Cleveland Cavaliers Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images
Another year for the Cleveland Cavaliers, another year without tasting the postseason. The LeBron James years are moving further away in the rearview mirror for a franchise that sometimes appears to lack real direction.
The Cavaliers have some promising young players on the roster, but even those studs appear to be in flux, with trade rumors surrounding new stars like Collin Sexton and older stars like Kevin Love. The team could either stay the course this summer or make some wholesale changes.
As with any team in the NBA, the Cavs are facing decisions in terms of their free agents as well. Cleveland has a number of pending unrestricted and restricted free agents who will be seeking new contracts.
Don’t expect Cleveland Cavaliers GM Koby Altman to quietly sit on their hands the next few months as the rebuild continues.
Matthew Dellavedova is the team’s only unrestricted free agent this summer. Jarrett Allen, Jeremiah Martin, and Brodric Thomas are all set to be restricted free agents. Additionally, Isaiah Hartenstein has a player option to decide on.
Despite being one of the worst teams in the league last season, the Cavs could prove to be one of the most interesting come this summer. They’ll surely be looking to move off of some veterans and on the hunt for takers. If they make Sexton available, then all bets are off.
The rebuild following the LeBron James years needs to be further along at this point, or the front office will be in danger soon as well. Don’t expect Cleveland and GM Koby Altman to quietly sit on their hands the next few months.
Here are three players who likely won’t be back in Cleveland next year.
another year</a> without tasting the postseason. The LeBron James years are moving further away in the rearview mirror for a franchise that sometimes appears to lack real direction.</p>
<p>The Cavaliers have some promising young players on the roster, but even those studs appear to be in flux, with trade rumors surrounding new stars like Collin Sexton and older stars like Kevin Love. The team could either stay the course this summer or make some wholesale changes.</p>
<p>As with any team in the NBA, the Cavs are facing decisions in terms of their free agents as well. Cleveland has a number of pending unrestricted and restricted free agents who will be seeking new contracts.</p>
<h2>Don’t expect Cleveland Cavaliers GM Koby Altman to quietly sit on their hands the next few months as the rebuild continues.</h2>
<p>Matthew Dellavedova is the team’s only unrestricted free agent this summer. Jarrett Allen, Jeremiah Martin, and Brodric Thomas are all set to be restricted free agents. Additionally, Isaiah Hartenstein has a player option to decide on.</p>
<p>Despite being one of the worst teams in the league last season, the Cavs could prove to be one of the most interesting come this summer. They’ll surely be looking to move off of some veterans and on the hunt for takers. If they make Sexton available, then all bets are off.</p>
<p>The rebuild following the LeBron James years needs to be further along at this point, or the front office will be in danger soon as well. Don’t expect Cleveland and GM Koby Altman to quietly sit on their hands the next few months.</p>
<p>Here are three players who likely won’t be back in Cleveland next year.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background:#222423" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://hoopshabit.com/2021/07/01/cleveland-cavaliers-return-next-season/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> No. 3 </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:3200px;">Cleveland Cavaliers Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images</p>
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<h2>Cleveland Cavaliers unlikely to return: 3. PF Isaiah Hartenstein</h2>
<p>Not only is Isaiah Hartenstein unlikely to be back, but some reports have already shipped him overseas for next season. He’s suddenly not only unlikely to be back with the Cavs, but unlikely to be back in the NBA at all next year.</p>
<p>The former second-round draft pick was not much of a factor anyways, though he showed signs of development. He played in 46 games this season, including 16 after coming over from the Denver Nuggets. Hartenstein averaged 5.1 points and 3.9 rebounds per game for the year.</p>
<p>He did show improvement after arriving in Cleveland. His scoring soared from 3.5 points to 8.3 points per game and his rebounds made a similar leap, from 2.8 per game to 6.0 per game. But his playing time essentially doubled after the scenery change as well.</p>
<p>Per 36 minutes, Hartenstein was essentially the same player on the boards, only jumping from 11.8 per 36 to 12.0 per 36 in Cleveland. His scoring saw a greater improvement, but still nothing special, from 13.8 points per 36 in Denver to 16.6 points per 36 with the Cavs.</p>
<p>Hartenstein is just 23 years old and could still have an NBA future ahead of him. It just doesn’t look like that future will be next season.</p>
<p>Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com <a href=https://hoopshabit.com/2021/07/01/cleveland-cavaliers-return-next-season/"https://www.cleveland.com/cavs/2021/06/who-will-cleveland-cavaliers-target-in-free-agency-this-offseason-hey-chris.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reports</a> Hartenstein is interested in staying in Cleveland long-term, but is also likely to opt out of his deal and seek more money. Additionally, <a href=https://hoopshabit.com/2021/07/01/cleveland-cavaliers-return-next-season/"https://hoopswire.com/barcelona-sets-sights-on-signing-cavs-isaiah-hartenstein/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hoops Wire</a> reports FC Barcelona may be in hot pursuit. It’s a situation worth monitoring.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background:#222423" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://hoopshabit.com/2021/07/01/cleveland-cavaliers-return-next-season/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> No. 2 </a>
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<h2>Cleveland Cavaliers unlikely to return: 2. PG Matthew Dellavedova</h2>
<p>Matthew Dellavedova will always be a popular figure in Cleveland. He could post up at any bar in the city and be swooned by crowds. But it may be time for his Cavs playing career to come to a close.</p>
<p>Staying healthy was an acute struggle for the Aussie this season. He played in just 13 games and didn’t show much of a scoring touch, averaging just 2.8 points per game while hitting an abysmal 16 percent of his three-pointers. He was still a fine distributor, though, at 4.5 assists per game.</p>
<p>His concussion issues aside, Dellavedova doesn’t provide much long-term upside. The guard is already 30 years old, so he’s probably not getting any better than he is now. This was arguably his worst season, so there’s a decent chance he gets worse from here.</p>
<p>The fact that the grizzled veteran may not be able to stay on the court should be a big concern. He was able to eat minutes when he was healthy last season, but that’s only an effective role when the team is already out of games and trying to rest young players.</p>
<p>But Dellavedova’s struggles to score in a league where points are on the rise is of equal concern. This season was his worst offensively, but he’s never been much of a scorer. The most points he’s ever averaged over a single season in his eight year career is 7.6 points per game. He’s also never hit more than an average of 1.3 three-pointers a game in his career.</p>
<p>If Dellavedova ever decides to go into coaching, he can have a spot on the Cavs bench. As for being a player? It’s time to give that bench seat to a forthcoming draft pick with a higher upside.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background:#222423" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://hoopshabit.com/2021/07/01/cleveland-cavaliers-return-next-season/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> No. 1 </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:3200px;">Cleveland Cavaliers Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images</p>
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<h2>Cleveland Cavaliers unlikely to return: 1. PF Kevin Love</h2>
<p>At some point, the relationship between the Cavs and <a href=https://hoopshabit.com/2021/07/01/cleveland-cavaliers-return-next-season/"https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&utm_source=direct&utm_medium=linker-%22 ref="nofollow">Kevin Love</a> has to end, right? They’ll always have that championship together, but for years, there’s been evidence of a strain between the two sides.</p>
<p>There have been a number of incidents in recent campaigns suggesting the Team USA stalwart was no longer happy in Cleveland. Additionally, he lost his composure during a game against the Raptors in April, leading him to essentially passing the ball to the opposing team in frustration.</p>
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<p>Besides, Love isn’t part of this team’s rebuild. He’ll be 33 years old by the start of the next season and it doesn’t seem likely the Cavs will be contenders before his contract comes up. This past season, Love played in just 35 games, averaging 12.2 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, ranking fifth on the team in scoring average.</p>
<p>After the season, the front office still talked about Love as being part of the team’s future. But it’s the job of a front office to remain diplomatic out in the open while working on something behind the scenes.</p>
<p>There’s some suggestion that a buyout could be in the offing this offseason. There is precedent for that, as the Cavaliers managed to buy out Andre Drummond this season. But Cleveland will probably try to trade Love first.</p>
<p>Trading him won’t be easy. His value is not what it once was around the league. Additionally, he is owned $60 million over the next two seasons, a ludicrous amount for someone with an injury history who likely wouldn’t be a top-three option on most teams. Cleveland may have to attach a young prospect or draft pick to get rid of Love.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, he needs to be moved, one way or another. It should be a goal of the front office to guarantee Love has played his last game in Cleveland.</p>
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