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The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired Boston’s 2015 second round pick (top 55 protected) as well as the rights to Ilkan Karaman and Edin Bavcic in a three-team trade that sends Jarrett Jack and Sergey Karasev to Brooklyn and Tyler Zeller and the Cavs’ 2016 top 10 protected first round pick to Boston, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today. As part of the three-team trade, Boston will also acquire guard Marcus Thornton from the Nets.
The Cavs want salary cap space in order to offer LeBron James a maximum-level NBA contract. In order to accomplish this, they needed to trade Jarrett Jack’s contract. That’s what this deal is all about, at least from Cleveland’s side of things.
The 2015 second round pick that Cleveland received from Boston is top 55 protected. If Boston does not convey its 2015 second round pick to Cleveland, Boston’s obligation to convey a second round pick to Cleveland as part of this trade will be extinguished. Cleveland’s 2016 first round pick to Boston is top 10 protected in 2016, 2017 and 2018 and, if not conveyed, will be unprotected in the 2019 draft.
The Cavs also receive the rights to forwards Ilkan Karaman and Edin Bavcic. Karaman, 24, was selected by the Brooklyn Nets with the 57th pick of the 2012 NBA Draft and most recently played in the Turkish Basketball League for Fenerbahçe Ülker. Bavcic, 30, who was originally selected by the Toronto Raptors as the 56th overall pick of the second round in the 2006 NBA Draft, currently plays for KAOD in Greece.
Zeller, a 7’0” center, appeared in 70 games for the Cavaliers last season where he averaged 5.7 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 53.8 percent from the field in 15.0 minutes per game. In his nine games as a starter Zeller averaged 9.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 21.6 minutes per game. The product of the University of North Carolina was originally selected with the 17th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks before being traded to the Cavaliers on draft night. Zeller recorded a career-high 23 points to go along with six rebounds against the Houston Rockets on March 22 this season. He pulled down a career-high of 15 rebounds against Philadelphia to go along with 18 points in just 25 minutes on February 18. During his rookie season (2012-13) Zeller averaged 7.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 26.3 minutes per game and was named to the NBA’s All-Rookie Second Team while also participating in the BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend.
Thornton, a 6’4” guard, split last season between the Brooklyn Nets and the Sacramento Kings where he averaged 9.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 24.1 minutes per game. After being acquired by the Nets on February 19 he appeared in 26 games for Brooklyn and spiked his scoring average to 12.3 points while also averaging 2.8 rebounds per game. In those 26 games Thornton recorded double-figures in scoring 14 times and reached 20 or more points six times. Earlier in the season with Sacramento Thornton matched his career-high with a 42 point outburst against Indian on January 24 when he made seven three-pointers. Thornton has appeared in 341 career games between Brooklyn, Sacramento and New Orleans and has career averages of 13.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.
“Jarrett is a proven NBA veteran who will add versatility to our backcourt,” said General Manager Billy King. “The team had a need in that area and we are excited that we were able to secure Jarrett to fill that role. Sergey is a player who we have followed closely for several years. He is a versatile forward and will be a welcome addition to our roster.”
Jack, a nine-year NBA veteran, played 80 games (31 starts) last season for the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he averaged 9.5 points, 4.1 assists and 2.8 rebounds in 28.2 minutes per game. The 6’3″ guard has played in 691 career games for Portland, Indiana, Toronto, New Orleans, Golden State and Cleveland with career averages of 10.9 points, 4.3 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game. Originally drafted by Denver with the 22nd pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, Jack began his career in Portland, where he played his first three NBA seasons. The Georgia Tech product had his best statistical season in 2011-12 with New Orleans when he averaged career-highs of 15.6 points 6.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game. Jack has twice helped his team reach the postseason, playing in 18 total playoff games. As a member of the Golden State Warriors, Jack played in 12 postseason contests in 2012-13, making four starts. En route to helping the Warriors reach the Western Conference Semifinals, Jack posted averages of 17.2 points, 4.7 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game.
Karasev was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the 19th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. The 6’7″ swingman out of Russia played in 22 games for the Cavaliers, averaging 1.7 points in 7.1 minutes per game. Karasev also appeared in 18 games for the Canton Charge of the NBA Development League last season, where he posted averages of 13.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. A member of the Russian national team, Karasev won bronze at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, and was a member of the gold medal winning team at the 2013 World University Games in Kazan. Prior to joining the NBA, Karasev played three seasons internationally with BC Triumph in Russia.
