Cavaliers agree to 5-year, $82M contract with RFA Tristan Thompson

[RonSwanson]

It's ironic how if all goes well for the Cavs and everyone stays healthy, then this contract will look for worse for the Cavs as TT will not get lots of minutes. So basically, this is the most expensive insurance policy ever in form of a player's contract. I can't recall last time a that a backup was signed to such a huge deal.

Explain why you think Thompson will suddenly see a decrease in minutes? The term "backup" is 100% meaningless when discussing TT and the roll he plays.

[Scalabrine]

No way they give up Mozgov after sending two 1st round picks, they value him highly..

The cavs will be pushing hard to move Andy in the offseason. That will clear about 10M off their cap next year. Then they will give moz around 18M. So it's not too crazy.

It's crazy to think some team would trade for Andy. True.

If Andy could just stay healthy he is a more impactful player than Thompson.

This contract is absolutely crazy. Hopefully he can improve more, hes still pretty young, but even if he does, where are the minutes?

Love is gonna get at least 30. Probably more like 34. Andy will probably get 10-15. Moz will get 26-30. LeBron will play there in small ball lineups so he will probably play 10-14 at PF to.

Realistically he will only be play 20-24 minutes per game tops when the whole team is healthy.

[BinkyBonk]

Rich Paul lost already kids. He threatened to take the QO if there was no max offer from CLE; CLE called his bluff, TT ended up taking his original offer. An offer that any agent could have gotten from a win-now CLE team that was over the cap already and needed to appease Lebron.

Other teams negotiating with Paul know that he won't follow through with the QO. For all the praise he got for Bledsoe's contract . . . he also demanded the max, get. His other client, Kevin Seraphim, straight up lost money.

Paul's a **** joke, claiming to push around the Cavs around when you "represent" Lebron and failing to get what you're demanding is a failure.

Can't wait for a Lebron injury to see this overpaid collection of losers fall apart. Enjoy your $82M backup PF!

Are you really so jealous that you would wish personal injury on someone because another player makes more money than you personally think he's "worth"? Why are you so upset it's not coming out of your pocket? This is capitalism at work enjoy.

[RonSwanson]

The cavs will be pushing hard to move Andy in the offseason. That will clear about 10M off their cap next year. Then they will give moz around 18M. So it's not too crazy.

It's crazy to think some team would trade for Andy. True.

If Andy could just stay healthy he is a more impactful player than Thompson.

This contract is absolutely crazy. Hopefully he can improve more, hes still pretty young, but even if he does, where are the minutes?

Love is gonna get at least 30. Probably more like 34. Andy will probably get 10-15. Moz will get 26-30. LeBron will play there in small ball lineups so he will probably play 10-14 at PF to.

Realistically he will only be play 20-24 minutes per game tops when the whole team is healthy.

Thompson will be the Cavs first big off the bench and will get 30 minutes a night give or take a few. LeBron won't be listed as the four, but in certain sets, he will play with his back to the basket with Love spreading the floor. He won't spend that much time at the four when the team is healthy. That doesn't mean he won't go in the post, but it will be with floor spacers like Love. Andy isn't going to get loads and loads of playing time. Mozgov will play 25 minutes per game, like he did a season ago.

It's not about finding TT minutes. It's about finding Varejao minutes. Also, Mozgov's knee is still bothering him, which means they will probably limit his minutes as much as possible.

[Mr Loggins]

I wonder if CLE realizes that their $82 mil rebounding specialist TT was 32nd in rebs/48min during the reg season and 34th in rebs/48min during the postseason

You should forward this info to the Hawks and Warriors....those teams kept double teaming TT on the offensive glass for no reason, apparently

[Neutral 123]

How many guys would you put over him? I agree he's not Deandre or Dwight, but there's few guys out there I'd take over him battling on the boards.

I know it's counter-intuitive because he sometimes looks like a truly great rebounder, but there's years worth of numbers and observations backing up that he's not near the level you think he is. In the playoffs, he was outrebounded by guys like Draymond, Gasol, Duncan, etc--guys who aren't super rebounders (at lost not anymore for the last two). And per minute he pulled down substantially fewer boards than guys like Drew Gooden, David Lee, Bogut, Tyson Chandler, etc. Per minute he was 36th in last year's playoffs, 11th among starting players.

Elite rebounders like D12 and DeAndre aren't just a little better than him--they pulled down almost 25% more rebounds than him. That blows his #s out of the water, and comparing him to them is like comparing Diaw or Batum or some other mediocre rebounder to him. He could certainly get better but right now he's just an offensive rebounding specialist, isn't good at D rebs despite years of coaches working with him.

Well look, I haven't dug into the stats, so I'm basing my opinion on the eye test. With that said, I'm a big believer in the idea that especially come playoff time that matchups matter, and that he's shown that he can win matchups on the boards. He also impressed me with his pick and roll D, and ability to hold his own when switched off on smaller guards. I just don't have that level of confidence in Love in either department. I don't think anyone will look at this as a value contract at any point, but I expect him to really show his value in the playoffs again, and be a substantial difference maker. Given some of the other contracts out here, I am surprised at how negative some are of the deal as well. We'll see though.

[Neutral 123]

The cavs will be pushing hard to move Andy in the offseason. That will clear about 10M off their cap next year. Then they will give moz around 18M. So it's not too crazy.

It's crazy to think some team would trade for Andy. True.

If Andy could just stay healthy he is a more impactful player than Thompson.

This contract is absolutely crazy. Hopefully he can improve more, hes still pretty young, but even if he does, where are the minutes?

Love is gonna get at least 30. Probably more like 34. Andy will probably get 10-15. Moz will get 26-30. LeBron will play there in small ball lineups so he will probably play 10-14 at PF to.

Realistically he will only be play 20-24 minutes per game tops when the whole team is healthy.

Maybe regular season. I don't see Andy giving them the toughness they'd need and want in the post season. Andy would obviously be the odd man out.

[KingFox]

lol this contract is disgusting tbh

[Daddy 801]

Idiots.


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[WIN]

Is this real life???????

[WesleyExChiFan]

Atleast the Cavs possibly have the best front court in the NBA now.

Lebron
Love
Mozgov
AV
TT
Kaun
Jefferson
Jones

They 100% do.

[likashing]

Atleast the Cavs possibly have the best front court in the NBA now.

Lebron
Love
Mozgov
AV
TT
Kaun
Jefferson
Jones

They 100% do.

Unfortunately you can only have 5 players and maybe 2-3 front court players on the floor

[jbk1234]

LOL at "insane conspiracy theories." Paul tried to hold out LBJ until TT was signed and LBJ told him to forget about it. LBJ was out there telling everyone in the media that TT was extremely important, should be a Cavalier for life, etc... If Paul is like you and think TT got that money just because he's a good negotiator than I worry about his future clients.

you gotta love this kind of inside info right here ......with these kinds of quality sources tapping into the conversations between Lebron and Rich you should be working for ESPN Yahoo SI....Something! ....what are you doing on a message board??

Moratorium ended July 9 ..... Lebron Signs Contract July 10 ..... yet "he was trying to hold out" .... awww man ... what would a message board be without the tin hat theories

who cares about what your worries are .... his clients get paid ...simple ...plain... not really much else to talk about

Paul got Bledsoe $70 million over five years which was his market value. If he had signed the Q.O., he probably would have gotten $70 million over 4 years from a team like the Jazz this summer. Amir Johnson got $12 million per over two years and I'm not even sure that second year is guaranteed.

Bledsoes market value was 4/70 according to who?? let me give you a hint .... (there weren't many people posting on this board,in the media or hell even his own gm who thought that) ..... people were going on and on and on and on about him being stupid for not taking the 4/48 deal ... saying how he wouldn't get the extra money...Paul is stupid for holding him out...blah blah blah ... etc etc etc .... im not going to sit here and play this convenient amnesia game with you

...Although the Suns initial offer to Bledsoe which was reported to be 4 years and $48 million was thought to be fair market value by most NBA analysts, bloggers, and columnists, Bledsoe and his agent, Rich Paul, were pushing for the full max deal of 5 years and over $80 million.

http://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2014/9/24/6839147/phoenix-suns-sign-eric-bledsoe-to

^^^^straight from the suns blog ....... lol @ "he just got bledsoe market value" ... and who in the hell would want to play a lame duck season under the QO .... do you think its a coincidence why you RARELY if ever see players take that risk? Paul GOT that kid his money & he didn't have to wait or risk a lame duck season to prove he was worth it ... THAT is what you call quality negotiating

Amir Johnson is getting 17% of his teams salary cap ... over the duration of TT's contract it averages 17% of the cavs projected salary cap (it actually decreases each year with the cap going up) .... it is very simular nearly the same money ..... why do we have to continue to go over the fact that the cap going up alters the value of these new contracts with you people .... its just tiring .....every single time ... its the same thing[/quote]

Let's take this in reverse - in no universe is $12 million guaranteed similar to $82 million guaranteed.

The Wolves offered Bledsoe $63 million over four years but the Suns turned down the S&T offer.

Haynes, who reports for Plain Dealer and serves as Paul's mouth piece, had multiple articles that LBJ would not sign until TT did between July 1st and July 10th. http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2015/07/tristan_thompson_4.html

[yoyoboy]

Atleast the Cavs possibly have the best front court in the NBA now.

Lebron
Love
Mozgov
AV
TT
Kaun
Jefferson
Jones

They 100% do.

Unfortunately you can only have 5 players and maybe 2-3 front court players on the floor

Ok?

[nolunch]

Stupid Cavs. They will regret soon.

[AustinPowers]

This contract is 5 years. Who cares if Varejao takes 10-15 minutes of TT's playing time this year? (debateable) In years 2-5 Varejao will either be an irrelevant end of the bench towel waver or not on the team.

Also, "locking up" Mozgov "at the max" is not some forgone conclusion. That is a decision for a different day. There could just as easily be another 7ft energy/defensive 25 minute C available that doesn't cost $16M+/yr. Who? Why don't you go into Griffin's office and check out his whiteboard that has contigency scenarios planned out for 5 years, like any decent GM does?

The Cavs kept a good player at a premium price. Big deal. Bovada will have them at 6/1 or better for the next 2-3 years.

Signed, a neutral

[JDizzel3000]

Let's take this in reverse - in no universe is $12 million guaranteed similar to $82 million guaranteed.

The length of the contract is obviously not the same ...I never said it was .. Why you are brining this up seems strange as I clearly made reference to TT annual % of cap obligation relative to players who have also signed recently

When the cap increases ...the raw dollar amount given to players will follow ...this is why you can use %'s to gain a clear perspective on how relatively similar a salary is even though the deals may have been done at different times

The Wolves offered Bledsoe $63 million over four years but the Suns turned down the S&T offer.

All your proving is how savy Paul was in the negotiations with the Suns ...that wolves deal came far AFTER he advised his client to reject the 4/48 million dollar Suns contract ...Paul was the one who set the market for his client ...this is why the wolves offer was $15million dollars more than what the Suns intially offered ...after all ...who do you think negotiated that wolves offer sheet my guy?

What that did was force the Suns to up their offer

I.E. a job well done

Haynes, who reports for Plain Dealer and serves as Paul's mouth piece, had multiple articles that LBJ would not sign until TT did between July 1st and July 10th. http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2015/07/tristan_thompson_4.html

Buuuuuuut he did sign...... So you are relying on an individual who unfortunately delivered you empirically incorrect information ....I wouldn't do that if I were you ....it doesn't make your attempted point look all that thought out .....maybe you guys both share the same tin foil hat


Anyways ...the FACT of the matter is this ...LEBRON SIGNED BEFORE TT'S CONTRACT HAD A RESOLUTION ....these are the facts ....not some cosmopolitan gossip article ...and like I said before if the guy was a unrestricted free agent and able to hit the open market he would have gotten similar money based on players of his relative caliber doing just that this summer ...so the lebron appeasing factor is largely nothing more than chat board banter if we're being sensible here ..the guy is young and proved himself on the biggest stage ..he didn't need lebron to get a payday with those things working in his favor

[GreatWhiteStiff]

We're going to be looking at average starters getting about $15 million per in the new money landscape. Thompson is probably an above average starter on most teams. It's worth it to the Cavs to keep the asset and they probably need him to win a title anyway.

Raptors paid a third string guy like 7 plus to play for them, (and plenty of raptor "realgms" seem to actually like the deal). I mean ok, maybe he's overpaid but Tristan Thompson simply has to be worth well over 12 million in todays nba.

[bb22]

How many guys would you put over him? I agree he's not Deandre or Dwight, but there's few guys out there I'd take over him battling on the boards.

I know it's counter-intuitive because he sometimes looks like a truly great rebounder, but there's years worth of numbers and observations backing up that he's not near the level you think he is. In the playoffs, he was outrebounded by guys like Draymond, Gasol, Duncan, etc--guys who aren't super rebounders (at lost not anymore for the last two). And per minute he pulled down substantially fewer boards than guys like Drew Gooden, David Lee, Bogut, Tyson Chandler, etc. Per minute he was 36th in last year's playoffs, 11th among starting players.

Elite rebounders like D12 and DeAndre aren't just a little better than him--they pulled down almost 25% more rebounds than him. That blows his #s out of the water, and comparing him to them is like comparing Diaw or Batum or some other mediocre rebounder to him. He could certainly get better but right now he's just an offensive rebounding specialist, isn't good at D rebs despite years of coaches working with him.

Well look, I haven't dug into the stats, so I'm basing my opinion on the eye test. With that said, I'm a big believer in the idea that especially come playoff time that matchups matter, and that he's shown that he can win matchups on the boards. He also impressed me with his pick and roll D, and ability to hold his own when switched off on smaller guards. I just don't have that level of confidence in Love in either department. I don't think anyone will look at this as a value contract at any point, but I expect him to really show his value in the playoffs again, and be a substantial difference maker. Given some of the other contracts out here, I am surprised at how negative some are of the deal as well. We'll see though.

Exactly right. And as for the rebounding, Cleveland has more than a few elite rebounders, which impacts his D Rbs. LeBron, Moz, Love, TT can all grab 10+ rpg. I think TT's impact cant be measured statistically. Yes he's getting paid a lot for his role, but that's Gilberts decision.

[J-Ves]

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