With 24 games left, the Cavaliers felt it was time to turn center Tristan Thompson loose.
He made his first NBA start against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. He had limited impact, with seven points and six rebounds in 35 minutes in the Cavs' 103-87 loss to the Hawks. Thompson became the second rookie in their starting lineup, along with G Kyrie Irving.
The 6-foot-9, 227-pound Thompson has been on the second unit all season. He has averaged about 20 minutes a game, but that is expected to increase.
Samardo Samuels was coach Byron Scott's backup center in Sunday's game. Ryan Hollins, who started the previous seven games, never got off the bench.
"I thought it was just time to get (Thompson) more minutes," Scott said. "I thought, 'Let's just throw him in there at 5 and see how he does.'"
He'll likely leave Thompson in the starting lineup, at least until Anderson Varejao returns from his fractured wrist.
"I plan to have (Varejao) back," Scott said. "I know he gets re-evaluated this week, so hopefully we'll have good news from that."
Thompson said he doesn't expect a major difference in the starting lineup.
"Your name just gets called earlier, and I'll just come out there and play hard," he said. "I'm going to do what I've done all year: Run the floor, rebound and be aggressive. I'll play each possession like it's my last."
NOTES, QUOTES
Gee hopes he returns next season
--F Alonzo Gee will be a free agent this summer. He has made a major impact on the Cavs this year, so much so that general manager Chris Grant is now mentioning him as one of their core players.
"I would love to come back, especially with Kyrie (Irving) and Tristan (Thompson)," he said. "Hopefully, everything works out."
The Cavs can pay him up to the mid-level exception (about $5 million) next season.
--The Cavs desperately wanted to add a second first-round pick in the 2012 draft, so they sent highly productive guard Ramon Sessions and guard/forward Christian Eyenga to the Lakers in exchange for the Lakers' first-round pick in 2012, forwards Luke Walton and Jason Kapono, and cash.
In order to pry the pick from the Lakers, however, the Cavs were forced to take on the contracts of Kapono and Walton. Kapono was waived Saturday. The money they received from the Lakers was supposedly enough to pay off Kapono (believed to be around $400,000). The only downside to the deal -- and the reason it was panned by some -- was that Walton's contract for next year is worth $6.1 million. That's a hefty price tag for a first-rounder.
--One big question for the Cavs will be whether they make a qualifying offer to center Semih Erden this summer. It would be worth about $1 million. If they offer it, Erden would probably take it. He has gone from being the Cavs' starting center to earning DNP-CDs. The Big Turk has some skills, but he always looks like he's just going through the motions and not playing hard.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "There are a lot of guys in that league that can play. They just need an opportunity. (Alonzo Gee) has taken advantage of it. Here (Donald Sloan) is going to get some minutes. Let's see what he does. Hopefully, he'll look back on this (part of his) career and he'll say he took advantage of it and solidified himself as an NBA player." -- Cavs assistant coach Nate Tibbetts on D-League players getting a chance in the NBA.
ROSTER REPORT
PLAYER NOTES:
--C Ryan Hollins is an unrestricted free agent after this season. The Cavs will likely allow him to walk. F-C Samardo Samuels has no guaranteed money on his contract for next year. If they want to get rid of him, too, they'd be able to. It's unlikely the Cavs would get rid of C Semih Erden, Hollins and Samuels this summer, even though they'd have those options.
--G Donald Sloan and G Manny Harris were signed for the rest of the season. Sloan had played for New Orleans and Atlanta this season. He was with the D-League Erie BayHawks when the Cavs called. He could earn some playing time at backup point guard to Kyrie Irving. Harris had signed two 10-day contracts with the Cavs, appearing in four games. He might not play much in the last 24 games, either, since he's stuck behind starter Anthony Parker and backup Daniel Gibson at shooting guard.
MEDICAL WATCH:
--C Anderson Varejao (broken right wrist) was injured in the Milwaukee game on Feb. 10. He'll miss around six weeks.
