the same energy back to you in all facets of life,” James wrote, in what appears to be an obvious reference to Wade. It’s unclear if this is a condemnation of his relationship with his teammates in Cleveland or just an appreciation for the Heat shooting guard’s continuing friendship. Regardless of James’ intent, it was what he posted next that is truly interesting. “It’s OK to know you’ve made a mistake. Cause we all do at times. Just be ready to live with whatever that comes with it and be with those who will protect you at all cost!”

The 31-year-old declined to explain the tweets, but he did deny they were directed at his current team. “I don’t want to explain it, and no, [it wasn’t] directed at a teammate,” James said. Whether or not you accept James’ assertion that it wasn’t directed at a teammate, it wouldn’t be the first time James took to social media to call out another player or express his displeasure.

This brings me to the topic for today: Will LeBron James leave the Cavaliers as a free agent once again?

There’s no denying that it would be a public relations nightmare for James if he were to abandon his home state team a second time, but with his career winding down, James could decide his on-court legacy is more important than upsetting and potentially alienating the state of Ohio. But what say you? Will LeBron ditch the Cavs again? More importantly, should he do so? There is also the question of what team would he go to. Take to the comments section to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say.

Central Notes: Middleton, Lue, Carter-Williams

March 4th, 2016 at 8:11pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Bucks turned down a proposed trade deadline swap with the Timberwolves that would have sent Khris Middleton to Minnesota and brought point guard Ricky Rubio to Milwaukee, a deal the team was wise to nix, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com opines. The scribe cites Middleton’s versatility, solid production and reasonable contract as reason why the Bucks were smart to hold onto the swingman. The Wolves even offered to sweeten the deal with the inclusion of a protected 2016 first-round pick, but the Bucks, who never seriously entertained trading Middleton, declined that offer as well, Lowe notes. The Bucks did submit a counterproposal to the Wolves, offering Michael Carter-Williams in exchange for Rubio, a swap that Minnesota quickly shot down, Lowe adds.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

The Cavaliers have gone 12-6 thus far under Tyronn Lue and despite a few bumps along the way, LeBron James is pleased with the job the new coach has done since replacing the fired David Blatt, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes. “I think he’s done a great job,” James said of Lue. “He’s even-keel as well. He just wants us to get better every single day and not waste an opportunity. Continue to focus on what needs to be done, the job at hand, and if we do that we’re going to give ourselves a great chance to win. He gets on us when we’re not doing our job and when we’re not doing it to the capabilities that we’re capable of doing it at, so that’s when he’s on us. And he stays on us.”
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy openly expressed his appreciation of the Spurs and how that franchise is able to maintain a championship-caliber roster while not running afoul of the salary cap, David Mayo of MLive.com relays. “There’s no question when you don’t have to pay guys market value it’s pretty easy to build depth,” Van Gundy said. “The salary cap is hard on most of us trying to build depth. But with them, when they’ve got Tim Duncan playing below market value, Tony Parker playing below market value, Manu Ginobili playing below market value, David West playing below market value, when those guys all give up money, well, then it’s easy to add other people and allow you to go out and do what you need to do to build depth. They’ve done a great job of that.“

Cavs, Heat Among Teams Eyeing Marcus Thornton

March 4th, 2016 at 8:28am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 8:28am: Thornton wanted to join the Heat and was disappointed when Udrih went unclaimed, according to Jackson. Miami had strong interest, and Thornton would still like to join the team next month when the Heat are able to sign someone again without going over the tax, but he’d prefer to find a job sooner, Jackson adds.

2:43pm: Thornton is interested in seeing whether the Sixers claim Udrih off waivers to reach the salary floor, a move that would take his entire $2,170,465 salary off Miami’s books for tax purposes and give the Heat enough flexibility to sign him immediately without going over the tax, notes Jackson (Twitter link). Udrih will remain on waivers until Wednesday.

TUESDAY, 12:47pm: The Cavaliers and Heat are among a group of three or four teams with an eye on recently released shooting guard Marcus Thornton, reports Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald first identified the Heat’s interest last week, while Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports wrote Monday that Miami was in talks with the Tony Dutt client. Thornton remains in wait and see mode, according to Watkins, which jibes with Jackson’s report that the 28-year-old is in no hurry to sign. He cleared waivers from Houston this weekend, so he’ll be eligible to take part in the postseason with any playoff-bound team as long as he signs before the end of the regular season.

Tax implications loom large for both Cleveland and Miami. The Cavs are limited to giving out no more than the minimum salary, which would give Thornton about $300K if he signed today and cost the Cavs about $1.1MM in combined salary and luxury tax payments. The Heat couldn’t sign Thornton until about a week to go in the season without going over the tax line again. Beno Udrih gave back $90K of his $2,170,465 salary in Monday’s controversial buyout deal, leaving him with $2,080,465 for the season and the Heat about $41,600 under the tax threshold, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (All Twitter links). They could use a prorated portion of their mid-level to outbid the Cavs, but that would also send Miami zooming back into the tax.

Thornton was part of the failed Donatas Motiejunas trade that was to have sent both to Detroit before it was voided, but the Pistons didn’t plan on using Thornton in the rotation as Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press noted. He averaged 10.0 points in 18.8 minutes per game with the Rockets this season. Those numbers are up from last season but well off his career highs of 18.7 points and 34.9 minutes per contest he saw in 2011/12 with the Kings.

Financial Impact Of Deadline, Buyouts: Central

March 3rd, 2016 at 3:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

The effects of the trade deadline and buyout season are still being felt around the NBA as teams negotiate with new free agents and fill open roster spots. Hoops Rumors will be taking a team-by-team look at the financial ramifications of all the movement. We began earlier with a look at the Southwest and Pacific divisions, and we’ll continue with the Central Division:

Bucks

The trade deadline is usually the last opportunity for disappointing teams like the Bucks to lower their payrolls, but Milwaukee still managed to cut costs even without making a swap, thanks to some help from the Magic. The Bucks were in position to end up adding to their salary obligations when they waived Chris Copeland to sign Steve Novak to a prorated minimum-salary deal, but when the Magic claimed Copeland off waivers, the full $1.15MM salary on Copeland’s one-year contract went from Milwaukee’s books to Orlando’s. That left the Bucks with only their $295,327 obligation to Novak, and it takes some of the sting away from having lost Novak for the rest of the season when he suffered a sprained MCL just days into his Milwaukee tenure.

Bulls

The Bulls made a trade for the first time since July 2014, and in so doing they created a credit that will help them make another swap come the summer. Chicago wound up with a trade exception worth $2,854,940, the equivalent of Kirk Hinrich‘s pretrade salary. That’s even though the Bulls brought in Justin Holiday via the swap. Holiday is on a two-year contract for the minimum salary, so Chicago absorbed him into the minimum salary exception. That allows the Bulls to treat the offloading of Hinrich as its own, “non-simultaneous” deal, in the parlance of NBA trade regulations. The Bulls also realized a savings of $1,907,664 in payroll and $2,861,496 in projected tax penalties, though the $141,068 trade kicker they had to pay Hinrich takes away from that. Chicago took a nibble from its cap flexibility for next season, since Holiday’s $1,015,696 salary is guaranteed.

Cavaliers

It remains to be seen whether the separate trades that sent out Anderson Varejao and Jared Cunningham and brought in Channing Frye gave Cleveland better production on the court, but it’s certain that they saved the team heaps of money, at least in the short term. Frye’s $8,193,029 pay is $2,392,801 less than the combined total of Varejao’s $9,638,554 salary and Cleveland’s $947,276 obligation to Cunningham. The Cavs saved a whopping 3.75 times that amount in projected luxury tax payments, a figure that comes to $8,973,004. That’s a total savings of $11,365,805 in combined salary and payroll, less the $1,176,824 trade kicker Cleveland had to pay Varejao. Still, the ability to save about $10MM all told explains why the Cavs swallowed hard and traded away Varejao despite his close relationship with LeBron James and long tenure with the team. Frye will still have $15,227,883 over two years left on his contract after this season, while Varejao was only guaranteed $9,361,446 beyond this season and Cunningham was on a one-year deal. So, it’s an investment of long-term money for the Cavs, but it’s understandable, since it’s unlikely they’ll be so deep into the tax in years to come, when the salary cap and tax threshold will be much higher. The Cavs spent a tiny fraction of their savings on a 10-day contract for Jordan McRae, who’ll see $30,888 at a total cost to the team of $146,718 in combined salary and projected tax.

Pistons

The math for Detroit became considerably simpler when the Donatas Motiejunas trade came apart. That left only one swap, and the Tobias Harris deal was about as even an exchange of salaries as can be as far as this season is concerned. The Pistons dropped $244,497 from their payroll when they sent Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova to the Magic for Harris and his precisely $16MM salary, but the long-term effects paint an entirely different story. Harris is due $48MM over three years after this season, while the only guaranteed obligation to the players Detroit relinquished was a $400K partial guarantee for Ilyasova. The Pistons seemed likely to pick up Ilyasova’s full guarantee of $8.4MM had they kept him, but the deal is nonetheless a significant expenditure for the long term. Detroit has been quiet in the buyout market, investing in only a $49,709 10-day contract for Justin Harper.

Pacers

Indiana stood pat through the deadline and buyout season, though the team has reportedly agreed to sign Ty Lawson and is poised to complete a buyout, for an unknown amount, with Chase Budinger.

The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.

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