The Cleveland Cavaliers reportedly traded guard Jarrett Jack as part of a three-team deal to create salary cap space to sign free agent LeBron James. James, meanwhile, supposedly will meet with Miami Heat president Pat Riley in Las Vegas on Wednesday to discuss free agency.
Cleveland reportedly moved Jack, whose contract earns him $6.3 million in each of the next three seasons, as part of a trade including the Boston Celtics and the Brooklyn Nets. ESPN reported the trade dealt Jack and guard Sergey Karasev to Brooklyn and center Tyler Zeller and a protected 2016 first-round pick to Boston; Boston acquired Nets guard Marcus Thornton, and Cleveland took back the draft rights to Ilkan Karaman and Edin Bavcic.
The trade freed $9.5 million from Cleveland's books, according to ESPN's Tom Penn. In addition to their pursuit of James, Cleveland reportedly could use the extra cap space to pursue free agents Ray Allen or Mike Miller, both of who are friends of James.
James, whose agent purportedly is pushing him to return to Cleveland, is expected to meet with Riley on Wednesday to discuss his future in Miami. Although James's agent has met with at least three teams, James hasn't yet personally met with any prospective teams -- he's purportedly giving Riley time to make roster improvements before he begins entertaining other options.
The reported meeting on Wednesday is believed to be the first face-to-face meeting between Riley and James since the latter opted out of his contract in June.
The four-time MVP called on Miami to upgrade at every position. Riley's biggest moves, so far, include drafting Shabazz Napier, whom James is a fan of, and signing free agents Josh McRoberts and Danny Granger.
Any new deals, including Cleveland's trade, cannot become official until July 10.
