The Cavaliers will have a little more time to unload J.R. Smith‘s contract, tweets Joe Vardon of The Athletic. The veteran guard has agreed to move his guarantee date for next season from June 30 to July 15, with an option to push it all the way to August 1, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst (Twitter link). As part of the agreement, Smith’s guaranteed money will rise from $3.9MM to $4.4MM.
Smith is due to make $15.68MM in the final year of his deal, but the smaller guarantee should make him attractive for a team looking to reduce salary. The Cavaliers have no interest in keeping Smith after he played just 11 games last season before being sent away from the team. Cleveland reportedly received offers on draft night, but nothing good enough to get a deal done.
Smith’s trade value can be counted at the full $15.68MM because he signed his contract before that rule was changed in the latest collective bargaining agreement. The Cavaliers will now have extra time to search for a deal as teams get a better read on their cap situations once the free agent frenzy dies down.
[RELATED: Why J.R. Smith May (Or May Not) Be A Valuable Offseason Trade Chip]
Smith, who will turn 34 in September, was a valuable player for Cleveland during the most recent LeBron James era, both as a clutch shooter and a defender. During Smith’s last full season in 2017/18, he averaged 8.3 points per game and was a .375 shooter from 3-point range.
That’s interesting. I think it’s safe to assume the Cavs have been contacted by a trade partner and they need a few more days for it to be worked out? Maybe even to facilitate a 3 team trade? Hope they get at least a 1st rnd pic out of it in next year’s draft.
Smith for Gorgui Dieng and a top ten protected pick.
Their roster is basically a landfill for former Bucks n Wolves lol
I’d have given him away on draft night…heck, I’d add $1M to the team willing to take him.
It’s not about JR as a player. It’s JR and his contract. His contract is for just under $16 mil but only guaranteed for about $4.4 mil. Any team that matches salary in a trade and then cuts him by the new deadline of July 15 creates about $11-12 mil in cap space. Either the Cavs will cut him or the team that trades for him will cut him. Acquiring him is all about creating more cap space for the acquiring team.
Provided the Cavs are willing to take on that cap space with the extra contacts coming back. Not sure his contract is enough for a first rounder – the Clippers may be the only team if they look to move Dino in order to create more room for a second max. They’d be desperate, then.
Yeah the 10million in savings would only be worth a 1st rounder if the team were desperate.
I can’t articulate the configuration ofa deal but i could see the Rockets, Dallas, Clippers and Bucks as teams looking for space to add cap room for 1 or 2 max players. Almost any team trying to retain or add impact players would love to have cap space, both immediately and by the trade deadline for a last minute pick up. My guess is “how many years of a bad contract are they willing to eat”? By the looks i think they would prefer it be a guaranteed expiring contract. The trade partner would save millions immediately and the Cavs could trade the incoming expiring contract at the deadline or let the player walk at the end of his contract.
Thanks for the outstanding 2016 season, but your lightbulb is out.