Cleveland Cavaliers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Had Largest Financial Loss From Hiatus

October 19th, 2020 at 12:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

All 30 NBA teams suffered financially from the shutdown, but the Lakers were impacted more than anyone, writes Bill Shea of The Athletic. Figures released by Team Marketing Report, a Chicago-based sports business intelligence firm, show the league lost $694MM from the cancellation of 258 regular-season games.

The Lakers missed out on revenue from 10 home games, tied for the most in the league, which cost the franchise an estimated $52.7MM. Rounding out the top five were the Knicks at $45MM, the Warriors at $42.5MM, the Rockets at $35MM and the Celtics at $31.5MM. Teams losing the least tended to be in smaller markets, led by the Grizzlies at $10.4MM, the Hornets and Timberwolves at $11.7MM each and the Cavaliers and Suns at $11.8MM each.

TMR arrived at the figures by using a weighted formula that considers Fan Cost Index, premium vs. regular ticket prices and attendance. The Fan Cost Index estimates how much it costs a family of four to attend a game. The NBA average for this season is $430, up about $9 from a year ago. Golden State created the most income from fans this year at $6MM per game, with the Lakers just behind at $5.6MM and the Knicks at $5.2MM. The Hornets were last, generating just $1.1MM per home game.

Although the NBA brings in $2.6 billion annually through its national television deals and billions more in corporate advertising, the league still depends heavily on fans coming to games. Commissioner Adam Silver has estimated that attendance is responsible for about 40% of revenue, which is why TMR owner and publisher Chris Hartweg believes teams will aggressively offer promotions to bring the public back when it becomes safe to fill arenas again.

“Something that jumps out as we’ve gone through these gross game day fan revenue exercises is that fan attendance is still critical to teams, even with billion-dollar media deals to cushion the blow,” Hartweg said. “If you take the NBA numbers and project across a full 41-home game season, the average NBA team hit becomes more than $110 million each. Leaguewide, we’re talking $3.3 billion. Our MLB projection was $173 million per team or $5.5 billion total for their 81 lost games.

“Those dollars are a huge incentive for teams and venues to make their facilities as safe as possible for fans to return as soon as possible. And in fans’ favor, we anticipate teams creating very fan-centric deals and offerings to welcome fans back.”

Porter Jr. 'Fine' After Troubling Post

October 16th, 2020 at 8:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cavaliers second-year swingman Kevin Porter Jr. posted a troubling message on social media, but he’s fine, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. Porter raised concerns with a since-deleted message of “You ever wish to see the end of your time?” However, a source told Fedor that Porter was OK and has been warned by the front office about posting similar messages in the future.

Cavs, Hornets, Hawks Expected To Have Interest In Derrick Jones

October 15th, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Unrestricted free agent wing Derrick Jones is expected to receive interest from the Cavaliers, Hornets, and Hawks, among others, sources tell Charania. At just 23 years old, Jones is an unusually young UFA and still has room to develop, which explains why several rebuilding teams will likely kick the tires.

[SOURCE LINK]

Community Shootaround: Eastern Conference Odds For 2020/21

October 13th, 2020 at 1:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The Heat lost just three games during the first three rounds against their playoff opponents in the East en route to an NBA Finals appearance this year, eliminating three of the top four seeds in the conference in the process. However, Miami’s impressive postseason run hasn’t made the team the favorite to come out of the East in 2021, according to oddsmakers.

At BetOnline.ag, the Heat are listed at +450 to win the Eastern Conference in ’21, meaning you’d win $450 on a $100 wager should Miami repeat as conference champs. The Bucks (+375), Celtics (+425), and Nets (+425) are currently considered more likely to represent the East in next year’s NBA Finals.

The rest of the odds to win the East next year are as follows, per BetOnline.ag:

Raptors: +750
Sixers: +1200
Bulls: +3300
Hawks: +3300
Pacers: +3300
Wizards: +3300
Magic: +10000
Cavaliers: +12500
Knicks: +12500
Pistons: +12500
Hornets: +17500

It’s obviously way too early to forecast the outcome of the 2020/21 season with any confidence. The draft and free agency are still to come, and we don’t know yet which teams will make major splashes on the trade market. If Victor Oladipo is dealt from Indiana to another Eastern team, for example, it could significantly change the conference’s outlook for next season.

Still, anticipated roster moves are at least somewhat baked into BetOnline’s current odds — if the Pacers had a ton of cap room to use this offseason and Oladipo and Myles Turner weren’t viewed as potential trade candidates, it’s a safe bet that they wouldn’t be listed alongside lottery teams Chicago, Atlanta, and Washington on the list above.

So, with the caveat that plenty could change in the coming months to alter the outlook of the East for the 2020/21 season, we want to get your thoughts on the early projections from oddsmakers.

Should the Bucks be considered the favorites to win the East? Should the Heat be listed higher than fourth among Eastern teams? Are the Nets or other teams being overvalued? Are the Pacers or other teams being undervalued? Which team do you like to come out of the East next season? And which club do you view as the best value pick based on the odds listed above?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your early forecast for the Eastern Conference in 2020/21!

Cavaliers Have No. 5 Pick Preferences; Expect Windler To Contribute

October 5th, 2020 at 6:33pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Cavaliers rookie swingman Dylan Windler, who missed the entire 2019/20 season with a left leg stress fracture, is expected by the team to have a significant on-court role for Cleveland in 2020/21, according to Fedor elsewhere in the same piece. Sources tell Cleveland.com that the 2019 first-rounder is the Cavs’ “most asked-about” player in trade talks, though the team has no interest in moving him.

The Cavaliers have several prospects they would prefer to interview during the ongoing NBA combine, writes Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor. Virtual interviews commenced last week and wrap up on October 16. Medical exams by the nearest NBA physician and a series of on-court activities completed near the players’ homes are set to take place this month. Fedor reports that Cleveland appears to have a strong interest in talking to top draft candidates LaMelo Ball, Deni Avdija and Isaac Okoro.
Cavaliers rookie swingman Dylan Windler, who missed the entire 2019/20 season with a left leg stress fracture, is expected by the team to have a significant on-court role for Cleveland in 2020/21, according to Fedor elsewhere in the same piece. Sources tell Cleveland.com that the 2019 first-rounder is the Cavs’ “most asked-about” player in trade talks, though the team has no interest in moving him.

Garland Looks Sharp In Team's Mini-Camp

October 2nd, 2020 at 6:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Darius Garland stood out in the Cavaliers mini-camp, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. Garland had the look of a “very dynamic point guard,” according to one of the team’s assistant coaches. Garland averaged 12.3 PPG, 3.9 APG and 2.6 TPG in 59 starts as a rookie after being selected with No. 5 overall pick.

Cavs GM Altman On Sexton: "He's Our Cultural Leader"

September 30th, 2020 at 8:53pm CST by Jovan Alford

Cavs general manager Koby Altman was impressed with second-year point guard Collin Sexton as in-market workouts wrap up, writes Kelsey Russo of The Athletic. Altman, who drafted Sexton two years ago, said that the young guard is the cultural leader of the team. “It’s really hard to compare him with other guards as that physique, that just speaks to his work ethic,” Altman explained. “It’s all him. We have certainly given him plans for how he wants to grow from a skill standpoint on the basketball floor, but everything off the floor, he’s locked in.” This season, the former first-round pick averaged 20.8 PPG and 3.1 RPG in 33 MPG.

When the NBA postponed its season back in March, the Hawks had a record of 20-47, which was the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference, behind the Cavaliers (19-47).

Draft Notes: Achiuwa, Jones, Hampton, Terry

September 29th, 2020 at 7:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Potential top-10 selection Precious Achiuwa has interviewed with a number of lottery teams, Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype tweets. Achiuwa, a power forward who averaged 15.8 PPG and 10.8 MPG as a Memphis freshman last season, has talked to the Kings, Wizards, Knicks, Nets, Cavaliers, Suns, Spurs, Pistons and Thunder, among others. He’s currently listed at No. 10 overall on ESPN’s list of this year’s top 100 prospects.

We have more on the draft:

Duke point guard Tre Jones has spoken with the Bucks, Suns, Thunder and Timberwolves, among others, according to Kennedy (Twitter link). Jones had an interview lined up with the Bulls, but it was postponed due to their coaching change. Jones anticipates he’ll be a mid- to late-first round pick. He’s currently listed at No. 34 overall by ESPN.
Combo guard RJ Hampton, who played last season in Australia’s NBL, has talked to the Wizards, Kings, Thunder, Pistons, Suns, Trail Blazers, Knicks and Bulls, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington tweets. He posted modest stats in 15 NBL games before suffering a hip flexor injury and returning the U.S. Hampton is currently ranked No. 13 by ESPN and Hughes speculates he could be a late lottery steal like Michael Porter Jr., who sat out for a year after getting drafted by the Nuggets.
Stanford point guard Tyrell Terry has interviewed with the Suns, Thunder, 76ers, Raptors, Knicks, Nets, Warriors, Timberwolves and Bulls, Kennedy tweets. He’s pegged at No. 42 in ESPN’s rankings. He averaged 14.6 PPG, 4.5 RPG and 3.2 APG as a freshman.

Kevin Love Leaves Mini-Camp Early

September 29th, 2020 at 6:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Cavaliers should look to trade down from the No. 5 spot in the draft, Sam Vecenie of The Athletic opines. Cleveland is in need of more assets in order to complete its rebuild, in Vecenie’s view, and there are some teams who might look to move into its slot. If that doesn’t happen and the draft picks fall in line with current projections, USC center Onyeka Okongwu might be its best option due to his defensive skills, Vecenie adds.

Kevin Love is no longer with the Cavaliers at their in-market mini-camp, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets. Love had indicated he would leave early but wanted to show leadership by attending some of the mini-camp. Love departed the facility on Saturday, Fedor adds.

Cavs Have Talked To Achiuwa, Terry

September 28th, 2020 at 7:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Cavaliers have already talked remotely to Memphis’ Precious Achiuwa and Stanford’s Tyrell Terry, two of the players who will take part in the virtual combine on Tuesday, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com tweets. Achiuwa, a power forward, is ranked No. 10 overall by ESPN while Terry, a point guard, is rated as a second-round prospect at No. 42.