General Manager Danny Ferry's efforts in the trade market have failed so far. There have been rumors of Larry Hughes being on the trading block recently, but executives around the NBA say he's been on the block for two seasons.
March 2007 Cleveland Cavaliers Wiretap
There appears to be no shortage of potential destinations for Miami's Smush Parker, who Pat Riley confirmed has been shopped in trades in recent weeks.
Cleveland, Boston, Houston and Golden State are believed to be among the teams the Heat has talked with regarding a deal. Parker has missed the past 18 games since his Nov. 27 altercation with a female valet attendant at a Miami condo.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have fined Damon Jones an undisclosed sum after the point guard refused to come off the bench for the final minute of their Christmas Day victory over the Miami Heat.
And Jones wasn't alone in his digression, the Cleveland Plain-Dealer reported on Friday. Guard-forward Ira Newble also declined to enter the game at that point saying he wasn't physically ready to play, the newspaper said.
"Regardless on how much time is on the clock, I'm going 100 percent every time I step on the court," Newble said, according to the Plain-Dealer. "Not being loose enough, you could possibly pull something."
Cavs' Coach Mike Brown, speaking before Thursday's game against Dallas, said the issue was an internal matter, and he wouldn't have any additional comment.
There has not been much to say about the Cavaliers, a team that was one of the league's best defensively last season but has lost its way.
Entering Tuesday's game the Cavs were 21st in the NBA in opponent-scoring average (100.9) and 28th in opponent field-goal percentage (46.6).
LeBron James came to the arena early on Tuesday before the game against the Miami Heat and worked up a sweat by shooting basket after basket. James said he came early because it's time for a change.
"Right now it's not looking good for us," James said. "We haven't been that good. It's a long season, and you have time to fix it, but when do you do it? You need to start picking things up, and we have to do that soon."
If the playoffs started today, the Cavs would be left out. There are 53 more games in the regular season, but James said the team doesn't want to put itself in a must-win situation down the stretch.
"You want to win all you can in November, December, January so in March and April if you lose a few games it won't matter as much," James said. "We have to change things around soon."
According to various reports, former Washington Wizard Larry Hughes has been placed on the trading block by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Hughes, who left Washington to sign a five-year deal worth between $65 million and $70 million with Cleveland in the summer of 2005, has struggled to play at the level he displayed with the Wizards during the 2004-05 season.
The Wizards are reportedly among the teams that have been contacted about possible interest in Hughes, but the Wizards have no interest.
LeBron James' helpers showed up on Christmas.
James scored 25 points, Drew Gooden 18, Daniel Gibson 16 and Cleveland's defense arrived in time for the holiday, sparking the struggling Cavaliers to a 96-82 win over the Miami Heat on Tuesday.
Larry Hughes' time with the Cavaliers might be just about over. According to several league sources, the Cavs have contacted several teams about a deal involving the 6-5 guard.
One source said the Washington Wizards are one of those teams, and another source said another team is in the Atlantic Division.
Hughes spent three years with the Wizards before signing a free-agent deal with the Cavs in 2005 worth between $65 million and $70 million.
While the trade deadline is February 21, Hughes may not last until then.
"Hughes will be gone way before then," said one source, who did not want to be identified.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a team in disarray.
A 105-96 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Sunday night was their 10th in 13 games and was met with a chorus of boos from fans of the defending Eastern Conference champions.
The latest loss, in which the Cavaliers never led and trailed by 28 points in the third quarter, was so bad LeBron James left the arena without talking to reporters.
It was also another frustrating night for Cleveland Coach Mike Brown, who has been pleading with his team to play with more intensity.
"In the first and third quarters we came out with no energy at all," he said.
The Cavs have been in contact with the Philadelphia 76ers about point guard Andre Miller.
Cavs General Manager Danny Ferry and Miller were teammates with the Cavs in the 1999-2000 season and have a good relationship.
According to sources, new 76ers General Manager Ed Stefanski has hinted he is willing to trade Miller, perhaps packaged with another player, for expiring contracts and a draft pick. The 76ers are in position to have salary-cap space next summer and may want more. The Cavs have some expiring contracts, but would probably need to put together a multiplayer deal to acquire Miller.
According to Peter Vecsey of the New York Post, the Los Angeles Lakers have a plan to try to acquire Nets star Jason Kidd for a couple draft picks, Kwame Brown's expiring contract ($9M), Jordan Farmar ($1M) and Vladimir Radmanovic ($5.6M with an additional $19.2M over the next three seasons). Not unexpectedly, the Nets aren't interested in assuming Radmanovic's long-term guarantee. There's nothing not to love about Farmar, yet New Jersey already has a promising, young caretaker in Marcus Williams.
According to Vecsey, another source believes the Cavaliers (Drew Gooden) and Mavericks (Erick Dampier) are in better position to provide the Nets with frontcourt help, but neither team nor the Lakers can offer more than the Nuggets - an almost-rehabbed Nene or Marcus Camby vs. Kenyon Martin. Coach George Karl urgently wants Kidd to free Allen Iverson to concentrate exclusively on scoring. Aside from one of the two aforementioned big men, Denver is prepared to kick in Linas Kleiza and JR Smith.