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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMgZWD1dCSU

This is funny. Probably be some interesting practices

I was impressed by his footwork and how he plays w/length. That would be awesome if we could add him to our team.

I wonder if this is more of a commentary on the status of thompsons contract negotiations than andy's health

Tristan is a RFA though, so unless he gets a contract we won't match or he wants to sit a year, he'll probably be playing for us.

Good point.

I like Ty Lawson. I was a huge fan of his at North Carolina. Probably the fastest college PG I've ever seen. Guy was a complete blur.


Don't like the fit in Houston with Harden. Will be interesting to say the least.

James Jones said "I'll be back in Cleveland for sure" | cleveland.com
http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2015/07/james_jones_cleveland_cavalier.html#incart_m-rpt-1

LAS VEGAS – During these at times frenetic and expensive days of free agency for the Cavaliers, the one name seldom mentioned as been James Jones.

Well, he's a free agent, too. And he's coming back.

"I'll be back in Cleveland for sure," Jones told the Northeast Ohio Media Group Sunday in Las Vegas, on the red carpet for the first Players' Awards show.

"I've made it well known last year when I told them I was coming to help change the culture and do something special," Jones said. "It wasn't a situation where I was looking for a platform to move on. I was looking to be a part of something, to build something. And so I'm still in."

Jones, 34, is a free agent after playing out his one-year contract with the Cavs last season.

A 12-year veteran, he would qualify for a veteran's minimum salary of $1.5 million, which would be a $950,000 cap hit for Cleveland. He made the league-minimum $1.45 million last season.

A league source confirmed the Cavs would re-sign Jones. He's been a friend and teammate to LeBron James dating back at least to 2010, during James' first season in Miami.

The 6-8 forward averaged 4.4 points in 11.7 minutes per game during the regular season, and kept his scoring average through increased playing time during the playoffs.

"Last year was big for me in establishing who I am and defining myself," Jones said. "So, I'm excited about the things I've worked on this summer, and they'll see a different James Jones next year for sure."

The Cavaliers are negotiating with restricted free agent Tristan Thompson on a long-term contract, and may bring back J.R. Smith. The team is also considering signing Russian center Sasha Kaun.

"Those are conversations that are always tough to have," Jones said, speaking about Smith and Thompson. "This is the part of the business that requires a lot of thought and requires a lot of work. I'm hopeful we'll get it done. They're a big part of what we've done and we'll continue to do."

I'm glad he's back. It's quite the luxury to be able to have that kind of shooting on the bench and ready to go. As a 9th or 10th man you can't ask for much more. There were times during the playoffs where the cavs would be down early and he was always that first sub in and his shooting calmed the whole team down.

Considering our financial situation this is good news.

I like James Jones and glad he's back too. He's the one guy that when he's open and gets the ball, I automatically add three points before he even releases it. Other people are high %, but JJ is just dead-point. Very few misses, very few.

LBJ loves him too. LBJ knows where JJ is at all times when they're on the court together. It's deadly when the opposing team shifts too much attention to LBJ and Cavaliers like JJ get forgotten and, being one of the best passers in the game, LBJ and then JJ/whoever makes em' pay.

I love seeing that. Puts most teams in difficult situations.

James Jones? I'll take him or leave him. It doesn't matter to me because if this team is healthy, he shouldn't see the court for any significant time. If he is Lebron's boy and that keeps Lebron happy, that, to me, carries more weight than his on the court presence.

We signed Mo Williams, intend to sign JR Smith and Thomspon, are talking with Kahn, are committed financially to Mike Miller. What real productivity do we expect to get from Jones? He played out of necessity towards the end of the season and if he is on the court for any legit period of time, that means we are struggling with injuries.

James Jones? Meh.

As a situational player I think he's got value. You don't want him getting big minutes like we were forced to do in the finals but really you can say that about most guys who are 9th and beyond. It's the same way I feel about Delly. Less is more. Their both a luxury rather a necessity.

He's also someone who can go days or even weeks without seeing the floor and is ready to go the minute he's called.

I'm more than okay with him playing the exact same role as he did last year. Not a key/major distributor, eating up minutes - but a nice option to throw out there off your bench.

Yeah, a guy that you can toss in there when you need 3 pointers and doesn't need time to "warm up" is a good player to have deep on your bench.

Umm ... yeah ... he "kinda" regrets opting out? I am sure he does. He has "offers"? I am curious from whom? They outline the possibilities in the article, and from what it sounds like there can't be many. I bet he winds up with a 1 year deal for something around $3.5 - $4 million.

J.R. Smith to meet with Cleveland Cavaliers this week, sort of regrets opting out | cleveland.com
http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2015/07/jr_smith_cleveland_cavaliers_1.html#incart_2box

LAS VEGAS – Free agent J.R. Smith said he will meet with the Cavaliers this week to discuss a new contract and is prepared for the possibility that he could make less than the $6.4 million he walked away from when he declined his player's option with Cleveland in June.

"That's always part of the gamble of opting out," Smith told the Northeast Ohio Media Group on Monday at the Four Seasons hotel in Las Vegas, where the NBA players' union held its summer meeting.

Smith has kept a low profile during the NBA's free agency period, which is a bad thing for a player who opted out of his contract to seek a raise.

He was the Cavs' starting shooting guard during the regular season after he was acquired via trade in January, but Smith struggled in the Finals – his last and best chance to increase his earning potential.

Asked if he regretted his decision to decline his contract option, Smith said "Uh, I mean, yes and no.

"No because I've gotten offers that I wanted, I mean numbers that I wanted, it's just different situations," Smith said. "Right now it's just a matter of seeing what the Cavs come back to me with. Right now they give me the best opportunity to win."

Smith's agent, Leon Rose, did not immediately return a call seeking comment. It is believed Smith was seeking somewhere in the $7 million to $9 million range annually, and he declined to disclose which teams his offers may have come from.

There are only three teams in the NBA that still have the cap space to give him a raise from last year: the Portland Trail Blazers ($16.4 million in cap space); Philadelphia 76ers ($16.3 million); and Indiana Pacers ($11.5 million).

But the Pacers only have the space in theory-- a cap snafu with free agent Monta Ellis temporarily voided his free-agent contract. He will sign there and Indiana will be out of cap room.

Smith said he had some "discussions" with the Blazers but they didn't go anywhere. So if the offers came from organizations outside of Philadelphia, they're gone.

Smith has always said he wanted to come back to the Cavs, and he reiterated that point on Monday.

"I definitely want to come back to Cleveland," he said. "The coaches, the team, everything about the situation, it's perfect for me."

Asked for the reasons why he does regret his contract decision, he said "just because I would be secure and I would already know I'm where I want to be.

"I wouldn't have to go through this whole thought process anymore," he said.

The Cavs confirm that they are negotiating with Smith. When he declined his option, Cleveland explored other players who could bolster its outside shooting, but now may re-sign him at a price that's right for them. It helps Smith's case that LeBron James said he wanted Smith back.

But, as with each of the remaining roster decisions the Cavs have to make, the penalties the team must pay for going over the NBA's $85 million luxury-tax line come into play.

Giving Smith a $6 million contract – which would be a $400,000 pay cut – would bring with it a $16.5 million tax penalty for the Cavs. The team's tax bill for next season could wind up in the $90 million range.

Smith, 29, averaged 12.7 points and shot 39 percent from three-point range during the regular season with the Cavs. He was up and down during the playoffs, with his lows coming in the form of a two-game suspension for punching Jae Crowder in Game 4 against Boston, and shooting 31 percent from the field in the Finals.

The Cavs are still negotiating a long-term deal with restricted free agent Tristan Thompson, which could be worth more than $16 million per year.Matthew Dellavedova remains a restricted free agent, too.

Cleveland is also considering adding Russian center Sasha Kaun, and may trade Brendan Haywood's $10.5 million contract for a player. The team will also re-sign James Jones at some point for the veteran's minimum of about $1.5 million.

This story has been updated with additional information.

Lol did he take shrooms before that game? What is going on there?

No idea, but JR gonna JR. He's only behind Chris Bosh as the Internet gif and meme king.

LOL.......that is hysterical.

One thing that hasn't been discussed much is how Blatt handled Smith and other personalities on the Cavs.

Smith has always been a problem child. LeBron brings his domineering and entitled personality and Kyrie is another big ego to deal with. He also had to deal w/Love not getting as many opportunities as he had in the past.

I think Blatt did a really good job of handling all these different personalities.

especially JR.

i mean JR had his typical WTF moment in the playoffs, but as far as the team and relationship with the coaching staff, Blatt played that flawlessly.

I think that he did an amaxing job of this.

Blatt was hired to coach a young team, that needed to be developed. Instead he received a team that was expected to make a Finals run, at the very least. It seems to me that it would be akin to a guy being hired as a manager of a single restaurant, and finding himself, instead, in charge of the entire company ... and worse yet, he has the children of the creator of the company in highly important positions just under him.

He did a great job, and he handled the personalities masterfully. He got Smith, a player who has driven many a coach absolutely insane, to play a team role. Not just any coach could manage that, even with Lebron James on the team.

See, JR you can't just pull weight and feel you have tons of leverage on teams. Swinging, fouling out, all those technicals... you kind of deserved this coming back to bite ya in the butt. Clearly won't change who you are as you've had lingering issues it seems your whole career, then you need to change your $ expectations.

One of the two MUST change.

Richard Jefferson?!?!

....said James Jones.

oh why the face

I guess Mike Miller needed a partner for bridge now that Marion is gone.

Yeah, that's all I can think ... Marion replacement.

I just hope we don't get hit with the injury bug like we did last year and this guy has to play serious minutes...

James Jones is another guy who shouldn't be playing a ton of minutes, but he at least has a role, one that he is quite good at.... Jefferson offers really nothing at this point.

Richard Jefferson is long in the tooth, but still has a little more game left more so than what I though when we brought Shawn Marion in last year.

He's a pretty good three point shooter at the SF spot, but someone else is going to have to get him his shot.

At this point Jefferson is about all we could hope for

Dude fell off a cliff after he left the Nets.

He was solid last year, in a limited role. (which is what he will play here)

He shot 44% from the floor, and almost 43% from 3 point range. He played about 17 minutes/game, and scored about 6 points/game, and added 2.5 rebounds/game.

Playing behind Lebron, and in certain limited minutes, he won't have to play a huge role.

Right now we have:

Lebron
Kyrie
Kevin
Mozgov
Shumpert
Thompson (who will be resigned)
Mo Williams
Richard Jefferson
Mike Miller
James Jones
Andy

That's 11.

We have Joe Harris under contract, but I don't know if it is guaranteed or not. (I suspect not)

We are negotiating with Delly and JR Smith. I wonder if only one comes back. I see no way that Delly gets the reported $4 million/year he is after. Let's add Smith back though, at a discount from his option he turned down. (unless we do manage to pull off a trade for a SG using the Haywood contract, which seems unlikely at this point)

Anyway, We cannot count on anything at this point.

We own the NBA rights to Sasha Kahn, a legitimate 7 foot Center. I keep reading back and forth on this though. I think that if he will sign for the minimum then we add him. You just don't throw away 7 footers with ability and talent. A 2-3 year deal with Kahn could offer some protection with Mozgov being a free agent after this coming season. Besides, who doesn't want the entire arena yelling "kaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhnnnnnn" when he makes a play?

That puts us at 12, if we bring him in. (and I really think that you cannot have too many strong and talented 7 foot players.

We also have the draft rights to Rakeem Christmas and Sir'Dominic Porter. I think that Christmas stands a chance of making the team, but Pointer is going to have a really hard time doing so. These guys could also easily wind up being traded for a trade exemption, or a player.

However, I have read that the team really likes Christmas. However, again, it is too early to even pencil him in. Further, if we sign Kahn, it could be extremely hard for Christmas to find a place on the roster.

I am sending both Christmas and Pointer either to another team, or to the D League.

I am going to keep Harris for now. I believe that his contract is not guatranteeed, though, so his tenure could be endangered.

So, we are still et 12, without Delly, Smith, Harris, or the draft picks. I do wonder if Delly will be back. I suspect that once either Delly or Smith re-signs, the other becomes seriously endangered as far as being a Cavalier.

Let's keep either Smith or Delly. If the money is similar, I suspect we bring back Smith. He fits a role better since we signed Mo Williams to backup the PG spot.

That's 13, and we have 2 spots left. We still have Harris, Christmas, and Pointer. It's way too early to say for sure what happens here. I think that the team does like Harris' shot, though whether that will be enough for him is yet to be seen. The 2 draft picks may wind up getting caught in a numbers game on a championship caliber team. In that case they could be traded to create another trade exemption.

We also have the contract of Haywood, which, at this point, I suspect will be traded to the Sixers, along with a future 2nd round pick, for a nice, hefty trade exemption.

That's how I see it right now, anyway.

That's a significant improvement over Marion who couldn't even get on the floor during the Finals when we were out of bodies to put on the floor.

For sentimental reasons, I hope we keep Delly... the guy is all heart and fire, and he's a solid defender.. he just doesn't have any offense.

Hopefully Jefferson could give us what Shawn Marions corpse couldn't.

I think Jefferson is done, but we can't argue about the cost. Who else could we get for that low of a salary? LOL

I think the only way we lose Delly is if some team gives him a Linsanity-type contract. I doubt that will happen. Most teams know he's a RFA and they would have to overpay a lot to get the Cavs to let him go. He's also around the peak of his potential, so it's not like they can bank on that either. He hasn't seen an offer yet, so I'm not sure that's out there.

His qualifying offer is only 1.1 million, so if I would have to guess, I'd say we'll give him 2 mil a year for 3 years or so and he'll be happy with the security for a few years. His only other option would be to take the qual offer for less and hope he somehow puts up a better season than last year, then go into next year's free agency.

Not sure what happens with JR though. He made a dumb mistake by opting out. Now he's finding out that nobody really wants to sign a potential headcase to a long term deal. Maybe we bring him back for a 2 year deal (team option) for the money that he opted out of? I get the feeling both will be back though.

I think the key to getting "good" JR Smith is being able to keep him down the depth chart a bit..

We had LeBron, Kyrie, and Love in front of him as main scoring options, which allowed him to play off, at his best..

By the end of the Finals it was just LeBron and him.. and he went back to N.Y. "It's either me or Melo" mode..

If everyone stays healthy, and maybe if we can bring in an actual starting SG. I think he will go back to being a great piece.

They could have had the best 5"7 power forward in the NBA,,,, ME