The Cleveland Cavaliers wanted to bring back Caris LeVert, and that’s exactly what they did at the start of free agency on Friday.
Cleveland agreed to a two-year, $32 million contract with LeVert to make sure he stays as a Cav for at least the next two years, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. LeVert was actually eligible for a four-year, $101 million extension. However, considering his struggles from the past season, it was unlikely that he would get that kind of money from Cleveland.
Earlier reports mentioned that the Cavs were looking to sign him to a deal worth $15 to $18 million annually, and clearly, they were able to convince the 6-foot-6 wing to take the money and stay. It was a bit of a drop from his annual average salary of $17.5 million that he made after signing a $52.5 million three-year extension with the Brooklyn Nets back in 2019, though it’s not that bad since it would have been difficult for him to get that much in the open market as well.
Not to mention that LeVert figures to have a significant role with the Cavs moving forward. He averaged 12.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists on 43.1 percent overall shooting and 39.2 percent 3-point shooting in 2022-23, all while splitting his time as a starter and bench player.
Aside from keeping Caris LeVert, the Cavs also made a significant addition with the signing of sharpshooter Georges Niang. The team signed him to a three-year contract worth $26 million, giving the team an additional deadly shooter around its core of Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley. Niang is a career 40.3 percent shooter from deep.