Cleveland Cavaliers Blog – Page 48 – NBA Blog

Melo supports LeBron return to Cavs

Here’s ESPN New York reporting Carmelo Anthony’s thoughts on LeBron James’ return to Cleveland:

Melo says return to Cavs was great move for LeBron

Anthony supports his buddy LeBron James’ move to the Cavs.

“I applaud him. I applaud him. I thought it was a great move for him,” Anthony said. “That’s not to take nothing away from what he’s already established and created down in Miami, but for him to go back home at this point in his career, you can’t ask for nothing better than that.”

Anthony didn’t want to talk much about the team James formed in Cleveland with Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving. The Knicks play the Cavs in Cleveland on the second game of the season — James’ first game back in his hometown.

“We’ll see them when we play them,” Anthony said. “They’re not on my radar right now. Don’t take that the wrong way. But they’re not on my radar. I’m focusing on one game at a time. When we play them the second game of the season, we’ll be ready.”

Adam Silver has no problem with LeBron return to Cleveland

Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting some insight from NBA commissioner Adam Silver:

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver isn’t denying Miami as a sexy market, but in his recent interview with Bloomberg Television he clearly did not have an issue with LeBron James’ return to the Cleveland Cavaliers, citing NFL-style parity. “And so we want to build to be at that same point where 30 teams are all competing for championships,” he said in the wake of the Heat’s four consecutive trips to the NBA Finals. “If, for example, in the NFL, when Green Bay’s playing Pittsburgh, the reaction isn’t, oh, that ‘they’re small markets,’ it’s that, ‘they’re storied franchises,’ ” he said. “And I think we’re beginning to see that in the league with teams like Oklahoma City, with the San Antonio Spurs, now, with the return of LeBron to Cleveland. And that’s what you want if you’re a commissioner. You want all of your teams to be competitive and you want them ultimately to succeed based on management, not who’s got the deepest pocket or what market is the most attractive.” Of course, it’s one thing for LeBron to return home to Cleveland, another for a top-tier free agent to aggressively pursue a future in Sacramento, Utah or Milwaukee.

Interesting PG options for Team USA

Here’s ESPN.com with an update on Team USA, who play an exhibition game Tuesday:

Kyrie Irving likely starting at PG Tuesday for Team USA

Kyrie Irving will start opposite Goran Dragic at point guard Tuesday night when Team USA plays Slovenia in its final tuneup game leading into the FIBA World Cup.

But Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski, in tabbing Irving as his starter against the Dragic-led Slovenians, told ESPN.com that one option under consideration is letting Irving and Derrick Rose trade off as the starter throughout the tournament, which opens Saturday in Bilbao with the Yanks facing Finland.

“We’ll see as thing goes on,” Krzyzewski said after Monday’s two-hour practice. “We might alternate ’em. Both of them are going to play significant minutes.”

Krzyzewski says he can also envision Irving and Rose playing together once the tournament starts as Rose continues to acclimate himself to full-speed basketball after two major knee injuries limited him to just 10 games over the past two seasons with the Chicago Bulls.

Cleveland Cavaliers sign rookie forward Dwight Powell

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed forward Dwight Powell, the 45th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Powell played four years at Stanford, appearing in 136 games (105 starts) with averages of 10.8 points and 6.3 rebounds in 26.2 minutes per game. The 6-11, 240-pound forward from Ontario, Canada is a two-time First Team All-Pac 12 selection. He averaged 14.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals during his senior season and was the Pac 12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Powell also played for Canada in the World University Games in the summer of 2013.

During the 2014 Samsung NBA Summer in Las Vegas, Powell appeared in three games (one start) for the Cavaliers and averaged 5.0 points and 3.7 rebounds in 11.3 minutes per game. He was originally acquired along with center Brendan Haywood in a trade with the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for guard Scotty Hopson and cash considerations on July 12, 2014.

Cavs hire Jim Boylan, Bret Brielmaier, Larry Drew, James Posey as assistant coaches

The Cavaliers have finalized their coaching staff and named Jim Boylan, Bret Brielmaier, Larry Drew and James Posey as assistant coaches on head coach David Blatt’s staff, Cavs General Manager David Griffin and Blatt announced today. They join Tyronn Lue, who was named associate head coach earlier this summer. Phil Handy will also serve as Director of Player Development and Assistant Coach, along with Vitaly Potapenko, who has been tabbed to continue as the team’s Assistant Director of Player Development.

Boylan joins Blatt’s staff after serving as an assistant for the Cavaliers during their 2013-14 campaign. Prior to joining the Cavaliers, he spent five seasons as the lead assistant coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, with the last 50 games of the 2012-13 season as the interim head coach. Boylan began his NBA coaching career with the Cavaliers as an assistant in 1992 under Lenny Wilkins and has since worked as an assistant with Chicago, Vancouver, Phoenix and Atlanta.

Brielmaier returns for his second season in Cleveland, having joined the team last July for the 2013-14 campaign. Prior to last year, Brielmaier spent four seasons in San Antonio, most recently as the team’s video coordinator. A graduate of the University of Arizona, he played four years for the Wildcats before starting his coaching career as the undergraduate assistant in 2008. In 2009, he joined the staff of the Spurs as a player development assistant and later promoted to video coordinator.

Drew joins the staff after one season as head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. Prior to his stint with the Bucks, he spent three seasons as head coach of the Atlanta Hawks, leading them to postseason appearances in each of those seasons. A first round selection by Detroit in the 1980 NBA Draft, Drew appeared in 714 career NBA games with averages of 11.4 points and 5.2 assists with the Pistons, Kansas City/Sacramento, L.A. Clipper and L.A. Lakers. The Kansas City native began his coaching career in 1992 and has served as an assistant coach with the Lakers, Pistons, Washington Wizards, New Jersey Nets and Hawks.

Posey joins the coaching staff after a successful first season as an assistant coach for the Cavaliers D-League affiliate, the Canton Charge. Posey, a 12-year NBA veteran, appeared in 864 career games with averages of 8.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 steals with the Nuggets, Houston, Memphis, Miami, Boston, New Orleans and Indiana. The Twinsburg, OH native also won two NBA Championships as a player with Miami (2005-06) and Boston (2007-08).

Handy returns to the staff after holding a similar role with the team last season. He joined the Cavaliers in 2013 after a two-year stint with the Lakers (2011-13). Prior to that, Handy spent five years as an AAU coach in Northern California. Over a 13-year period, he operated his own professional basketball training business, servicing NBA, European, college and many of the top-ranked high school players in the state. A former University of Hawaii basketball standout, Handy spent time in the NBA with Golden State and Portland, along with eight-years of playing experience overseas in Israel, France, England, Germany, Italy and Australia.

Potapenko returns to the staff as the Assistant Director of Player Development. Prior to joining the Cavs in July 2013, he spent the previous year as an assistant coach with the Santa Cruz Warriors of the D- League. That season, his team posted a 32-18 record en-route to their first NBADL Finals appearance. Potapenko was selected 12th overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1996 NBA Draft and spent his first three seasons with the team. Potapenko went on to have an 11-year NBA career with the Cavaliers, Celtics, Seattle SuperSonics and Kings, with averages of 6.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.

Shawn Marion to reportedly join Cavs

Where LeBron James goes, other players wouldn’t mind going as well. That LeBron will be playing with Kyrie Irving, and possibly Kevin Love as well should a trade go through, certainly helps as well. Here’s ESPN.com reporting:

Free-agent forward Shawn Marion has committed to sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers, according to league sources.

Sources told ESPN.com that Marion informed the Cavaliers this weekend that he intends to sign with them this month despite the fact that Cleveland can only offer him a minimum deal.

The chance to play with LeBron James and immediately compete for a championship, sources said, clinched Marion’s decision to choose Cleveland in the face of a ramped-up pursuit by the Indiana Pacers.

As ESPN.com reported earlier this week, Pacers president Larry Bird invited Marion to Indianapolis earlier this week for a face-to-face recruiting pitch over dinner, with Indiana in desperate need of veteran help on the wing after the season-ending compound leg fracture suffered by star swingman Paul George on Aug. 1.

Cavaliers sign center Alex Kirk

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed free agent center Alex Kirk, Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

An early entry candidate, the 7-0, 245-pound center went undrafted in the 2014 NBA Draft after appearing in 101 games (86 starts) over three seasons at the University of New Mexico. He averaged 10.0 points on .488 shooting, 6.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 25.3 minutes per game over his collegiate career, where he was also a two-time All-MWC Defensive Team selection. Last season, he averaged 13.3 points on .490 shooting from the field, 8.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in 32.0 minutes per game, while receiving his second All-MWC Defensive Team honor.

During the 2014 Samsung NBA Summer in Las Vegas, Kirk played five games for the Cavaliers Summer League team entry and averaged 5.2 points on .524 shooting and 3.4 rebounds in 15.4 minutes per game.

Eventual Kevin Love to Cavs trade will reportedly involve 76ers

Here’s the Philadelphia Daily News with an update on what the expected Kevin Love trade may wind up looking like:

While news came out yesterday that Minnesota and Cleveland had agreed in principle to a trade that will send All-Star Kevin Love to the Cavaliers for Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and a first-round draft pick, the Daily News has learned that the Sixers will, indeed, be involved in the deal.

A source informed the Daily News that the Sixers will be sending veteran forward Thaddeus Young to Minnesota for a package that will include Bennett, the No. 1 pick in the 2013 NBA draft.

The deal, which two sources have confirmed to the Associated Press, will not be official until Aug. 23, when Wiggins, this year’s No. 1 draft pick, becomes eligible to be traded.

A Kevin Love to Cavs trade is expected

Here’s Yahoo Sports with the latest on the Cavaliers and Timberwolves:

The Minnesota Timberwolves have reached an agreement in principle to send All-Star forward Kevin Love to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and a protected 2015 first-round draft pick, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

Cleveland is making the deal with Minnesota with a firm agreement Love will opt out of his contract in 2015 and re-sign with the Cavaliers on a five-year, $120 million-plus contract extension, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The deal cannot be finalized until Aug. 23, because Wiggins, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft, cannot be traded until one month after the signing of his rookie contract. The two teams have agreed to the deal, but neither would have recourse if the other decided to pull out of the arrangement before it can be formally completed this month. No third team is involved in the Cavaliers-Timberwolves trade agreement.

Kevin Durant liked the way LeBron James announced Cavs return

Here’s ESPN.com reporting Kevin Durant’s reaction to news from earlier in July that LeBron James was taking his talented back to the Cleveland Cavaliers:

Kevin Durant made a point not to ask his friend LeBron James any questions. He gets enough of those already. And besides, James answered just about every question of him with the letter he penned in Sports Illustrated which explained his decision to leave the Miami Heat and come home to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

But Durant did reach out to congratulate James soon after he announced his decision.

“I thought it was well-thought-out. It was classy. It was a great move to do it as a letter,” Durant said Tuesday, after a training camp session with USA Basketball. “That was pretty cool. It’s funny seeing guys think about more than just basketball for once. He thought about the city where he comes from, about Northeast Ohio and how he can affect so many of the kids just being there playing basketball. I love that. So many guys get criticized for making the decision that’s best for them instead of what’s best for everybody else. He’s a guy that did that. You gotta respect that. I applauded him, I texted him and told him congratulations on the decision and told him I was happy for him. As a fan of the game, it’s going to be pretty cool to see him back in Cleveland.”