The Cleveland Cavaliers signed LeBron James to a three-year deal Thursday to make his comeback to OH official but they have one free agent left to deal with as J.R. Smith still has no contract in the current 2016 offseason.
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An NBA Finals rematch between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors is the centerpiece of the five-game Christmas Day slate, the league announced Thursday as it revealed the schedule for the 2016-17 season.
After previously signing with the Cavaliers through next summer, his contract has been revised and he’ll be playing for his hometown team for the next three years. “His leadership, passion and tireless commitment are the hallmarks of our success and have inspired our entire franchise”, he said. Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are the only other two players to exceed the $30 million mark.
For the past two seasons, James negotiated one year contracts from the Cavs with player options.
The person says James, who recently led the Cavs to an National Basketball Association title – the first for a Cleveland sports team in 52 years – will soon sign the deal.
All this was revealed by his agent Rich Paul to ESPN where the third year is believed to be a player option for the “King”. We all know a year ago as a magical, inspiring- all the words you can come with-it was an unbelievable season. Because the Cavs are up against the salary cap, and because they don’t possess James’s full Bird Rights, they are constrained in the size of a raise they can give him. “I’m really excited about moving forward with this group of guys and continuing to play in front of the best fans in the world”.
While he was at it, LeBron also used the opportunity to remind the Cavaliers that J.R. Smith is still a free agent and in need of a deal, so we can probably assume Smith will be next once he’s done honeymooning in Amsterdam.
J.R. Smith was an integral part of the Cavs’ championship run, and it’s a near-certainty that he will be back with the team in the fall.
The Cavs rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the finals to stun Golden State, winning Game 7 on the road.
So the only real question besides when James would officially re-sign was how long the contract would be.
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James averaged 25.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists in 76 games last season.
