Category: Cleveland Cavaliers Blog

Semih Erden is returning to Turkey to play with Anadolu Efes of the Euroleague, the team’s website reported Tuesday. The Cavs did not confirm the report.

Erden, 25, signed a two-year deal with a team option for a third year. He spent two injury-plagued seasons in Cleveland, averaging 3.5 points and 2.6 rebounds in 28 games (nine starts) last season. Coach Byron Scott had high hopes for Erden, but they went relatively unmet.

Scott criticized Erden multiple times last season for not playing hard enough and not giving a strong enough effort. When he was traded from the Boston Celtics to the Cavs two years ago, Erden emphatically denied rumors that he was homesick and wanted to return to Turkey.

— Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

The Cleveland Cavaliers have waived guard Manny Harris, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Harris, 22, averaged 6.7 points on .400 shooting, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 17.5 minutes per game in 26 games (five starts) during the 2011-12 season and has career averages of 6.2 points on .383 shooting, 2.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 17.3 minutes per game in 80 games (20 starts).

The Cleveland Cavaliers have extended qualifying offers to center Semih Erden, guard/forward Alonzo Gee and forward Luke Harangody, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

By extending qualifying offers to each player prior to June 30, Cleveland owns the right to match any offer sheet they may sign with another team.

Erden, 25, averaged 3.5 points on .527 shooting and 2.6 rebounds in 11.9 minutes per game in 28 games (nine starts) during the 2011-12 season. Gee, 25, averaged career highs in points (10.6), rebounds (5.1), assists (1.8) and steals (1.3) in 29.0 minutes per game in 63 games (31 starts) this season. Harangody, 24, averaged 2.9 points and 2.5 rebounds in 11.0 minutes per game in 21 games (one start).

The Cleveland Cavaliers selected guard Dion Waiters with the fourth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft and acquired the draft rights  to forward/center Tyler Zeller, the 17th overall pick, and guard/forward Kelenna Azubuike from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for the 24th, 33rd and 34th overall picks of the 2012 NBA Draft.

“We knew we needed to add scoring and more playmaking and we were able to do that with Dion,” said Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant. “He’s an aggressive, athletic, explosive player that is a great fit for our team. We also knew we needed another big man that can shoot, rebound, defend and get up and down the court with our style of play. We were able to do that with Tyler and we feel he is also a great fit for our team.”

Waiters, 20, was named the Big East Sixth Man of the Year and earned Third Team All-Big East honors after averaging 12.6 points on .476 shooting, 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 24.1 minutes per game and leading Syracuse to a 34-3 record and spot in the Elite 8 this season. The 6-foot-4, 221-pound guard also led the Orange in steals (1.8) and scored in double figures in 26 of the 37 games he played in as a sophomore. He scored a career-high 28 points on 8-16 (.500) shooting, including shooting 7-10 (.700) from three-point range,  in 32 minutes against Cincinnati in the Big East Tournament. He also tallied 19 points, five rebounds, four assists and a career-best six steals in 21 minutes versus George Washington on Dec. 10. As a freshman, he averaged 6.6 points on .411 shooting, 1.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 16.3 minutes in 34 games.

Zeller, 22,  earned ACC Player of the Year honors as a senior in 2011-12, becoming the first UNC senior to do so since 1978 (Phil Ford). The 7-foot, 250-pound forward/center also earned AP Second Team All-American honors and was named a finalist for the John R. Wooden Award, which celebrates the most outstanding player in college basketball. In 38 games (all starts), he averaged 16.3 points on .553 shooting, 9.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 28.2 minutes per game, helping the Tarheels reach the Elite 8. During ACC play, he led the conference in field goal percentage (.569) and offensive rebounds (4.0) while ranking second in rebounding (9.7) and third in scoring (18.5). Zeller recorded 14 double-doubles in his senior season and reached double figures in scoring on 32 occasions, including topping 20 or more points 11 times.  He scored a season-best 31 points on 11-15 shooting (.733) and added 10 rebounds against Appalachian State on Dec. 17 and also put up 30 points, including making 20-23 (.870) free throws, eight rebounds and three blocks versus Maryland on Feb. 29.

As a senior, Zeller became only the third ACC player to win Academic All-America of Year honors (Shane Battier, 2001; Todd Fuller, 1996). He also won the Skip Prosser Award in 2011 and 2012 as the ACC’s top scholar-athlete in men’s basketball and was a four-time Academic All-ACC selection. He finished his career at UNC with averages of 12.8 points on .542 shooting from the field and .777 from the free throw line, 6.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 23.1 minutes per game in 117 games (75 starts) and was a member of the Tarheels’ 2009 National Championship Team.

Azubuike, 28, has career averages of 10.5 points on .459 shooting from the field and .409 shooting from the three-point line, 4.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 24.2 minutes per game in 208 games (83 starts).

Ohio State Buckeyes big man Jared Sullinger has been medically red flagged by NBA doctors, multiple league sources told ESPN.com on Monday.

Sullinger, who is projected to be a lottery pick in the 2012 NBA draft, underwent a series of medical tests at the NBA draft combine a week ago. According to sources, the doctors who looked at Sullinger were concerned with Sullinger’s back.

A number of NBA team doctors have reviewed the information from the NBA and have told their front office staff that Sullinger’s back issues could shorten his NBA career and some have advised their teams not to draft him in the first round.

Sullinger’s agent, David Falk, when reached via phone by ESPN.com said that he was not in a position to comment on the story.

Sullinger’s father, Satch Sullinger, said he believes the issue isn’t that serious.

— Reported by Chad Ford of ESPN.com

Ever since middle school, Jared Sullinger has heard the same criticisms about his game: Too fat, too slow, too short, can’t jump, no foot speed and on and on and on. Now that he’s hearing all about it again at the NBA combine, Sullinger has had enough.

“Everybody is overanalyzing my game,” he said. “I’m always the bad guy in every gym. Everybody says I can’t do this or that, everybody points out all the negative things I do. There’s a lot of positives I think I do, but that’s not for me to discuss.”

Sullinger met Thursday night with the Cavaliers, who brought General Manager Chris Grant, assistant GMs Michael Blackstone and David Griffin, scouting director Trent Redden, pro player personnel director Wes Wilcox and recent front-office addition Zydrunas Ilgauskas to Chicago for the combine. He also met with representatives from the Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns, Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks. Sullinger said he wasn’t sure where he was headed for workouts or who was on the list, but he is sure he’ll succeed in the NBA despite all the criticisms. He is projected to go anywhere from seventh to the middle of the first round, which is lower than he would have gone last season in a draft that wasn’t nearly as deep.

— Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal