Anderson Varejao has spent his entire career with the Cavs and, if he has his way, he’ll keep it that way until he’s through playing. The big man told Raul Barrigon of HoopsHype that he has every intention of staying in Cleveland even though he is slated to hit the open market next summer.
“I want to stay in Cleveland, I really don’t think about that. They know what I want to do, they know I want to stay,” said Varejao, who answered in the affirmative when asked if he wants to retire in Cleveland.
The whole interview is worth a read, but are a few more highlights from Varejao’s Q&A with Barrigon..
On whether he thought he’d ever play with LeBron James again:
I did! I wasn’t sure when, but I thought there was a chance for him to come back. I didn’t expect it now, but eventually, because he’s from there, I thought there was a chance…All these years there were a lot of people on my ear telling me that I should ask for a trade because LeBron wasn’t there and the team was in a rebuilding process. They told me I should leave, that I should go to another team and try to help win a title and I always said no, I won’t. I don’t need to leave. I like the city, I like the people here, and I’m going to keep fighting through this. And now that LeBron is back the people [are] telling me I did the right thing [laughs].
On whether the arrival of Kevin Love means that his role will change:
I don’t think it’s going to change. I played with LeBron for six years and what I did was playing defense, setting screens for everybody, fighting for every rebound and being ready on the offensive side when I get the ball.
On the new-look team developing chemistry:
Sometimes it takes some time to have it, for everybody to get on the same page, to know what to do. And we have a new coach, new system, a lot of new things going on. But we’re going to have to stay patient and grow as a team.