The Cavaliers have 16 games left in the season, and with the team out of the playoff race, they'll amount to auditions for many of the players whose status for next season is uncertain. Only half of the members of the team's current 14-man roster possess either fully guaranteed deals or a player option for next season, meaning GM Chris Grant and company have plenty of decisions to make. Bob Finnan of The News-Herald takes a stab at predicting which of the Cavs will return, and he includes a few interesting nuggets, as we highlight here along with other news from Cleveland:
- Coach Byron Scott, on whom there could be pressure to make the playoffs next season, will make about $4.5MM in 2013/14 after the Cavs picked up the option on his contract.
- Finnan expects Marreese Speights to opt out of his $4.515MM deal for next season, and doesn't believe the Cavs will re-sign him at an asking price likely to be in the neighborhood of $5MM.
- Restricted free agent Wayne Ellington is line for a deal similar to the three-year, $9.75MM contract Alonzo Gee received late this summer, Finnan surmises.
- Daniel Gibson, Omri Casspi and Kevin Jones are long shots to return, according to Finnan.
- The Rockets and Lakers had interest in C.J. Miles before he signed with the Cavs last summer, notes Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Miles said the uncertainty surrounding L.A.'s pursuit of Dwight Howard dissuaded him from joining the purple-and-gold. Miles' deal is non-guaranteed for next season, and while he hopes Cleveland retains him, he isn't worried about his free agent prospects if they don't.