The Cavaliers have nine free agents in town this week for workouts, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, who reports that guard Armoni Brooks and swingman Kelan Martin are among the players in attendance.
Sources tell Fedor that the first workout took place on Tuesday, with another scheduled for Wednesday. Big men Mamadi Diakite and Ray Spalding are a couple of the other free agents who are participating, Fedor adds.
Following the blockbuster trade for Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland has 16 players under contract — 14 on standard deals and a pair on two-way contracts. That leaves four openings on the team’s 20-man training camp roster and one possible open spot on the projected regular season roster. As Fedor notes, the Cavaliers are still about $2.5MM below the luxury tax line, so they could comfortably carry a 15th man on a minimum-salary deal if they so choose.
While there’s no guarantee that any of the players working out for the Cavs will receive training camp invites, Fedor points out that Denzel Valentine earned a roster spot a year ago after impressing the team during a September workout.
Brooks, Martin, Diakite, and Spalding all have multiple seasons of NBA experience under their belts, and all but Spalding saw action during the 2021/22 season. Brooks averaged 5.3 points per game in 54 appearances for the Rockets and Raptors; Martin posted 5.7 PPG in 30 contests for the Pacers and Celtics; and Diakite put up 4.3 PPG and 4.5 RPG in 13 games for the Thunder.
You have to see this. Luka 47 points.link to twitter.com
I have not worked out for the Cavaliers but remain committed to signing a contract to “NOT PLAY” for an NBA team this season. Knowing my skill level, I can categorically state that my true value to every NBA team is NOT PLAYING.