Cleveland Cavaliers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Celtics Notes: Irving, Ainge, Pierce, Morris

September 18th, 2017 at 1:12pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kyrie Irving addressed the circumstances surrounding his desire to leave Cleveland during an appearance this morning on ESPN’s First Take (Twitter link). The All-Star point guard dismissed the idea that his trade demand was motivated by a desire to get away from LeBron James, according to a post from Chris Forsberg on ESPN Now. But Irving also told the hosts he didn’t inform James before making the request and doesn’t care if the Cavaliers star took it as a personal insult. “Why would I have to?” Irving responded to a question over whether he talked to James before meeting with owner Dan Gilbert.

Irving also discussed the loss of a potential “supermax” designated veteran extension by changing teams, saying “You can’t put a price on happiness,” relays ESPN’s Brian Windhorst (Twitter link). He responded to a question on whether he can win a title without James, first by saying “time will tell,” then “absolutely.”

There’s more today out of Boston:

President of basketball operations Danny Ainge may regret not trying harder to get Jimmy Butler from the Bulls when he was available, writes Shaun Powell of NBA.com in his season preview of the Celtics. He states that Ainge could have easily topped Minnesota’s offer and that Butler would have provided a greater upgrade than switching Isaiah Thomas for Irving. Powell speculates that Ainge was reluctant to give Thomas a max extension next summer considering his hip problems and his age.
Paul Pierce, who signed a one-day deal with the Celtics in July so he could retire in Boston, is sharing his knowledge with the organization’s younger players, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. He has taken a particular interest in Jayson Tatum, the Celtics’ first-rounder, who has a skill set similar to Pierce’s. “I feel I can help out this young generation and impact that way,” said Pierce, who has landed a job as an ESPN analyst. “I can still talk about the game. I enjoy talking about the game, being around it; traveling to see games. It’s always going to be in my blood. It’s what I’ve been doing my whole life. So, it’s gonna be hard to completely pull me away from the game.”
Opening arguments were set to begin today in the felony assault trial for Marcus Morris and Markieff Morris, according to The Associated Press. The trial regarding a 2015 beating incident is expected to last 10 days and will conflict with the start of training camp. The Celtics acquired Marcus Morris from this Pistons this summer in a deal to free up cap room to sign Gordon Hayward.

Cavaliers May Be Better After Summer Of Chaos

September 16th, 2017 at 5:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

Undrafted out of Oregon State in 2014, Moreland began his career with the Kings, but played just 11 NBA games in two seasons. He was waived by the Cavaliers in training camp a year ago and spent the entire season with the team’s G League affiliate in Canton, earning a spot in the All-Star Game and third team all-league honors. The Pistons used a portion of their mid-level exception to sign Moreland.

The Cavaliers may have improved after a summer of chaos, according to Shaun Powell of NBA.com. Powell gives the team high marks for the return it got from Boston in exchange for Kyrie Irving, even though new point guard Isaiah Thomas will take a while to get back on the court. He speculates that the package of players, and especially Brooklyn’s unprotected first-rounder for 2018, could motivate LeBron James to remain in Cleveland beyond the upcoming season.

Cavs Not Surprised Irving Requested Trade; Renovations

September 15th, 2017 at 4:58pm CST by Austin Kent

According to Iman Shumpert, the Cavaliers weren’t exactly surprised when Kyrie Irving asked to be traded, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com writes. Shumpert adds that Irving didn’t have anything against LeBron James, just that he was eager to move on.
Construction has begun at Quicken Loans Arena, Jay Miller of Crains writes. The renovations of the Cavaliers‘ stadium were originally scheduled in June but held up by citizens groups that pushed for a referendum regarding the use of tax money for the project.

Cavs Currently Have No Plans To Trade Kevin Love

September 15th, 2017 at 2:13pm CST by Luke Adams

While the Cavaliers have contemplated trading Kevin Love off and on in recent years, the club currently has no plans to shop or deal the big man, sources tell ESPN’s Zach Lowe.

Cleveland’s current stance on Love doesn’t come as a real surprise. The team already traded one of its Big Three within the last month, sending Kyrie Irving to Boston in a package that included Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder. The Cavs lost some star power in that deal and likely don’t want to turn over their roster any more, with the 2017/18 season fast approaching.

While it’s easy to forget now, since the second half of the offseason in Cleveland was dominated by Irving trade talk, Love was one of the players most often mentioned in trade rumors earlier in the summer, particularly around the time of the draft. As Lowe notes – and as multiple other reporters have suggested – the Cavs nearly included Love in a three-team trade that would have landed Paul George in Cleveland in late June. However, the Pacers reportedly got cold feet on that deal, which was said to involve the Nuggets as well.

Now that Love is poised to remain in Cleveland, the Cavaliers are re-designing their offense to feature him more prominently, and may also re-work their rotation to get him more minutes at center, according to Lowe. Love has continued to play well in Cleveland, averaging a double-double (19.0 PPG, 11.1 RPG) last season. However, his numbers have paled in comparison to the ones he posted in Minnesota, where he was more of a focal point and – as Lowe details – he was used more creatively.

As Lowe writes in his in-depth feature on the four-time All-Star, the Cavs “are confident Minnesota Love still exists.” Whether the club’s new-look roster allows that old Love to resurface this season remains to be seen, but for now at least, he won’t have to deal with being the subject of constantly swirling trade rumors.

15 Two-Way Contract Slots Remain Open

September 13th, 2017 at 1:15pm CST by Luke Adams

With NBA training camps just a couple weeks away, most teams are putting the finishing touches on their respective rosters. In addition to having secured at least a dozen players on guaranteed contracts and perhaps a handful of camp invitees, each NBA club has also signed at least one player to a two-way contract.

As we explain in depth in our FAQ, two-way contracts – a new concept under the league’s latest Collective Bargaining Agreement – allow NBA teams to carry two extra players in addition to the 15 on their regular season roster. These players spend most of their time with the club’s G League affiliate, but are eligible to join the NBA roster for up to 45 days per season, and remain under team control — they can’t be poached by rival franchises.

Teams have been signing players to two-way contracts since July, so we’re starting to get a better idea of what players on those deals will look like — some are late second-round draft picks; some are undrafted rookies; others are G League or international veterans, or former NBA players looking to work their way back into the league.

Every NBA club has signed at least one player to a two-way deal, but only half of those 30 clubs have filled both spots, meaning that there are still 15 two-way openings around the league. With the help of our two-way tracker, here’s a breakdown of the teams that still have an open two-way slot:

Atlanta Hawks
Cleveland Cavaliers
Dallas Mavericks
Golden State Warriors
Houston Rockets
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Miami Heat
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves
New York Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder
Orlando Magic
Philadelphia 76ers
Portland Trail Blazers

While the Suns and Jazz technically could be included on this list, they’ve reportedly reached agreements – with Alec Peters and Nate Wolters, respectively – to fill their second two-way slots, so unless those deals unexpectedly fall through, they won’t have any openings.

Although some of these two-way openings figure to be filled in advance of training camp, many of the clubs listed above have signed camp invitees to Exhibit 10 contracts, which can later be converted into two-way deals. So rather than signing someone new and waiving a camp invitee, a handful of teams may simply convert an Exhibit 10 contract to a two-way contract before the regular season begins.

LeBron James, Dwyane Wade Work Out Together

September 12th, 2017 at 10:07pm CST by Austin Kent

Time to bring out your tinfoil banana boat again — LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are working out together, Alex Tekip of ESPN writes. If the Bulls buy Wade out, he could join his former teammate on the Cavaliers.

Koby Altman's Reaction To Kyrie Irving News

September 10th, 2017 at 7:28pm CST by Austin Kent

The two teams most often linked to Wade have been the Cavaliers and the Heat. A move to Cleveland would pair Wade with former teammate LeBron James while Miami is, of course, the place he spent the first 13 seasons of his career. Urbina, however, argues that the 35-year-old could have more suitors than just that and could end up being a game-changing reserve for a team’s second-unit if he parts ways with the Bulls.

Shortly after the news of Kyrie Irving‘s trade request broke, Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman was formally offered his position. His first order of business, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe writes, was to gauge if the point guard was serious. “I think we were in information-collecting mode when stuff first broke,” Altman said. “We had numerous teams call about it.“

Griffin: Celtics May Not Improve Right Away

September 9th, 2017 at 2:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

Former Cavaliers GM David Griffin thinks the Celtics are facing an adjustment period and might not see the benefits right away from their offseason maneuvering, relays Kevin Spain of USA Today. Although Boston picked up two All-Stars in Irving and Hayward, Griffin believes the loss of Crowder and Isaiah Thomas will be difficult to overcome, along with Avery Bradley, who was traded to the Pistons to free up cap room to sign Hayward. “Losing Bradley, Crowder and Isaiah is losing a lot of grit and overachievers that identified that team,” Griffin stated. “So they’ve had so much change. I think they’re going to be better in the long term, but I think in the short term you can make the argument that they’re going to be worse.”

Central Notes: Thomas, Lue, Walters, Pacers

September 9th, 2017 at 8:41am CST by marksuleymanov

There is still little to no definitive answer on Isaiah Thomas‘ ailing hip and the new Cavaliers point guard could be dealing with more than just a hip ailment, Jason Lloyd of The Athletic writes. Lloyd referenced general manager Kolby Altman‘s reluctance to address Thomas’ injury and the cloudy aura surrounding his recovery.

Thomas has previously given optimistic comments about his future, stating that he will be the same dynamic scorer he was in Boston upon returning. However, it has not been over four months since Thomas went down with the hip injury and there is no solid update on his future. One person Lloyd spoke to suggested that Thomas is dealing with more than just a torn labrum, adding that a loss of cartilage and some arthritis in the hip are complicating the healing process.

“No one has any idea how quickly this will heal or if it even will heal at all,” the source said to Lloyd about Thomas’ injury. “It’s hard to predict.”

At this point, it’s all but certain that Thomas will not be ready for opening night; one report mentioned the All-Star break in February as a possible timetable.

Read more news around the Central Division:

Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue likes the moves his team made this offseason and is entering the 2017/18 season with an optimistic mindset, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com writes.
Former NBA player and G-League coach Rex Walters has joined the Pistons‘ coaching staff. As NBA.com’s Keith Langlois writes, head coach Stan Van Gundy is excited with Walters’ reputation to help players develop their skills after he was frustrated
Shaun Powell of NBA.com previews the Pacers‘ first season in the post-Paul George era.

Cavs Sign John Holland To Two-Way Contract

September 8th, 2017 at 12:46pm CST by Austin Kent

SEPTEMBER 8: The Cavs have officially signed Holland to the first two-way contract in franchise history, the team announced today in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 7: The Cavaliers have agreed to a deal with John Holland, international basketball reporter David Pick tweets. The small forward was a training camp invitee of the Cavs last year, as well.

While Holland put forth an impressive campaign in the G League last season, his only previous taste of regular season NBA action came in 2015/16 when he played one lone minute in one single game for the Celtics (during which he hoisted and missed a three).

More recently, while suited up for Cleveland’s minor league affiliate in Canton, the 28-year-old took home the Impact Player of the Year award for 2016/17 and earned nod on the league’s All-NBA G League Third Team.

While the terms of the agreed upon deal haven’t been disclosed, it’s possible that the Cavs slot Holland into one of their vacant slots for two-way players (Update: Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com has since confirmed as much).