Veteran center Kendrick Perkins will sign with the Cavaliers now that his contact has been bought out by the Utah Jazz, Perkins' agent told FOX Sports 1/Yahoo Sports insider Adrian Wojnarowski on Saturday.
Perkins, 30, was traded by the Oklahoma City Thunder to the Jazz (for Enes Kanter and Steve Novack) at Thursday's trading deadline. Perkins will sign with the Cavs after he clears waivers at 5 p.m. EST Monday, according to agent his agent, Arn Tellem.
The Cavs have won 15 of their past 17 games but have been looking for a defensive-minded backup to spell starting center Timofey Mozgov. Perkins is 6-foot-10 and 270 pounds. He has spent the majority of his 12 NBA seasons as a tough interior presence, particularly on the defensive end.
He had spent the past four-and-a-half seasons with the Thunder. Prior to that, he played for the Boston Celtics, with whom he won a championship in 2008. He owns career averages of 5.6 points and 6.0 rebounds.
Sources told Wojnarowski earlier this week that Perkins would strongly consider the Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls following a contract buyout.
Perkins expressed gratitude to Oklahoma City and Thunder fans on his Twitter account following his trade to Utah.
"I would like to start off by saying Thank You to the State of Oklahoma for treated my family and I like Family and we Thank Yall so much!" Perkins said on Twitter.
He later added: "We are going to miss this wonderful place and all of you guys hold a special place in ours hearts! ThunderUp for life."
Along with the Bulls, Perkins was also said to be considering the Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Clippers as possible destinations. Ultimately, he chose the Cavs, who at 34-22 own the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference and are just a half-game behind the Bulls for the Central Division lead.
"Perkins' talents have diminished in the past few years, but his toughness and leadership still makes him a valued presence in contending locker rooms," Wojnarowski wrote.
The Land welcome my bro as well as my muscle(LOL) @KendrickPerkins to the city with open arms! Happy and thrilled to have u aboard homie!!
— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 21, 2015
