Since LeBron James returned to Cleveland and the Cavaliers traded No. 1 pick Andrew Wiggins as part of a package for Kevin Love, anything short of a championship has been considered a disappointment for the franchise. That means the next several days could go a long way toward determining what kind of offseason is in store for the Cavs.
Even if the club manages to pull off the improbable comeback against the Warriors, Love’s days in Cleveland could be numbered. He has essentially been a non-factor in the Finals, and moving his $21MM+ salary shouldn’t be too challenging, with the cap projected to rise by $22MM. Of course, LeBron’s decision on his player option is perhaps the more pressing issue for the Cavs, but even if he opts out, there has been little to no buzz suggesting the former MVP will leave Cleveland this summer.
See how Cleveland’s cap situation looks for 2016/17 as Hoops Rumors continues its offseason salary cap digest series.
Guaranteed Salary
- Kevin Love ($21,165,675)
- Kyrie Irving ($17,638,063)
- Tristan Thompson ($15,330,435)
- Iman Shumpert ($9,662,922)
- Channing Frye ($7,806,971)
- Sasha Kaun ($1,333,420)
- Total: $72,937,486
Player Options
- LeBron James ($24,004,173)
- J.R. Smith ($5,375,000)
- Mo Williams ($2,194,500)
- Total: $31,573,673
Team Options
- Jordan McRae ($874,636)
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Dahntay Jones ($1,551,659)
Restricted Free Agents (Qualifying Offers/Cap Holds)
- Matthew Dellavedova ($1,434,095/$2,179,824)
- Totals: $1,434,095/$2,179,824
Unrestricted Free Agents (Cap Holds)
- LeBron James ($29,861,650) — pending player option
- J.R. Smith ($9,500,000) — pending player option
- Timofey Mozgov ($9,405,000)
- Mo Williams ($2,520,000) — pending player option
- Richard Jefferson ($980,431)
- James Jones ($980,431)
- Total: $53,247,512
Other Cap Holds
- Shawn Marion ($980,431)
Projected Salary Cap: $92,000,000
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.