The Cleveland Cavaliers have a handful of free agents they hope to re-sign in free agency. LeBron James is all but guaranteed to re-up with the Cavs after opting out of his deal. Fans are hopeful that the same holds true for Kevin Love. Beyond those two stars, Cleveland also has varying levels of interest in retaining fellow free agents J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Matthew Dellavedova and Tristan Thompson.
Actually, scratch Thompson off that list.
ESPN's Brian Windhorts reports that the Cavs and Thompson are close to an agreement that will pay the restricted free agent in excess of $80 million.
ESPN sources tell @WindhorstESPN & I that Cavs and Tristan Thompson are nearing agreement on deal that will pay the RFA in excess of $80 mil
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) July 1, 2015
Wow. It's not that Thompson isn't a good player. He is. He was a crucial part of Cleveland's NBA Finals run, proving to be a dominant rebounder (especially on the offensive end) and a solid one-on-one defender down low. But Thompson is a relatively unskilled offensive player and NBA observers will find it hard to justify paying him a yearly salary between $16-$20 million per year, which will place him in the top five among power forward salaries (I know he plays small ball center some times but he is nominally a power forward).
The actual dollar amount may have more to do with Thompson and James sharing the same agent, Rich Paul, than the former No. 4 overall pick actually being one of the best big men in the league. But I guess when you're two games away from an NBA championship you are willing to overspend.
Click HERE for updates on Cleveland's other free agents.
