The Cleveland Cavaliers have recalled forward Kevin Jones from the Canton Charge, the Cavaliers exclusively owned and operated NBA Development League team, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Jones played in last night’s Charge game against Springfield, notching his seventh double-double of the season and finishing with 17 points and 12 rebounds in 27 minutes.  He has appeared in nine games for the Charge this season, averaging 22.4 points and 12.1 rebounds in 38.3 minutes per game. Jones has played in 19 games for the Cavs this season and is averaging 2.1 points and 1.7 rebounds in 9.0 minutes per game.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have waived guard Josh Selby, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts. The Cavaliers roster now stands at 14.

Selby played in  11 games for the Canton Charge this season, averaging 15.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 32.9 minutes per games.  He also appeared in 10 games for the Memphis Grizzlies this year, averaging 2.0 points in 5.9 minutes per game. Selby was acquired by the Cavs  from the Grizzlies via a trade on January 22nd, 2013.

We have to assume that Selby will be picked up by another team. He’s a solid ability to score and compete.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have recalled forward Kevin Jones from the Canton Charge, the Cavaliers exclusively owned and operated NBA Development League team, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Jones played in yesterday’s Charge game against Idaho, recording 24 points to go along with nine rebounds in 39 minutes. He has appeared in eight games for the Charge this season, averaging 23.1 points and 12.1 rebounds in 39.8 minutes per game. He has six double-doubles for the Charge on the season.  Jones has played in 18 games for the Cavs this season and is averaging 2.1 points and 1.8 rebounds in 9.3 minutes per game.

Dion Waiters scored on jumpers, turnarounds and an assortment of moves in the lane. Shaun Livingston made a couple of a big plays in a rare start, and Wayne Ellington provided some scoring punch when the reserves were in the game.

Even without Kyrie Irving, the improving Cleveland Cavaliers had too much talent for the banged-up Chicago Bulls.

Waiters scored 25 points, Livingston added 15 in the same state where he starred in high school and the Cavs held on for a 101-98 victory on Tuesday night that snapped an 11-game losing streak against the Bulls.

”Without Kyrie, we knew it was going to be tough, period,” Cleveland coach Byron Scott said. ”But I thought guys stepped up big time.”

While Irving rested a sore right knee in street clothes on the sideline, Waiters converted a fadeaway jumper and a layup before Tyler Zeller drove along the baseline for a layup that helped Cleveland open an 87-78 lead with 7:33 left in the game…

Ellington finished with 13 points as Cleveland held on for its third win in the last four games, bouncing back from a difficult 109-105 loss at Miami on Sunday…

Carlos Boozer scored 27 points and Deng had 26 for Chicago, which has dropped five of seven. Kirk Hinrich returned to the lineup after missing three consecutive games with a lingering right elbow issue and finished with 11 points, 11 assists and six rebounds.

– Reported by Jay Cohen of the Associated Press

LeBron James scored 28 points, Dwyane Wade scored 11 of his 24 in the final five minutes, and the Miami Heat extended the NBA’s longest current winning streak to 11 games, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-105 in a back-and-forth matchup Sunday night.

Mario Chalmers scored 16 points, Shane Battier added 14 and Ray Allen had 11 for the Heat, who took a 22-point lead early in the second half, then prevailed despite being outscored by a whopping 30 points over a 17-minute stretch.

Miami was down eight with 5:16 remaining, and still won.

Dion Waiters scored 26 points, C.J. Miles added 19 and Kyrie Irving scored 17 for Cleveland. The Cavaliers are now 1-8 against the Heat since James signed with Miami in July 2010.

Cleveland erased a 22-point deficit in the third quarter to take the lead, and led by 97-89 with 5:16 remaining - before the Heat found a way to come back.

More specifically, before Wade found a way to come back.

Wade started what turned into a 16-4 run with a fadeaway with just under 5 minutes to go, then added a three-point play on the next Miami possession to cut the Cavs’ lead to 97-94…

Miami’s two wins over Cleveland this season, both at home, have come by a combined six points. … Heat F Mike Miller (ear infection) was back with the team Sunday, though did not play. ”He can’t hear anything we’re saying,” Spoelstra quipped before the game. … The Heat held a moment of silence pregame for Los Angeles Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss, the moment ending with warm applause from the crowd. Heat President Pat Riley coached for Buss, and Cavaliers coach Byron Scott once played for the Lakers.

– Reported by Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press

Bright lights bring out the best in Kyrie Irving.

Coming off an impressive showing during All-Star weekend in Houston, Irving carried the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 105-100 win over the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday night.

Irving scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, including 11 in a row and 18 of 20, to help the Cavaliers break away from an 83-all tie in the final 4:23.

”In the fourth quarter especially when it’s winning time, obviously I want to win and my teammates want to win,” he said. ”Luckily, some shots went in.” …

The game featured two former No. 1 overall draft picks: Irving and Hornets center Anthony Davis. Irving made 13 of 22 shots and all seven of his free throws while having seven assists. Davis had 12 points and four rebounds…

Dion Waiters scored 16 points for the Cavaliers while C.J. Miles added 11.

Rookie Brian Roberts led New Orleans with 17 points, tying a season high. Robin Lopez scored 15 points before fouling out, while Greivis Vasquez added 13…

Hornets guard Eric Gordon didn’t play for precautionary reasons as he continues to recover from knee surgery. He has yet to play on back-to-back nights on orders of the team’s medical staff. Gordon, who is averaging 16.6 points, missed the final game before the All-Star break with a sprained right hand, but scored 20 points Tuesday in a 96-87 loss to Chicago.

– Reported by the Associated Press

As the NBA nears Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline, the Cavaliers remain in pursuit of another first-round pick to add to their bulging war chest of draft picks. With time running out, there is at least a decent chance they don’t get it.

There was little chatter regarding the Cavs during the All-Star break in Houston, and for all the conjecture over Mo Speights’ future, multiple sources said over the weekend and again on Tuesday his name has yet to really gain traction in any trade talk.

Speights would seem a likely candidate to move because he has a player option for next season. Neither Speights nor his agent, Andy Miller, has given any indication if he will pick up the $4.5 million option for next season or opt instead for free agency. But about half of the league’s teams could have cap space next summer, making it likely Speights could get a long-term deal making at least the $4.5 million he will earn next season on his current deal.

“I ain’t looking forward to free agency yet,” Speights said Tuesday.

– Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

In Marreese Speights’ five years in the NBA, the 6-foot-10 forward/center has been on three teams. He has played for four coaches and has been traded twice.

So, whatever happens Thursday at 3 p.m., the NBA’s trade deadline, Speights is ready.

“It’s out of my control,” he said Tuesday. “I’ve heard a lot of things in my career. It’s up to the front office. Whatever they do Thursday, we’ll see what happens.”

The Cavaliers acquired Speights this season to help fill the void created when they lost Anderson Varejao to a quad injury. Speights has been a solid addition from the moment he set foot in Cleveland, averaging 13 points and 6.4 rebounds in 10 games. He’s come off the bench throughout that span, though he’s been solid enough that Byron Scott has had to fend off questions about whether he’ll be moved into the starting lineup in place of up-and-down rookie Tyler Zeller.

– Reported by Jodie Valade of the Cleveland Plain Dealer

Considering the way James left Cleveland in 2010, the idea of him returning less than five years later once seemed preposterous. But while James has shot down every question regarding his future, he has never ruled out a return to Cleveland. In fact, James began attempting to smooth things over with Cleveland last year.

“It would be fun to play in front of these fans again,” James said in February of 2012 before a road game at Cleveland. “I had a lot fun times in my seven years here. … I’m here as a Miami Heat player, and I’m happy where I am now, but I don’t rule that out in no sense.

“And if I decide to come back, hopefully the fans will accept me.”

The Heat will be major contenders to keep James in the summer of 2014 when he can first opt out of his contract, but All-Star Weekend added yet another chapter to the ongoing narrative that James loves the young Cleveland guard’s game.

– Reported by Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald

Kawhi Leonard made a 3-pointer with 2.9 seconds remaining to give the San Antonio Spurs a 96-95 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night.

Leonard’s clutch basket came after Dion Waiters’ jump shot with 9.5 seconds remaining put Cleveland ahead 95-93.

The Spurs, who have won 14 of 15, had stars Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili on the floor together for the first time since Jan. 13.

Kyrie Irving, who was held to a season-low six points, missed a desperation runner from the top of the key as time expired.

Tony Parker led the Spurs with 24 points while Gary Neal scored 15.

Waiters scored 20 points to lead Cleveland, which has dropped three straight after winning a season-high three in a row…

Irving, who rolled his left ankle Monday against Minnesota, was 2 of 15 from the field with seven assists.

Tyler Zeller, who was scoreless in 25 minutes Monday, had 16 points, including 12 in the first half, for Cleveland.

– Reported by the Associated Press

Irving continues to dismiss any advice Scott could offer him on the contest, poking fun at his coach’s third-place finish in 1988. But Irving did get advice from former Cavs sharpshooter Mark Price, who won the event in 1993 and ’94.

“I’m not taking any advice from Coach Scott,” Irving said. “I know I’m a better shooter than Coach Scott. I believe it, he believes it.”

Scott scoffed at Irving when he told him he wanted advice from Price.

“That’s good. Mark Price won a 3-point contest and I have three championship rings,” Scott told him. “So I got the last laugh in that one. He shook his head, he didn’t say nothing after that. So that was the end of that conversation.”

– Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Cavaliers practice on Tuesday was easy on the legs, but hard on the eyes. Instead of a rigorous workout, coach Byron Scott turned the day’s practice into a film session that lasted more than two hours.

There was plenty not to like following Monday’s dismal loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Cavs apparently went through it all frame by frame. After it was over, Scott told his players to forget about it and get ready for the San Antonio Spurs, who will carry the league’s best record into Quicken Loans Arena tonight.

“We’re going to throw this game away and focus on tomorrow,” Scott said. “I said my piece as far as some things guys needed to hear. I also said enough of this talk. You’ve got to start doing what you’re supposed to do every single night. It can’t be three or four games where we come out and play hard, then two or three games where we don’t. If you really are serious about winning and getting better as a team, you’ve got to compete every single night. Pretty simple.”

– Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

All the losses and injuries had been piling up for weeks on the Timberwolves. They were shaken, unsure, almost helpless to stop them.

They were desperate for a break. And finally, they got one.

Luke Ridnour scored 21 points, Ricky Rubio added 13 and 10 assists and Minnesota snapped an eight-game road losing streak, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 100-92 on Monday night.

”We needed that bad, man,” Ridnour said.

He made a critical 3-pointer with 1:43 left and scored 13 points in the fourth quarter for the banged-up Timberwolves, who hadn’t won on the road since Jan. 3 - star center Kevin Love’s last game before he was lost indefinitely with a broken hand.

Nikola Pekovic added 16 points and 10 rebounds as Minnesota ended a four-game losing streak and improved to just 4-16 since losing Love…

Kyrie Irving scored 20 points and Tristan Thompson had 16 for the Cavs, who were within 82-81 in the fourth before Ridnour sparked a 10-2 run by the Timberwolves. Minnesota shot 75 percent (12 of 16) in the fourth quarter, leaving Cleveland swingman C.J. Miles to call out his teammates…

Derrick Williams had 13 points and Mickael Gelabale and Alexey Shved added 11 apiece for the Timberwolves…

Wolves G J.J. Barea played 15 minutes after missing Sunday’s game with a sprained left foot. Minnesota was also without Andrei Kirilenko (strained quad), F Chase Budinger (knee surgery), G Brandon Roy (knee) and G Malcolm Lee (knee, hip surgery).

– Reported by Tom Withers of the Associated Press

The Cavs are expected to offer free agent center Greg Oden a two-year contract with a team option for a third year after the Feb. 21 trade deadline passes, a league source said.  The contract would begin immediately.

The Cavs have about $4 million in cap space, which they are preserving now for potential trades. Teams around the league don’t want to sign Oden until after the trade deadline.

Oden has visited with the Boston Celtics and could meet again with the Cavs in the coming weeks, his agent said Friday.

Oden is living nearby in Columbus. His agent, Mike Conley Sr., said last week Oden has been to see the Cavs a couple of times already, but was evasive when pressed as to what capacity.

“Greg has been up there (to Cleveland) before and he’ll probably be up there again in an official capacity,” Conley said Friday.

– Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Kyrie Irving wasn’t just interested. He was incredible.

With one shot better than his last, Irving scored 35 points, including 13 in the final 2:52, as the Cleveland Cavaliers stunned the Oklahoma City Thunder 115-110 on Saturday.

One night after saying he was ”disinterested” during a loss in Detroit, Irving was simply spectacular down the stretch. He single-handedly closed out one of the NBA’s best teams, making his last five shots and showing why he’s an All-Star at age 20. Irving’s biggest bucket was a 3-pointer with 42 seconds left to make it 113-108.

”He’s a killer,” said newly acquired Cavs forward Marreese Speights, who added 21 points. ”I knew a little about him, I didn’t know THAT.”

Kevin Durant scored 32 points and Russell Westbrook had 28 for the Thunder, who came in 35-11 and with the league’s best road record. Durant left briefly in the third quarter with an injured rib, but returned and scored 13 in the fourth…

Tristan Thompson added 12 rebounds and C.J. Miles scored 16 for the Cavs, who had played poorly in consecutive losses this week to Golden State and Detroit…

Speights, recently acquired in a trade with Memphis, gave the Cavs a huge spark in the fourth, scoring 10 of Cleveland’s 13 points in one stretch. The 6-foot-10 big man has only practiced twice with his new teammates.

– Reported by Tom Withers of the Associated Press

Fort Wayne Mad Ants forward Luke Harangody has been named NBA Development League Player of the Month for games played in January.  The honor is the first of Harangody’s career.

Harangody (6-8, 240, Notre Dame) led Fort Wayne (13-14) to an 8-4 record during January, averaging 18.5 points on 45 percent shooting from the floor, to go with 9.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists.  He scored in double figures in 10 of the 11 games he played in, including five 20-plus point performances, and a season-high 31 points to go with 12 rebounds in a 113-106 loss to the Los Angeles D-Fenders on Jan. 19.  He led the team in scoring six times in January and was the team’s leading rebounder in nine games.

Harangody has appeared in 13 games for Fort Wayne this season, ranking second in the East Division with 13.4 rebounds per game and fifth in the East with 21.4 points per game.  He was named NBA D-League Performer of the Week on Jan. 14.

Fifteen other top NBA D-League prospects were considered for the honor, including Austin’s Cory Joseph, on assignment from the San Antonio Spurs, Bakersfield’s Jerel McNeal, Canton’s Kyle Gibson, Erie’s D.J. Kennedy, Idaho’s Coby Karl, Iowa’s Chris Wright, Los Angeles’ Courtney Fortson, Maine’s DaJuan Summers, Reno’s Walker Russell, Jr., Rio Grande Valley’s Andrew Goudelock, Santa Cruz’s Stefhon Hannah, Springfield’s James Mays, Sioux Falls’ Demetris Nichols, Texas’ Sean Singletary and Tulsa’s Jeremy Lamb, on assignment from the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Tired, short-handed and eager to get home, the Golden State Warriors could have taken the night off.

Instead, they looked like a team that needs to be taken seriously.

Klay Thompson scored a career-high 32 points and the Warriors, playing without three starters and a key reserve, beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 108-95 Tuesday night.

The Warriors were missing guard Stephen Curry (ankle), center Andrew Bogut (ankle) and forward Harrison Barnes (knee). Also, Carl Landry, one of the first players off Golden State’s bench, didn’t play because of a shoulder injury.

In all, the Warriors were missing an average of 49.1 points and 19.5 rebounds, but that didn’t matter. Golden State shot 54 percent, including 11 for 16 on 3-pointers as it hit the first nine from beyond the arc. The Warriors took control in the second quarter and built a 16-point lead in the second half.

”No matter who is out there, we’re still going to play Warriors basketball,” said David Lee, had 20 points and 13 rebounds. ”We could have mailed it in on the last game of a road trip, but everybody stepped up with a bunch of guys out.” …

Jarrett Jack, starting at point guard, had 26 points and 12 assists.

”I had to channel my inner Stephen Curry tonight,” he said.

Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving, who missed the morning shootaround because he was sick, scored 14 points on 5-for-17 shooting in 36 minutes. Irving was coming off the best week of his career when he averaged a league-best 35.7 points in three wins, was selected as a reserve to the Eastern Conference All-Star team, and was named the conference’s player of the week on Monday.

– Reported by the Associated Press

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving and San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker today were named Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, Jan. 21 through Sunday, Jan. 27.

Irving led the league in scoring at 35.7 ppg, guiding the Cavaliers to a 3-0 week. He tallied at least 32 points in all three games, finishing the week with a .612 shooting percentage from the field (41-of-67 field goals) and a .950 shooting percentage from the foul line (19-of-20 free throws). Irving poured in 40 points on 16-of-24 shooting from the field in a 95-90 win over the Boston Celtics on Jan. 22.

Parker led the Spurs to a 4-0 week behind averages of 24.5 points (fourth in the conference) and 9.5 assists (third in the conference). He posted back-to-back point-assist double-doubles on Jan. 23 and 25, in wins over the New Orleans Hornets and Dallas Mavericks. Parker connected on 40-of-66 field goals (.606) on the week, good for eighth best in the West.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Atlanta’s Kyle Korver and Josh Smith, Denver’s Ty Lawson, the Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin, Miami’s LeBron James, Milwaukee’s Ersan Ilyasova, New Orleans’ Ryan Anderson, Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant and Portland’s Nicolas Batum.

Kyrie Irving made a 3-pointer with 0.7 seconds left to give the Cleveland Cavaliers a 99-98 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Saturday night.

Headed to his first All-Star game, Irving added to his credentials by calmly draining a pull-up jumper from the top of the arc to send the Cavaliers to their third straight win.

Irving finished with 32 points and Marreese Speights had 17 for the Cavs. Tristan Thompson scored 14 and Wayne Ellington had 12.

Toronto had five players score in double figures. Amir Johnson had 18 points and 12 rebounds, Alan Anderson scored 17 and Ed Davis finished with 16…

DeMar DeRozan, whose buzzer-beating jump shot gave Toronto a 97-95 victory at Orlando on Thursday, got off to a strong start, making six of his first seven field-goal attempts and scoring 12 points to help the Raptors to a 25-19 lead after one. But DeRozan had just three points the rest of the way…

Cleveland’s Daniel Gibson left at half with a sore right big toe and did not return. … Toronto’s Landry Fields started despite suffering from flulike symptoms. … Cleveland F Luke Walton did not play because of soreness in his left foot and ankle. … The Raptors wore camouflage uniforms to mark Canadian Forces Appreciation Night. More than 500 Canadian Forces members and their families attended the game.

– Reported by Ian Harrison of the Associated Press

Kyrie Irving knows how to celebrate good news.

A little over 24 hours after being selected to the Eastern Conference All-Star team in Houston, the Cavaliers’ dynamic point guard put on a show.

Irving scored 35 points and Cleveland rallied from a 20-point deficit in the third quarter to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks 113-108 on Friday night.

The reigning rookie of the year scored 24 points in the second half, including 16 in the third when the Cavaliers got back in the game. Irving added eight points in the final 4:01 as Cleveland posted back-to-back wins for only the second time this season.

Coming off a 40-point performance against Boston on Tuesday, Irving hit 12 of 17 from the field and made all nine of his free throws. He missed one shot in nine attempts in the second half…

Cleveland, which trailed 79-59 midway through the third quarter, took a 96-95 lead on a 3-pointer by newly acquired Wayne Ellington with 6:31 to play. The basket was his first since joining the Cavaliers from Memphis on Tuesday, and it gave Cleveland the lead for good.

Ersan Ilyasova scored a season-high 30 points and Monta Ellis added 21, but the Bucks’ collapse ended their three-game winning streak. Even hitting a season-high 14 3-pointers in 28 attempts couldn’t save Milwaukee…

Tristan Thompson scored 18 points and Dion Waiters added 16 for the Cavaliers. Livingston scored 12 points. Speights had 10 points and had six rebounds in 18 minutes.

Jennings, who was left off the Eastern Conference All-Star team by coaches picking the reserves, scored 14 points for the Bucks, but was 5 of 19 from the field and was scoreless in the first half. He finished with 12 assists. Sanders had 14 points and 11 rebounds.

– Reported by the Associated Press