DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Cavaliers & FA Options...July 1st...

so the cavs can re-sign lebron and add another upper echelon player... like we originally thought.

I just don't get all of the expiring contract value ..... other than as a salary dump for teams. The Cavaliers "could have" traded away their expiring contracts last year .... but that would have also robbed them of any ability to do much in 2010 as well?

IIRC, Shaq and Z total about $30 million. (and I could be wrong .... but let's use that number) The Cavaliers get the exemption this year .... but nothing else next year for those 2 monstrous contacts coming off the books? Maybe trading Z's expiring contract might become a reality after all? Add a Villanueva this off season and then add another long term piece later in the season? Then re-sign Lebron next year?

Can NBA teams only exceed the cap for 1 of their own players .... or can they re-sign more than 1 if they go over the cap to do so? If they traded for a Chris Bosh, for example, culd they re-sign both him and Lebron? What about if they traded Z's expiring contract for someone already under a longer term deal?

I'm not going to pretend I know all the rules...unless you work for a team or are the guy who runs this amazing site, the odds are you do not....

here is the best site on the web for NBA salary cap rules: http://members.cox.net/lmcoon/salarycap.htm

If we can get CV heres what our lineup should look like. I'm not holding my breath on resigning andy.


PG - Mo // Boobie
SG - Delonte // Green
SF - LeBron // JJ??
PF - CV // Joe Smith
C - Shaq // Z

Now, I'll try to show the Cavs cap situation as best I can (BW will most likely come out with an article after the main part of FA is over that does this better and will obviously show the impact of our signed FAs).


Salary #'s from: http://hoopshype.com/salaries/cleveland.htm

Current 2010 roster salary (not including LeBron or Jawad Williams options):
17798834

Expected 2010 cap #: $60million ($57mil this year...hard to predict)


Now let's start wtih the cap # and subtract everything out:


$60mil
-$17798834 (current signees)
-$20513885.6 (LeBron's cap hit as an unsigned FA - 130% his previous salary)
= $21687280.4 (money we would have if we don't sign any longterm contracts)

Now, if we sign CharlieV (MLE) and AV (let's even use $7mil/year) longterm and use the bi-annual exception wing player ($2mil/year)...that $$ goes fast.


$21687280.4
-$5.6mil (MLE = CharlieV)
-$7mil (AV FA contract)
-$2mil
=$7087280.4

$7mil would not be nearly enough to go after a Bosh or Wade or such player. We would have to concentrate on the mid-tier players. And that was with AV making less than the $8-10mil/year that has been floating in some rumor mills.

However, we would have an extremely talented young corps to build around and we may get Z and/or Shaq to sign discounted veteran contracts to stay on for a championship run.....not to mention possibly a guy like Nash who may want a championship chance before he retires. Lots of possibilities, but Bosh just probably isn't one of them under those scenarios (unless it's a sign-n-trade).

I forgot to subtract out our 1st round draft pick from next year's draft in this equation. So, we would have to subtract out $1mil or so from all numbers.

Sorry (and if our draft pick from this year comes over next year, then subtract $2mil)

I think the article is assuming we use the MLE to the max, which would mean a 5 year deal. If I'm not mistaken, we could sign CV to a one year deal under the MLE and have that cap space available next year. My guess would be ... that's what CV would WANT, as he would become a free agent again in 2010, when teams have money ... he'd be set to make a lot more than the MLE.

We can also re-sign Andy to a one-year contract ... again, if he agrees to it. As far as I know, we still have bird rights to him, so we can be over the cap to resign him. Both the MLE and Bird rights allow us to be over the cap, yet sign these two to one year deals.

I'm not sure that we need to worry about next year's draft pick either. I'm not sure it gets taken into account before or after Free Agency ... and if it's after, it's also considered an exception ... similar to the MLE. If it's not, chances are we sell the pick for cash (face it, it'll be a high pick anyway).

draft picks are taken into account when you are figuring out your cap figure.

also, doubtful many teams will want to buy a pick next year either as all will be posturing for the FA class....look for a lot of teams to draft guys in Europe so they can have them over there and not affect their cap for a year or two.

charlieV might very well want a 1 year opt-out deal....AV is less likely though. He's might be more likely to get paid this year from teams trying to "jump" next year's FA class. We'll have to see where he falls in line with the FA big men though....if he doesn't get picked in the top5 from teams, then he could decide to do the 1 year deal.


Big men FA's include:

Boozer (if he opts out)
David Lee
CharlieV
Mislap
AV
Chris Anderson
Sheed
Marcin Gortat


Rumor Mills say:
OKC is apparently infatuated with Mislap....Detroit and Memphis like David Lee. Whoever doesn't get him might then go after one of the others...CharlieV or AV or Anderson most likely. 'Sheed probably goes to a title contender for MLE (Spurs and Celtics are rumored). If David Lee leaves, Gortat is rumored to go to NY.

espn radio just said the word around the jazz is that boozer will likely not opt out and wait til 2010, apparently.

don't know if i buy that, but maybe he doesn't wanna go to detroit which is one of the few teams who would give him a long term deal. the cavs sure won't.

it's too bad the cavs can't tell him "hey, we'll sign you!" have him opt out, and then say "nah, that's ok"

curry fired as detroit coach...not that surprising given his relationship with Rip, but strange timing as it happens at the dawn of FA period

article about shaq in SI, i like the tone


Cleveland Cavaliers' Shaquille O'Neal featured in Sports Illustrated this week
by Starting Blocks, The Plain Dealer
Tuesday June 30, 2009, 12:56 PM
Associated PressLeBron James was a rookie and Shaquille O'Neal had already won three NBA titles with the Lakers on Feb. 4, 2004 (photo) in Cleveland; a game won by the Lakers, 111-106, in overtime. Now, Shaq tells Sports Illustrated he wants to help LeBron win a title.

Wednesday will mark the first release to the newsstands of a Sports Illustrated edition since the Cavaliers acquired legendary center Shaquille O'Neal.

Thus, no surprise. O'Neal is included in the edition as the subject of an inside feature story by SI's Ian Thomsen, titled "Now a Few Words From...LeBron's New Bodyguard." O'Neal talks about his new teammate, Cavaliers forward LeBron James, and about a former teammate, guard Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Thomsen begins the story, writing:

"Here's my motivational slogan for next season," said Shaquille O'Neal last Saturday by phone from his home in Orlando. "A ring for the King. He wants one, and I want another one. A ring for the King, baby!"

O'Neal sounded rejuvenated as he prepared for the newest role of a celebrated 17-year career. Having won three rings as a Laker with Bryant and a fourth with Dwyane Wade in Miami, Shaq is making another stop in his Forrest Gump-like run through the NBA. He is moving to Cleveland to assist the King, LeBron James, in pursuit of his first crown.

"Everybody is going to say, 'Whose team is it?' "said O'Neal, two days after the Cavaliers acquired him from the Suns for Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic, a second-round pick and $500,000. I want you to print that in double-black-bold print. It's his team. He's the King, and the Cavs have hired a known hit-man bodyguard. My job is to protect him."

Thomsen also writes:

Shaq accepts that he'll most likely serve as James' sidekick for one season only, that next summer the Cavs will exploit the cap space created by his expiring $21 million salary to recruit a free agent such as Joe Johnson or Chris Bosh. "I don't think I'm going to buy a house in Cleveland," O'Neal said. "The economy is down. I already got a big mansion in Orlando, and I had my mansion in Miami that I just sold. So I'll probably just rent a condo or apartment."

Imagine waking up one morning in suburban Cleveland to find Shaq moving into the three-bedroom unit next door. Enjoy the year, Cavs fans: You're surely in for a wild
ride.

web page

love it.

now go out and do it.

kthnx.

Just have to hope his body holds together. I don't doubt he'll play hard as he can, and run as fast as he can . Shaq will need limited minutes and luck though.
Still I like to hear what Shaq is saying. Now if we can swing CV!!!

i think the coaching staff will make sure he doesn't log huge minutes. certain exceptions will obviously be made, for big games like lakers and celtics, but this team won 66 games without him, so it's not like he has to carry this gigantic load.

like shaq said, this was a damn good team before he got there, he just wants to fit in and see how he can help it.

i think regardless of what happens, i commend the cavs for doing this.

J/C

Andy opted out today so be interesting to see how much coin he THINKS he is worth... I high hustle player with no ballhandling skill or jumpshot...

Truthfully I am happy to not have to watch him flop for us anymore and throw up his hands and cry every time a whistle is blown his way...

I used to CRINGE everytime the ball floated near him on offense...

Bye Andy and may you continue your acting career elsewhere!

OK .. so what team, theoretically, could the Cavaliers do a "sign and trade" for Varageo with?

What could we get back?

What if we worked out some kind of crazy deal where we get a top tier player who is in the last year of his contract in exchange for Varageo ..... and also sign Villanueva? Could that be a possibility?

i don't think a sign and trade of side show bob will net us a top tier player in return. Salaries have to be within so much of each other since we can't take in more than andy would sign for.


I'm kinda glad to see sasha and andy go this offseason. With eric snow officially of the books I can watch a cavs game and not remember the horrid talent we used to start around LeBron.

the unfortunate thing is that we sort of need Andy to stay...we only have the MLE($5.6mil) and the bi-annual ($2mil) to go after FA's.

so, unless we get involved in a complicated sign-n-trade for Andy that almost never happen.....then, Andy is a guy that we either sign and have on our team or lose without replacing (as the MLE and bi-annual are mutually exclusive from a cap standpoint....I know they are not from Gilbert's checkbook, but still)

If we could sign CharlieV to the MLE and then trade AV for an athletic SG (someone making around $7-9mil/year), then that would be the best-case scenario. However, it is also unlikely.

i love andy, and i think he has a place on the team, although it's best suited as a 6th or 7th man coming off the bench... the guy can play good defense, rebound, take charges (i know he flops but he doesn't always flop)

but with that said, i can't see anyone in this year of FA giving him any kind of money, i think he comes back to the cavs, maybe with his tail between his legs.

he's not worth 8-10m, i think he's 5-6 at best.

local reporters here say ben gordon will be a piston by the end of the day.

no real surprise there.....hope he and Rip don't get along and that they pay too much for Ben so it messes up any other plans they had (like CharlieV).

brian windhorst has said via twitter that he has heard some "interesting" things about the cavs from some agents he has spoken with, he plans on giving some details later on today.

for anyone that doesn't use twitter, i'll post whatever he says, if it's anything good.

"The Cavs (and LeBron directly) have been in contact with Ron Artest." via windy's twitter

from the PD

The Cavaliers have a lot of options in free agency but one of their first calls was somewhat surprising.

According to several league sources, the Cavs have been been in contact with Houston Rockets free agent forward Ron Artest. It even included a face-to-face pitch from LeBron James on Tuesday night in Los Angeles as both were in Southern California for various events.

Artest, who is an unrestricted free agent after his contract that paid him $7.4 million with the Rockets expired, is being courted by several teams. Artest is believed to prefer to play for a championship contender and in addition to the Rockets the Cavs may be getting some competition from the Boston Celtics for his services.

With the Rockets facing the uncertain injury status of stars Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, it is unclear how hard they will try to push to re-sign Artest. They are pursuing Orlando Magic free agent center Marcin Gortat.

The Rockets have had interest in Cavs free agent Anderson Varejao in the past, which opens up some possibilities of a sign-and-trade scenario - though the Cavs have said they want to re-sign Varejao.

Artest played for coach Mike Brown when Brown was the associate head coach of the Indiana Pacers from 2003-05. He is the type of forward the Cavs would be interested in. He has the ability to stretch the floor because he has range to out to the 3-point line. He is an excellent defensive player and a former NBA Defensive Player of the Year who can guard a wide variety of defenders, which would fit nicely with James, who can do the same.

What isn't clear is how Artest would fit with the Cavs. He does not have a background that fits the type of players the Cavs usually attempt to acquire. In addition to his role in the infamous brawl in Detroit five years ago, has been suspended for pleading no contest to a domestic violence charge two years ago. In all, he's been suspended nearly a dozen times by the NBA.

However, he has been a good citizen for the last two years and helped carry the Rockets into the second round of the playoff last season.

He averaged 15.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists for the Rockets in 2008-09.

cavs are smart

Wow if the cavs get Ron Artest this team WILL win a NBA title next year! My only concern is at PF

Mo / D-west
Artest / Boobie
LBJ / Hickson
Hickson??????
Shaq / Z

1 mo
2 artest
3 bron
4 joe smith/andy
5 shaq

with delonte, z, jj, d-block, and boobie as your bench bunch...

depth is a little bit of a concern, but you have a few wild cards in jj, and danny green...

I hope we get him. Instantly steps up our perimeter defense, which killed us in the playoffs. He basically pushed the Lakers deep into the series by himself in the playoffs, without Mcgrady and Yao with nothing but determination, defense, hustle and leadership.

Can you imagine how physically tough the Cavs will be... Artest (6'7" 260), Lebron (6'8" 265), Shaq (7'1" 330ish)
That is so much muscle, size, defense, and rebounding. Sign him and give us the ring now.

Would love to get Ronny and have a rematch with the Magic next year in the playoffs..

Ronny will throw VC or Rashard Lewis around like a damn rag doll...

Dude is tough as nails, which is the main reason I have been pimpin him since the day we got knocked out..

Our perimeter defense would take a dump on anyone in the league outside of LA...

the cavs would be the most followed team in the nba. so many personalities. if they make this work, this entire family thing they have built since mike brown joined the cavs... it's going to be an incredible year.

you take the best defensive team in the league, and add a low post presence, as well as the top perimeter defender in the league? that's crazy.

but hey, the cavs have only talked with artest, they may talk with everyone.

i just know that i think we can add 2 more players, one of them being pretty good, and other just a veteran depth type player. should set us up for the year.

Charlie V now a Piston as well per Windy's twitter update..

https://twitter.com/PDcavsinsider

what sucks is they got him for what we were paying andy 5year 35 mil

do you guys see anyone signing allen iverson?

i really can only see one or two possibilities.

if his attitude was different, if he acted his age, i would totally bring him aboard, but you have to be willing to sacrfice when you're his age.

The Detroit Pistons made the biggest early splash in free agency on Wednesday, agreeing to terms with Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva.

Former Bulls guard Gordon will receive a five-year, $55 million deal, while former Bucks forward Villanueva gets a five-year deal for $35 million, sources told ESPN.com's Chris Broussard.

Dam ... he went for that extra $2 million.

Here's hoping we get Artest now, and manage to resign Andy. Although a sign and trade Andy for Artest wouldn't be bad either ... we're just look pretty thin at PF.