Cleveland Cavaliers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Trade Rumors: Siakam, J. Allen, Mavs, Suggs, Suns

June 22nd, 2023 at 4:56pm CST by Luke Adams

There’s a “growing sentiment” that Pascal Siakam wouldn’t re-sign with a team that trades for him, according to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and TNT (Twitter link), who reports that the forward’s preference is to remain with the Raptors for the long term.

Siakam will be entering a contract year in 2023/24, so a club that gives up a significant package to acquire him would probably want assurances that he’d be willing to stick around for more than one season, even if he doesn’t agree to an extension right away.

It’s worth noting that Siakam would qualify for a super-max contract – worth 35% of the cap instead of 30% – if he makes an All-NBA team in 2024, but would become ineligible for the super-max if he’s traded. That’s not to say that his reported desire to remain in Toronto isn’t genuine, but he’d also have contract-related reasons to want to stay put. Either way, his apparent stance figures to reduce his trade value for the Raptors.

Here are a few more trade-related rumors and notes from around the NBA:

The Cavaliers are receiving trade inquiries and offers for center Jarrett Allen, but have rebuffed those overtures, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, who reports that the Mavericks are among the teams that have reached out to Cleveland about Allen. As Fedor notes (via Twitter), the Cavs are scouring the trade market for a two-way wing and don’t have a ton of assets to offer for one without including a core player like Allen, but they don’t appear inclined to go that route at this point.
The Lakers would be among the teams with interest in Magic guard Jalen Suggs if the team were to make him available, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. There’s no indication that Orlando is considering moving Suggs, but if the club drafts a guard or two in the lottery tonight, its backcourt would be getting a little crowded.
The Suns had the option of trading Chris Paul to the Warriors for a Jordan Poole-centric package like the one the Wizards received, says John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link). However, according to Gambadoro, Phoenix determined that Bradley Beal was a better fit for what the club wanted.
Deandre Ayton isn’t a lock to open the 2023/24 season in Phoenix, but new Suns head coach Frank Vogel “loves” the young Suns center, who reminds him of a more skilled Roy Hibbert, according to Gambadoro (Twitter link). Vogel’s fondness for Ayton is a factor in favor of him sticking with the Suns, Gambadoro adds.

Sixers Rumors: Harris, Harden, Harrell, Centers

June 22nd, 2023 at 7:53am CST by Luke Adams

The Pistons, Cavaliers, and Pacers are among the teams that have inquired about Sixers forward Tobias Harris, with Indiana showing the most interest, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. However, a source tells Pompey that a draft-night trade involving Harris is unlikely.

As Pompey explains, a separate source said the Sixers will likely only make a deal involving Harris if they get an offer that’s “hard to pass up.” Pompey has heard that teams around the NBA believe Philadelphia is overvaluing the veteran and is seeking “outrageous” packages in return for him.

Harris’ outsized contract has long made him a tricky piece to move in a trade, but he’s entering the final year of that deal in 2023/24. His $39MM+ expiring salary could appeal to teams looking to create cap flexibility beginning in 2024.

According to Pompey though, the Sixers view Harris as a good fit with new head coach Nick Nurse. If they keep him through this offseason, they could explore trading him at the 2024 deadline or could even try to re-sign him at a lower price next summer.

Here’s more on the 76ers:

It seemed earlier this year that the consensus among rival executives was that James Harden would leave Philadelphia for Houston. That consensus no longer seems to exist, ESPN’s Zach Lowe said on a recent episode of The Lowe Post podcast. “The brakes have now been pumped, like slammed on, around the league to the point that I bet if you poll 50 front office executives, the majority of them would guess he’s going back to Philly,” Lowe said, per RealGM. According to Pompey, the Sixers don’t want to compromise their future by overpaying Harden on a long-term deal, but the Rockets also have reservations about committing huge money to him.
The Sixers face two significantly different paths this offseason depending on whether Harden decides to stay or go, Pompey writes in a separate story for The Inquirer, exploring how the former MVP’s decision will affect the organization in the short and long term.
Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com explores the impact of Montrezl Harrell‘s decision to turn down his player option for the 2023/24 season. While Neubeck believes a separation is in both sides’ best interests, he notes that the Sixers will need to address the backup center behind Joel Embiid, with Harrell expected to depart and Paul Reed headed for restricted free agency.
In case you missed it, the 76ers are reportedly attempting to acquire a second-round pick in Thursday’s draft.

Draft Notes: Nuggets, Appleby, Wembanyama, Tshiebwe, Dick, Clippers

June 19th, 2023 at 10:48pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nuggets agreed to a draft-pick trade with the Thunder during the Finals, acquiring this year’s No. 37 selection, the least favorable of the Thunder’s 2024 first-round picks, and a 2024 second-rounder in exchange for a 2029 first-round pick. They are continuing to look to add a first-round pick in this year’s draft, Mike Singer of the Denver Post tweets, using the 2024 first-round pick they received from Oklahoma City as bait.

With salary-cap concerns, Denver is trying to add low-cost options to round out its bench as it pursues a repeat. In another draft-related development, the Nuggets will work out Wake Forest point guard Tyree Appleby on Tuesday, Singer reports in another tweet.

We have more updates with the draft approaching on Thursday:

Victor Wembanyama, a mortal lock to be the first player off the board, has arrived in the United States from France, Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press reports. He flew into Newark (N.J.) Airport on Monday. Wembanyama has a scheduled pre-draft media session on Wednesday before the Spurs officially secure his services on Thursday night.
Kentucky star forward Oscar Tshiebwe has been one of the busiest prospects over the past month. He’s finishing up his workout schedule by visiting the Cavaliers and Celtics, Adam Zagoria tweets. Tshiebwe’s visit with Boston’s brass will be his second there. He has worked out for approximately half the teams in the league.
Kansas wing Gradey Dick, who is projected to go in the second half in the lottery, told The Athletic’s Shams Charania that he will be a team player wherever he winds up (Twitter link). “I’m going to go into any organization, any city, and really just buy into the team. I’m the type of player where I honestly don’t care what my role is,” Dick said.
The Clippers’ staff had a busy Monday, evaluating 10 prospects in two separate workouts, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times tweets. The visitors included Tyger Campbell (UCLA), Mouhamed Gueye (Washington State) Seth Lundy (Penn State), Nathan Mensah (San Diego State), Mike Miles (TCU), Omari Moore, (San Jose State), Julian Phillips (Tennessee), Ben Sheppard (Belmont), Grant Sherfield (Oklahoma) and Jordan Walsh (Arkansas).

Draft Rumors: Cavs, Pacers, Jazz, Warriors, Suns, Bucks

June 16th, 2023 at 3:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers currently only hold a second-round pick (No. 49) in the 2023 NBA draft, but they’ve been exploring ways they might be able to move into the first round, reports Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Sources tell Fedor that the Cavs have an “organizational desire” to trade up in the draft and have made calls to teams in the 20-30 range to determine what it would cost to move up.

As Fedor explains, there’s a belief that there will be some older prospects available in that range who might be ready to claim NBA rotation roles as rookies. Several of those players are wings, which would appeal to a Cleveland team that has been on the lookout for help at that spot for the last year. Fedor identifies UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez as one of several prospects who could intrigue the Cavaliers.

It may be tricky for the Cavaliers to put together a package capable of getting them into the first round, however. They dealt several future first-rounders away in last year’s Donovan Mitchell blockbuster and would probably only be able to offer second-rounders along with a player or two. Lamar Stevens, Cedi Osman, Dean Wade, and Ricky Rubio are among the Cavs players who could be moved, Fedor writes, but none of them are likely to have substantial value on the trade market.

Here are a few more draft-related rumors from around the league:

The Pacers and Jazz are among the teams with multiple first-round picks who are worth keeping an eye on as the draft nears, writes Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. According to Fischer, rival teams continue to mention that Indiana is interest in packaging some combination of No. 26, No. 29, and No. 32 in order to move up. Utah has talked to teams about various trade scenarios involving the No. 9, No. 16, and No. 28 picks, Fischer adds.
Sources who spoke to Sam Vecenie of The Athletic believe the Warriors may be focused on landing an older, more experienced prospect at No. 19 after getting mixed results when investing in young lottery picks in recent years. Meanwhile, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer has heard that Golden State have some interest in trading down from No. 19 or out of the draft entirely.
Sources around the NBA have named the Suns and Bucks – in addition to the Cavaliers – as teams interested in trading up into the late-20s or early-30s to draft an NBA-ready player, Vecenie writes for The Athletic. Phoenix and Milwaukee would have to move up even further than Cleveland — their second-round picks are at No. 52 and No. 58, respectively.

Ricky Rubio Talks About Winding Down NBA Career

June 11th, 2023 at 10:30am CST by Arthur Hill

In a TV interview during the Spanish ACB semifinals, Cavaliers guard Ricky Rubio was asked about recent comments that he hopes to finish his career in Europe, according to a Eurohoops report. “The idea when I left Europe to play in the NBA was to come back at some point,” said Rubio, who’s expected to represent Spain in the FIBA World Cup this summer. “I don’t know where I will be mentally and physically and if I will continue to play, but yes, my NBA days are coming to an end!”

Cavaliers Notes: Bickerstaff, Mitchell, Love, Draft

June 8th, 2023 at 10:02am CST by Arthur Hill

The Cavaliers were disappointed by their first-round playoff exit, but they never considered making a coaching change, Kelsey Russo of The Athletic writes in a mailbag column. President of basketball operations Koby Altman said in a post-playoff news conference that the organization remains committed to J.B. Bickerstaff, and Russo doesn’t believe next season should be considered “make or break” for him.

The Cavs continue to show progress under Bickerstaff, reaching the 51-win mark this season for the first time in six years. They also claimed the fourth seed and gained some valuable playoff experience for a roster that largely lacked it. In addition, Bickerstaff has strong support from his players, Russo adds.

“Since Day 1, I fell in love with the culture that they built here,” Ricky Rubio said. “I fell in love with how J.B. treats everybody, and it’s something that, that’s why I came back. And, of course, when you see results, you can look back and say, ‘Oh, I wish he could do this or that better.’ But at the end of the day, in the heat at the moment, it’s super hard to really see sometimes. And I think what he built here is something special. He’s a great locker room guy.”

There’s more from Cleveland:

Lauri Markkanen had a breakout season in Utah, but Russo doesn’t think the Cavaliers would have been better off by holding onto him, Ochai Agbaji, and the collection of draft picks they gave the Jazz in the Donovan Mitchell trade. She points out that Markkanen benefited from returning to his natural position of power forward in Utah, which wouldn’t have happened in Cleveland with Evan Mobley on the roster. She adds that having a superstar in Mitchell is more valuable than the various pieces that were surrendered to acquire him.
The Cavs’ buyout decision with Kevin Love looks worse than it actually was because of Miami’s run to the Finals and Cleveland’s playoff failure, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com states in a mailbag column. He notes that Bickerstaff removed Love from the rotation because he wasn’t producing and the team had other players who were more effective. Back and thumb injuries contributed to Love’s down season in Cleveland, but he only shot 30% from the field in his final 15 games with the Cavs and was frequently targeted on defense.
Holding just the 49th pick in this year’s draft, the Cavaliers had to be disappointed by seeing so many prospects decide to return to school, Fedor adds. Sources tell Fedor that Kentucky’s Chris Livingston will work out for the team next week, and a session has been scheduled with Eastern Michigan’s Emoni Bates. Fedor also hears that Cleveland invited Kansas State’s Keyontae Johnson to work out, but he’ll probably turn it down because he believes he’ll be off the board by No. 49.

Draft Notes: Henderson, Miller, Thompsons, Hendricks, Livingston, Bates

June 7th, 2023 at 3:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hornets hold the No. 2 pick and the top contenders to be chosen at that spot are visiting Charlotte soon, Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer reports.

G League Ignite point guard Scoot Henderson is scheduled to come in on Sunday, while Alabama forward Brandon Miller will visit on Tuesday. A trio of prospects also rated among the top 10 on most draft boards are also working out for the Hornets in the near future. Twins brothers Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson of Overtime Elite will work out on Friday. Villanova forward Cam Whitmore is scheduled to come in on June 17.

We have more draft-related notes:

Speaking of the Thompson twins, they worked out for the Trail Blazers last week, according to Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian. They are ranked No. 4 and No. 5 in ESPN’s rankings.
Another projected Top 10 pick, UCF’s Taylor Hendricks, revealed some of his future workouts while visiting the Pacers on Wednesday, Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files reports. He has workouts lined up with the Pistons, Mavericks, Jazz and Thunder. He previously worked out for the Magic. The power forward is ranked No. 9 on ESPN’s Best Available list.
The Cavaliers will work out Akron native and Kentucky forward Chris Livingston next week, according to Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Eastern Michigan guard Emoni Bates will also visit soon. They could fall in the range of Cleveland’s second-round pick (No. 49 overall).

Draft Notes: Black, Whitehead, Henderson, Hornets, Porter

June 7th, 2023 at 10:59am CST by Arthur Hill

In an interview with Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), Arkansas guard Anthony Black describes himself as an unselfish player who’s willing to do whatever it takes to help his team win. Black displayed impressive passing skills during his freshman year with the Razorbacks, but he said he can defend, rebound and score as well.

Black, who grew up admiring Gilbert Arenas and Kobe Bryant, compares himself to Oklahoma City’s Josh Giddey among current players. Like Giddey, Black is exceptionally tall for a point guard and he uses his 6’7″ height to his advantage.

“I think it helps in my reads,” Black said. “I watch a lot of film, so I’m watching some of the film from the season and some of my reads I’m making just looking straight. There’s a defender, but he’s not tall enough to block it. I can read the back line of the defense a lot easier, I feel like, than a smaller guard who could be guarded by someone with some length and disrupt the passing lane.”

There’s more on the draft:

The second surgery needed by Duke forward Dariq Whitehead wasn’t caused by a re-fracture of his right foot, tweets Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report. A source tells Wasserman that Whitehead has met with several teams picking late in the lottery as well as teams with multiple first-round selections. He hasn’t been able to work out, but he’s gone through film sessions and met with head coaches, executives and medical personnel.
The Hornets haven’t set a date for their workout with Scoot Henderson, according to Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. The G League Ignite guard visited the Trail Blazers over the weekend and indicated that he will only work out for Portland and Charlotte. Boone notes that workout days usually aren’t publicized far in advance, and Henderson lives in Georgia so it wouldn’t take him long to get to the Hornets’ facility.
The Hornets are hosting a workout today with Texas’ Timmy Allen, Baylor’s Adam Flagler, Florida’s Alex Fudge, Michigan State’s Joey Hauser, Southern Utah’s Tevian Jones and North Carolina State’s Terquavion Smith (Twitter link).
Craig Porter Jr. has already conducted workouts with the Mavericks, Warriors, Celtics, Pistons, Magic and Cavaliers, and he has upcoming sessions with the Clippers, Wizards, Nuggets and Knicks, according to a tweet from Global Scouting. The Wichita State guard is a potential late second-round pick.

Draft Notes: Hawks, Hornets, Smith Jr., Heat, Delaire, Gardner

June 5th, 2023 at 10:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kentucky guard Cason Wallace, who worked out for the Wizards on Monday, will not participate in his previously scheduled workout for the Hawks on Tuesday, Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. Sincere Carry (Kent State), Armaan Franklin (Virginia), Seneca Knight (Illinois State), Xavier Castaneda (Akron), Toumani Camara (Dayton) and Vincent Valerio-Bodon (Sopron KC) will visit Atlanta on Tuesday. The Hawks hold the No. 15 pick in the first round.

We have more draft-related news:

Camara and Franklin were among the prospects who visited the Hornets on Monday, the team’s PR department tweets. Colby Jones (Xavier), Justyn Mutts (Virginia Tech), Julian Phillips (Tennessee) and Daivien Williamson (Wake Forest) also worked out for Charlotte. Jones and Phillips are considered potential first-round picks.
Arkansas guard Nick Smith Jr., a potential lottery pick, will visit the Heat in the near future, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. Smith worked out for Washington on Monday.
San Diego Jaiden Delaire will remain in the draft, according to Zagoria. Delaire, who averaged 9.2 PPG and 5.3 RPG last season at San Diego, had his waiver request to play another college season denied by the NCAA. Delaire appeared in just 12 games last season due to broken toe and broken thumb but is “100% healthy now,” he told Zagoria (Twitter link).
Marist center Patrick Gardner has worked out for the Warriors, Nets and Magic, Zagoria reports in another tweet. He also has workouts scheduled with the Wizards, Bucks, Cavaliers, Pelicans and Celtics. Gardner averaged 19.1 PPG, 6.6 RPG and shot 38.3% from 3-point range last season.

Short-Team Deal Might Work For LeVert, Team

June 4th, 2023 at 9:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cleveland won’t find a better player with its $12.2MM mid-level exception, according to Fedor, so it makes sense for the Cavs to bring back LeVert and then use the exception to add another rotation piece.

A short-term contract might work for both the Cavaliers and one of their free agents, Caris LeVert, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer opines. LeVert settled into the role of sixth man as the season went along and he wants to re-sign.