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

joe smith has become one of my favorite players, i really hope they find a way to bring him back

Here is the CAVS summer league schedule and roster. Any surprise names there? A few of the players I hadn't heard of out of college:

The Cleveland Cavaliers release summer league roster and schedule
by Starting Blocks/Plain Dealer
Friday July 10, 2009, 2:05 PM
APCleveland Cavaliers rookie Danny Green.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will begin summer league play on Saturday in Las Vegas. The summer league runs today through July 19 at the Cox Pavillion and Thomas and Mack Center on the campus of UNLV.

The Cavaliers, with a roster of rookies and free agents, will play the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.

Here's a look at the Cavaliers' schedule and roster:

CAVALIERS GAME SCHEDULE

Saturday, LA Lakers vs. Cavaliers
6:00 p.m. EST COX Pavilion

Sunday, July 12 Milwaukee vs. Cavaliers
10:00 p.m. EST COX Pavilion

Tuesday, July 14 Washington vs. Cavaliers
7:30 p.m. EST Thomas & Mack

Thursday, July 16 Dallas vs. Cavaliers
8:00 p.m. EST COX Pavilion

Friday, July 17 Detroit vs. Cavaliers
4:00 p.m. EST COX Pavilion


ROSTER:


Christian Eyenga, G/F, 6-5, Congo

Jamont Gordon, G, 6-4, Mississippi State

Danny Green, G/F, 6-6, North Carolina

David Harrison, C, 7-0, Colorado

Robert Hite, G, 6-2, Miami

Darnell Jackson, F, 6-9, Kansas

Tarence Kinsey, G, 6-6, South Carolina

Leo Lyons, F, 6-9, Missouri

Maureece Rice, G, 6-1, George Washington

Jawad Williams, F, 6-9, North Carolina

Maureece Rice is an intriguing player, definitely has some talent.

Had a big sophomore year but kind of fell off the map when he returned for his junior season.

Kind of a tweener but if he could transition to the point, he could make an NBA roster.

Jamont Gordon is another I'll be interested to see. He's a great scorer, can really fill it up. Great size (6'4'', 230+ LBS), he just needs to work on his jump shot a little more.

Looks like Frye signed with the Suns...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4319829

Not anything exciting, just don't laugh at the cavs for signing andy to a big pay day.

Magic to retain center Gortat

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4324941

The Orlando Magic will keep Marcin Gortat by matching the five-year, $34-million offer sheet extended to him by the Dallas Mavericks, the Orlando Sentinel first reported Monday.

The Magic made the announcement Monday.

"Having quality big men is an absolute must in our league, and Marcin has worked very hard to fit into that category," Magic general manager Otis Smith said in a statement. "He provides tremendous depth to our frontcourt and we're happy to bring him back."

Gortat's agent, Guy Zucker, said the center "was definitely very disappointed today." He said Gortat was back in his native Poland, where he'd already been telling everyone he was headed to the Mavericks.

Gortat was hoping to play alongside Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki and, most of all, compete with Erick Dampier for the starting job. Dampier is going into the final year of his contract.

In Orlando, Gortat will likely see spotty playing time behind Howard.

"It was definitely about the opportunity to find out how good he can really be," Zucker said. "We had requested that Orlando not match the offer. We stated the fact that he sincerely wanted the chance to carve his own path, be his own man, so to speak, which is not going to be realistically possible in Orlando."

Gortat averaged just 3.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game last season and 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds during the Magic's run to the NBA Finals, but his opportunities in Orlando were limited behind All-Star center Dwight Howard.

The 6-foot-11, 240-pound center made about $700,000 last season, his first full year in the NBA. He likely will remain in a backup center role or play sparingly alongside Howard at power forward.

But Gortat earned the big pay raise in large part because of some highlights in the Magic's playoff run.

Gortat filled in for Howard in the Game 6 clincher against Philadelphia in the opening round after Orlando's All-Star was suspended, adding a few powerful dunks that earned him the nickname the "Polish Hammer" from teammates. He also had a pair of blocks on Cleveland's LeBron James in the conference finals, and he saw his minutes increase in the Finals because of the size of the Los Angeles Lakers.

The decision is a bold and costly one for the Magic, who will plunge further into luxury-tax territory than many rivals anticipated after their recent trade for Vince Carter by first signing Brandon Bass away from Dallas to a four-year deal worth a reported $18 million and then matching on Gortat.

Retaining Gortat and adding Bass will likely take the Magic's payroll into the $80 million range for next season, which would force Orlando to cut a luxury-tax check of more than $10 million in July 2010 barring roster moves between now and June 30 of next year to lower that figure.

yikes.

The big men continue to get overpaid.. just the nature of the beast...

Put the money aside for a second...This is a good move for Orlando.. Signing Bass and retaining Gortat is making them very deep up front...Gortat is a good young big and he protects the rim VERY WELL... guy works hard.. under rated in this league..

Otis Smith absolutely worked the Mavs over... With Orlando taking Bass from them, the Mavs thought they were in the clear to pick up Gortat... I think everyone was surprised to see Orlando match the offer sheet..

Orlando is gonna be damn good again.. That being said, I really think losing Turk is gonna weaken their matchup advantages..

Don't know if it was posted or not? From yahoo sports.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=Ak...p&type=lgns

Swingman Parker adds depth behind LeBron for Cavs

Jul 13, 6:50 pm EDT

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CLEVELAND, Ohio (AFP) - Anthony Parker(notes), a swingman who has spent half of his 12-year pro career in the National Basketball Association, signed to serve as a backup to LeBron James(notes) next season.

Parker signed a deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers that will see him serve as a top reserve behind James, the NBA Most Valuable Player, or guards Delonte West(notes) and Mo Williams(notes).

"Anthony will be a solid addition to our roster," Ferry said. "He is a very good, intelligent all-around basketball player."

The Cavaliers had the NBA's best regular-season record last season but were defeated by Orlando in the Eastern Conference finals. Since then, Cleveland added 37-year-old superstar center Shaquille O'Neal(notes) in a trade with Phoenix.

Parker, who averaged 10.7 points and 3.4 assists last season for the Toronto Raptors, played five seasons for Maccabi Tel Aviv and another with Virtus Roma from 2000-2006 before returning to the NBA.

In 290 games over six NBA seasons, Parker has averaged 10.1 points and 3.4 rebounds with Toronto, Orlando and Philadelphia.

an excerpt from marc stein's article today... kinda interesting

Quote:

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• I've been advised by one especially knowledgeable observer not to be surprised if Delonte West is traded at some point this season, not because Cleveland is eager to part with him but because West is surely more movable from that massive Cavs payroll than Daniel Gibson.

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here's the article

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=stein_marc&page=Chatter-090714

This caught my attention:

"The Milwaukee Bucks continue to make Bruce Bowen's $4 million expiring contract available, but word is no trade is close. If the Bucks don't strike a deal in the next two weeks, Bowen will be waived by Aug. 1 at a cost of just $2 million, making him a free agent sure to interest various rivals of the San Antonio Spurs, since Bowen is not expected to return to the silver and black."

Should the cavs go after him?

Was the the Sean May stuff? I wasn't a fan of him coming out of school and he proved me right so far in his career.

i don't think sean may is who he's talking about because he mentioned may earlier on twitter..

What about Tim Thomas? According to NBAtv I have on right now, the Bulls just bought out his contract so he's available. He's real athletic for his size and can play that stretch 3/4 that we need so badly. Only thing is... the guy is a black hole. Once the ball goes into him, you're not seeing it again. That's my only concern...

Now, do we go after him?

It's Rob Kurz from Golden State.. I think the guy is like 6'9".. guy is a shooter

ESPN is reporting that the Lakers pulled their offer to Lamar Odom off the table.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4328376

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking too ... but I'd love for this to blow up in the Lakers face, and have him sign elsewhere for one year just to spite them. Losing Lamar and Ariza would be a big blow for the Lakers, despite getting Artest.

Chris Paul believes that the Hornets could trade him because of their financial situation.
New Orleans is set to be over the luxury tax, and might have to bite the bullet and deal away some big contracts.

"In this league, anything can happen," Paul told Pro Basketball News on Thursday. "I can be dealt."

Paul was then asked if he seriously thought he could be dealt.
"It's possible," he reiterated. "It's possible."

http://www.realgm.net/src_wiretap_archives/60629/20090717/paul_believes_hornets_could_deal_him/


I doubt the Cavs could land him even if NO was serious. I think for a Cleveland and New Orleans trade to work for Paul that Mo would have to be included, so it would have to be JJ, Mo and Z for Paul and whatever trash NO wanted rid of. I love Z and want him to retire as a Cav but I would trade him for the best PG in the league EASILY.

i think he just said that to say it, i don't think there's anything there. he's that entire franchise right now. you would never get equal value back, that's the same argument i made against trading lbj.

Quote:

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i think he just said that to say it, i don't think there's anything there.

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He probably said it so as not to put himself above the team.. I mean if they need to make cuts how would it have sounded if he had said, "Well we need to clear some cap space, we need to unload a few big salaries so everybody is a trade possibility but me."

While that may be true, he would come across as an ass if he said it that way.

... which I'm sure the reporter was trying to bait him into saying. If he says he's not going to get traded, then they report he's an ass. If he doesn't ... then he's on the trading block.

We have signed Miami F Jamario Moon to an offer sheet. Heat have 7 days to match.

http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2009/07/cavs_reportedly_sign_swingman.html

Cavs sign swingman Jamario Moon to an offer sheet
by Brian Windhorst/Plain Dealer Reporter
Sunday July 19, 2009, 1:17 PM
According to an NBA source, the Cavaliers have pulled a bit of a surprise by tendering an offer sheet to Miami Heat restricted free agent Jamario Moon. The Heat would have seven days to match likely starting Monday when they would probably receive the paperwork.

ESPN.com first reported the story.

The Cavs have about $3.2 million left of their mid-level exception that they can use in whole or part to sign Moon. Offer sheets must be at least three years in length, though not all of those years must be guaranteed.

Moon is a 6-foot-8, 29-year-old late bloomer who broke into the NBA with the Toronto Raptors last season and was traded to the Heat last winter. He averaged 7.8 points and 5.4 rebounds over the last two seasons. He is able to play more at small forward than shooting guard, where the Cavs looked to settled themselves after signing Anthony Parker last week, and is known as a solid defensive player.

Usually Cavs General Manager Danny Ferry avoids players who are restricted and this is the first offer sheet he's given in his four years as GM. However, the Cavs may be acting with some gamesmanship here as the Heat twist a bit while waiting to see if Los Angeles Lakers free agent Lamar Odom accepts an offer they have given him. Locking up Moon to an offer sheet prevents him to be used in sign-and-trades, which the Heat may have been looking at as well.

Miami has several young players at Moon's position, including Daequan Cook and James Jones, and it may prevent them from matching. The Heat are also believed to be looking to save salary-cap space for next summer

NICE...Kid can ball. Good move by Ferry to sign him, while the Heat play hopscotch with Odom. Smart thing to do on our part. He is a huge pickup.

I mentioned this elsewhere, but it reminds me of the sage move made by Savage against the Ravens a few years ago. There was a potential Moon could be used to land Odom...this delays it at least 7 days.

I like Moon. He'd be a good signing.

He'll definately keep the fans entertained

depending on the $$$ and the years (which are not solidly known yet)....

good depth signing....also interesting trade asset.



Feel bad for Wally that he didn't take the offer in Spain, but glad we moved on (this pretty much seals that door)

Eying Christian Eyenga: Summer league boosts interest in Cavaliers' top draft choice

by Brian Windhorst/Plain Dealer Reporter
Saturday July 18, 2009, 6:45 PM
Jason DeCrow/AP

Cavaliers first-round draft choice Christian Eyenga.LAS VEGAS -- Christian Eyenga is an enigma. Or, at the very least, a unique draft pick in recent Cavaliers history.

The team's decision to select him in the first round last month was a complete surprise that created a number of questions that turned out to have complex answers. Then over the last week at the Vegas Summer League, Eyenga showed off some tantalizing skills that raised eyebrows everywhere from the Cavs' staff to European teams who may have their own designs for his immediate future.

He's listed at 6-5 and is every bit of it. He's just turned 20 years old and looks much like it. He has pogo sticks for legs -- during the summer league he attempted a LeBron James-esque dunk by taking off from at least 12 feet from the basket and he may have pulled it off had he not been fouled. Another time he easily won a jump ball against a player who is 6-9.

He has all the tools to be a good defender. A long wingspan, good lateral quickness, good instincts, and what appears to be a genuine desire to stop his man, even though he hasn't been educated yet on the art of NBA defense.


Much of the time, Eyenga was the quickest player on the floor. With his long strides, he often beat every player down the court even when recovering from a defensive position. Had any of his teammates realized it, he probably could have had a dozen leak-out buckets in the five games, but it seemed like it took the whole week for them to notice it.

He has a moderately developed post game and appears comfortable going to the block, even showing a hook shot with both hands. In that regard, he's significantly more advanced than James was at the same age.

So what are his weaknesses?

Eyenga's jumper is not consistent, though he shot 47 percent from the field in Vegas. His release is substandard when it comes to quickness. His body is not fully developed and while he's at a good weight, he could certainly add some more muscle. He also tends to become passive, even when the ball comes to him and he's got an open driving lane.

In general, it isn't clear if his inconsistency is because he's young or because that's his nature. To compare, basketball people were asking the same questions about Sasha Pavlovic six years ago. Pavlovic had immense talent but was uneven, and remains so to this day.


So with all that, why was he an relative unknown and how and why did he become a Cav? Let's examine.

Q: If he's so good, why didn't Eyenga play more for DKV Joventut, the parent Euroleague team? Most of his time was with its junior varsity equivalent?

A: A native of the Congo, Eyenga didn't have a Spanish passport. Euroleague teams can only have a limited number of non-Europeans on the roster at any one time. Because he was young and they had some other non-Europeans, Eyenga became the odd man out. After some injuries on the parent team, he did get called up to play a few games.

Q: If he was so talented, then why was there virtually no buzz surrounding him coming into the draft? Several other Euroleague players had been heavily scouted, were well known and visited numerous NBA teams for private workouts.

A: Because he didn't play much for Joventut and wasn't at some of the major European camps, he was a bit of an unknown. But there was another factor at play. Eyenga's Spanish agents may have kept him under wraps on purpose, hoping to slip Eyenga through the draft without getting selected.

Had he gone undrafted, he would have been free to sign with any team when he was ready to come over to the NBA. Sometimes being a draft pick -- especially in the second round with no guaranteed money -- can leave European players feeling trapped. So he only did a couple of workouts and was not heavily promoted.

Q: If he was so under the radar, then why didn't the Cavs take him with their second-round pick and use their first rounder on a more established player?

A: As the Cavs looked at the teams picking between their 30th and 46th picks, they saw several teams known for deeply scouting Europe. In addition, there were some rumors going around that Eyenga had done at least one last-minute workout in the U.S. in the week leading up to the draft.

The major decision, it seems, came down to Eyenga and Pittsburgh forward DeJuan Blair, who had been red-flagged by NBA doctors because of some issues with his knees. The Cavs decided to take a chance on the potential of Eyenga, especially because of his defensive potential.

Q: So if Eyenga looked so good in summer league, are the Cavs not going to let him go back to Europe and instead just sign him and bring him to Cleveland?

A: It is possible but not certain. It seems the coaching staff left Vegas impressed and may lean toward signing Eyenga to his slotted two-year, $2 million contract with team options for seasons three and four. With the team's D-League connection in nearby Erie, Pa., there are plenty of advantages to having Eyenga close to help him develop.

However, Eyenga may not want to sign with the Cavs right now. On Friday, his agent declined to let him answer any questions about his intentions. His agents met with the Cavs Thursday night.

He's also a free agent in Europe and may now be able to command a large deal that would be more than the Cavs can pay under the rookie salary scale. The Cavs may want to influence where he'd play in Europe, but there's a chance there could be a bit of a bidding war as well.

With any European contract, there is often a buyout to leave to play in the NBA. With players who are draft picks, especially first rounders, it is often a large and burdensome buyout. Several first-round picks coveted by NBA teams that have their rights, notably Magic pick Fran Vazquez and Spurs' pick Tiago Splitter, are in deals with buyouts so high that it doesn't make sense to leave and sign a rookie contract.

Currently, Ricky Rubio is trying to figure out a way to get out from under a crushing buyout number from Joventut, where Eyenga has been playing, to join the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Eyenga, currently unsigned, may have some leverage in a new contract and can try to avoid a buyout, but probably not if he wants the most money possible.

So, in short, stay tuned. Eyenga, in general, is worth watching.


DRIBBLES

• The Cavs have received some criticism for missing out on some free agents this summer. They were unable to land Trevor Ariza and also pitched Channing Frye before both players decided to go elsewhere. But perhaps they have not been given the proper credit for successfully recruiting Anthony Parker.

Parker got several offers richer than what the Cavs' two years and $5.5 million. One, according to a source, came from Greek power Olympiakos, who last year stole away Josh Childress from the Atlanta Hawks. Parker, who starred with Euroleague rival Maccabi Tel Aviv before coming to the NBA, turned down a two-year contract with a net of $7 million.

Though is it is often said players in Europe get their contracts tax free, the case is really that the teams pay the player's taxes and set up the contract's value based on the amount after those taxes.

The Toronto Raptors also tried to retain Parker after a sign-and-trade deal to land Hedo Turkoglu allowed them to clear cap space. But Parker, who was one of the Cavs' targets on July 1, was impressed with the Cavs' pitch and situation and turned the richer offers down.

• Houston Rockets center Yao Ming is going to have reconstructive surgery on his left foot next week and will likely miss the entire 2009-10 season. Before choosing on the surgery, Yao spoke with Cavs center Zydrunas Ilgauskas because Z had nearly the same procedure in 2001.


Interestingly, Yao is having his surgery done by Rockets' team physician Tom Clanton, who is regarded as one of the best orthopedic surgeons in the country. Ilgauskas, however, saw Clanton when he was weighing his surgery options and instead went with Dr. Mark Myerson in Baltimore and has given Myerson credit for saving his career.



http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2009/07/eying_christian_eyenga_summer.html

Interesting read. This whole situation seems way too complicated. The NBA needs to simplify, big time. What's the point in drafting someone if they can say thanks but no thanks. He decides to start a bidding war in Europe,and we lose out, then we're left with egg on our face...especially since we passed on Blair. We could've, hands down, had one of the best drafts, between Blair and Green.

I guess we'll just have to wait and see, but knowing the history of Cleveland sports, this does not bode well.

i like the moon signing if we end up with him, not sure if miami will match.

good bench scoring. something we desperately need. this guy has killed us a few times. not much on defense, but we always seem to complain or hear the announcers talk about lack of scoring on the bench, so this move isn't too bad.

our bench would be parker, z, boobie, moon, d-block, and jj, with danny green as a rookie who i consider a wildcard for 2010.

our depth in the frontcourt still worries me a little bit, i wish we had another big body. but i like our backcourt and wing depth... mo/delonte/parker is rock solid, lebron comes off and you have moon with green fighting for that 3 spot. after that i still am worried. one more big body, maybe we address that at the deadline, i dunno.

and ya know, i think it's safe to say jj is a wild card at this point in time too. can this guy take the next step and become a true rotation player? every time he was on the floor last year, outside of garbage time, i felt like mike brown was just throwing him out there to get a spark.

the guy needs to find his role, you can see the talent there, but he's gotta put the work in. that would be such a huge boost if he can become a rotation big.