The Cavaliers participated in the first trade of the 2019-20 NBA season when they sent Jordan Clarkson to Utah last week, and they likely aren’t done dealing. There’s a widespread belief that Cleveland is willing to sell off more veterans for draft picks and young assets, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, who hears from sources that Tristan Thompson is drawing interest from playoff contenders around the NBA.
Thompson, 28, is having arguably his best season as a pro so far in 2019-20, averaging 12.8 PPG, 10.1 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.0 BPG and a .503 FG% through 31 games (31.4 MPG). He has also helped anchor the Cavs’ defense and has been a leader in the locker room.
While Thompson would certainly appeal to contenders, his $18.5M+ expiring contract won’t necessarily be easy to move. Many clubs with title aspirations don’t have the contracts necessary to match that salary in a trade, which will limit Cleveland’s options.
While a deal remains possible, both the Cavaliers and Thompson are considering the possibility of continuing their relationship beyond this season. According to Fedor, Thompson said on Monday that it’d be “cool” to finish his career in Cleveland. Meanwhile, the Cavs have had internal conversations about re-signing the big man and would be open to an extension, sources tell Fedor. However, there’s a belief that agent Rich Paul would prefer to see his client reach free agency in 2020.
For now, Thompson is letting Paul and the Cavaliers handle any trade or contract talks while he focuses on what he control and attempts to block out the speculation.
“Take it one game at a time,” Thompson said. “Keep the main goal the main goal, which is to come out and compete with my guys and be ready to go to war.”
