Cleveland Cavaliers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Cavs Open To Adding Salary Using TPE

December 26th, 2016 at 1:29pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers’ dwindling depth wasn’t a problem on Christmas Day against the Warriors, but with Chris Andersen out for the season, J.R. Smith sidelined for three months, and retired guard Mo Williams taking up a roster, spot, the Cavs will keep an eye out for opportunities to fortify their roster before this year’s trade deadline.

According to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today, Cleveland is willing to use its $9.6MM+ trade exception to take on additional salary, as long as it’s in a deal for “the right player,” one could help the team win another championship. The TPE, one of four held by the Cavs, is the only substantial one — the others range in value from about $845K to $1.333MM.

Trade exceptions, which expire one year after they’re created, allow a team to acquire a player without having to match salaries in a deal. So Cleveland has until February 18 – one year after the $9.639MM exception was created – to use it on a player, or multiple players, earning up to that amount.

As Zillgitt writes, a backup point guard, a perimeter player who can generate offense, and a perimeter defender are among the items on the Cavs’ potential shopping list. If a player meets more than one of those criteria, he’d certainly draw interest from Cleveland. However, if the team has to pick just one, it would likely be a perimeter defender, according to Zillgitt, who points out that a point guard and offensive perimeter player won’t be as crucial by the time the postseason arrives.

Although it’s no surprise that the Cavaliers are open to upgrading their roster, the club will be very wary about the cost of any deal. Currently, the team is so far over the cap that any additional salary added to its books for 2016/17 will result in a tax charge of at least $3.25 per dollar. So even if the Cavs were to acquire a player with a modest salary, such an addition would increase their tax bill exponentially.

Kerr: Cavaliers Miss Dellavedova

December 25th, 2016 at 8:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

Warriors coach Steve Kerr believes the loss of backup guard Matthew Dellavedova has been the biggest change in the defending champion Cavaliers, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Dellavedova was involved in a sign-and-trade deal with the Bucks this summer after agreeing to a four-year, $38MM contract with Milwaukee. Cleveland has yet to find a dependable reserve point guard to play behind Kyrie Irving. “Dellavedova’s absence jumps out,” Kerr said. “I think he’s been a big part of their team in the last couple years, so it’s a different look.”

Community Shootaround: Cleveland Cavaliers

December 23rd, 2016 at 3:24pm CST by Luke Adams

Several NBA teams have been hit hard by injuries or personal absences so far this season, but for the most part, teams have been plagued by short-term injuries, with players sidelined for days or weeks at a time. In Cleveland, the Cavaliers are now faced with multiple long-term absences, creating questions about whether the team needs to make a roster move or two to add depth.

The Cavs started the season essentially short one roster spot, since retired – and injured – guard Mo Williams was taking up one of those 15 openings. The team has been unable to negotiate a buyout agreement with Williams, and has kept him on the roster in the hopes of either recouping some of his salary or including him in a trade to balance contracts.

While Cleveland could easily get by with 14 healthy players, the team has lost a couple more recently, with Chris Andersen suffering a torn ACL that will sideline him for the rest of the season, and J.R. Smith undergoing thumb surgery that will keep him out of action for about three months.

The Cavaliers don’t currently qualify for a disabled player exception or hardship exception, and if they want to add a player to their roster, they’ll have to trade or waive someone. Andersen and Williams are obviously the two most likely candidates to be cut, but Cleveland will be reluctant to simply waive any guaranteed contracts. The team is already well into luxury tax territory, with a projected tax bill exceeding $30MM. Adding more team salary to the books, either via free agency or trade, will cause that tax bill to continue to grow.

The Cavs have a handful of trade exceptions at their disposal, including one worth more than $9.6MM, but the team doesn’t have a ton of trade assets available. Iman Shumpert is perhaps the most logical trade chip on the team’s roster, but his value isn’t believed to be overly high. And the best draft pick Cleveland could offer is its 2020 first-rounder. Even if the Cavs could find a trade partner that just wants to dump salary, such a deal would come at a high tax cost for Cleveland.

There’s no pressure on the Cavs to make a move immediately. GM David Griffin has said he’ll take his time to assess and adjust the roster as needed. Still, the Cavs’ roster depth is looking increasingly vulnerable, and it may mean leaning more heavily on LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love than the club wants to. So far, LeBron is averaging 37.1 minutes per game, his highest mark since he rejoined the franchise in 2014.

What do you think? Do the Cavaliers need to make a move to bolster their roster and improve their depth? Or can they afford to be patient and wait for better opportunities to materialize later in the season? If the Cavs do make a move, what sort of player should they target? Jump into the comments section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

Vardon On Tyson Chandler, Mo Williams, More

December 23rd, 2016 at 12:47pm CST by Luke Adams

Within his latest mailbag, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com discusses the timing of Mo Williams‘ retirement decision and addresses whether or not Tyson Chandler might be a trade target for the Cavaliers — Vardon is skeptical.

Cavaliers Expect J.R. Smith To Miss 12-14 Weeks

December 23rd, 2016 at 11:29am CST by Luke Adams

J.R. Smith officially underwent surgery to repair a right thumb fracture on Friday morning, according to a press release issued by the Cavaliers. Within the announcement, the team notes that Smith’s timeline to return to the court is currently projected at 12 to 14 weeks.

We already knew that Smith would require surgery on his injured thumb, and that he would miss an extended period while he recovered from that procedure, but three months is a long time for the Cavs to be without one of their top outside shooters. If Smith were to return 12 weeks from today, he would be back for the final 15 games of Cleveland’s season, having missed more than half of the 2016/17 campaign.

The Cavaliers’ 15-man roster already includes one player who has retired (Mo Williams) and one player who is out for the season (Chris Andersen), so they’ll essentially have three “dead” roster spots during Smith’s absence, with only 12 healthy players at their disposal. The Cavs won’t be eligible for a hardship exception to add a 16th player to its roster, since approval for that exception requires a team to have at least four players sidelined with injuries.

The Cavs will also have limited flexibility to turn over those roster spots belonging to players like Williams and Anderson, given how far their team salary is into tax territory — waiving someone and signing a replacement would be much more expensive than usual due to the escalating tax penalties. That projected tax bill may also make Cleveland wary of using its trade exceptions to acquire players and increase team salary, though the club does have four TPEs, including one worth more than $9.6MM.

Smith, who signed a lucrative new four-year contract with the Cavaliers this fall, had gotten off to a slow start in 2016/17. The 31-year-old has seen his scoring average dip to just 8.6 PPG, and his .337 FG% is easily a career worst, though he’s still making 36.2% of his three-pointers.

Cavs In No Rush To Replace Smith; Liggins Likely To Start

December 21st, 2016 at 9:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Cavaliers shooting guard J.R. Smith may not have thumb surgery until after Christmas, reports Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. The team is still deciding which doctor will perform the operation, and no timetable for a return will be set until the procedure is complete. The Cavs are taking a patient approach to Smith’s status and about finding a replacement, as coach Tyronn Lue instructed GM David Griffin to “take his time” in adjusting the roster. “We want to make sure that we have the right piece that we bring in here that could help us win a championship,” Lue said. “That’s our goal. I mean, with Griff at the helm I know he’ll get something done. He always pulls out something magical, so let him to his thing and I just gotta to continue to coach the team with what I’ve got.” Even with the injury to Smith, the team’s first priority is finding an experienced point guard to back up Kyrie Irving.

J.R. Smith To Undergo Surgery On Thumb

December 21st, 2016 at 11:39am CST by Luke Adams

11:39am: The Cavaliers have officially confirmed that Smith fractured his right thumb and will undergo surgery. A timeline for his recovery will be established following the procedure, according to the team.

10:37am: The Cavaliers’ fears have been realized, according to Windhorst, who reports (via Twitter) that Smith will require surgery on his injured thumb and will be out for an extended period.

8:39am: J.R. Smith left the Cavaliers’ Tuesday night game in Milwaukee early due to a thumb injury, with the team releasing a statement after the game announcing that images taken at the arena were “inconclusive” and that Smith will be re-examined in Cleveland on Wednesday. While it’s not clear if today’s exam has taken place yet, sources tell Dave McMenamin of Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com that the Cavs fear Smith’s right thumb is broken.

Smith, who signed a lucrative new four-year contract with the Cavaliers this fall, has gotten off to a slow start in 2016/17. The 31-year-old has seen his scoring average dip to just 8.6 PPG, and his .337 FG% is easily a career worst, though he’s still making 36.2% of his three-pointers.

Although Smith has struggled, the Cavs would be in a tough spot if his thumb is indeed broken and he’s forced out of action for an extended period. The team’s 15-man roster already includes one player who has retired (Mo Williams) and one player who is out for the season (Chris Andersen), and the Cavs have limited flexibility to turn over those roster spots, given how far their team salary is into tax territory.

So far this season, Smith is averaging 28.9 minutes per game, the fifth-highest mark on the Cavs. As long as he’s out of the lineup, players like Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson, Mike Dunleavy, and DeAndre Liggins are candidates for increased roles in Cleveland.

Former Teammates Mob Mozgov At Ring Ceremony

December 17th, 2016 at 11:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

His former Cavaliers teammates mobbed Lakers center Timofey Mozgov as he received his championship ring tonight in a visit to Cleveland, relays Dane Carbaugh of NBC Sports. Mozgov played 76 games with the Cavs last season before signing a four-year, $64MM deal with the Lakers in July.

Chris Andersen Tears ACL, Out For Season

December 16th, 2016 at 7:51pm CST by Austin Kent

The Cavaliers will be without backup big man Chris Andersen for the remainder of the season, says Yahoo Sports’ Chris Mannix. The 38-year-old tore the ACL in his right knee jumping for a rebound in practice and will undergo surgery. According to an official Cavs update, the prognosis was confirmed by a team physician.

What’s next for the defending champions remains to be seen. The 15-year-veteran’s minimum salary is guaranteed, so the team would have to eat it if Andersen is waived. As a result, Brian Windhorst of ESPN speculates that while the Cavs would be unlikely to outright release the Birdman for tax reasons, they could instead explore trade options. Already taking up a spot on the roster is retired veteran Mo Williams, whose contract could be dealt in a package for a suitable replacement.

In 12 games with Cleveland this season, Andersen has averaged just 2.3 points and 2.6 rebounds per game, playing more than 10 minutes only four times on the year. However, his veteran leadership and ability to match up against bulky forwards and centers will be missed.

Cavaliers Notes: James, Irving, Love, Trades

December 16th, 2016 at 10:15am CST by Arthur Hill

The new collective bargaining agreement will allow the Cavaliers to offer LeBron James a five-year worth about $209MM in 2018, writes Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. The exact dollar amount won’t be known until the cap is set for 2018/19, but it would easily exceed the record $153MM contract that Mike Conley signed with the Grizzlies in July. It will be a nice raise for James, who will make nearly $31MM this season and more than $33MM next year, and it was made possible by the union’s insistence that the “age 36” rule, which limits contract length for older veterans, be changed to an “age 38” rule. Of course it’s not certain that James will decide to finish his career in Cleveland. He has talked about forming a team with his friends Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade, and 2018 may be his last chance to make that happen while they’re all still productive.

There’s more this morning out of Cleveland:

Kyrie Irving is the only member of the team’s Big Three who will be affected by the new designated veteran player exception, Lloyd notes in the same piece. The provision permits teams to offer six-year extensions to two players who are entering their eighth or ninth seasons in the NBA and who are signing their second max extensions. James is in his 14th season, and Kevin Love has already inked two long-term contracts. Both Irving and Love can both become free agents in 2019.
Grizzlies coach David Fizdale thinks that if James stays in the league when his playing days are over, it should be as an executive rather than a coach, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. “He would kill somebody,” Fizdale said. “Perfection is like [his standard]. He wants perfection. I could see him actually owning his own team and doing something like that, but I think he would end up killing a player at some point because they wouldn’t live up to the expectations that he would set forth.”
The Cavaliers have expressed interest in Kings center Kosta Koufos in the past, but a trade with Sacramento doesn’t seem likely, Vardon states in a separate story. Koufos is now starting for the Kings and making $8MM, so he would be an expensive acquisition. Also, it would be hard to work him into the rotation with Tristan Thompson and Channing Frye forming an effective combination at center. Vardon says Willie Cauley-Stein might be more realistic, but would still cost too much for a player not likely to see many minutes come playoff time.