Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James has a post-trade message for Isaiah Thomas.
“I want Isaiah to get his bounce back, get his spring back, get healthy,” James told Tom Reed of The Athletic during Friday’s shoot-around in Atlanta. “Being out seven months is difficult for anybody. I just feel like he was playing behind the eight ball, not only on the floor, but just trying to get himself back to where he’s accustomed to playing. I wish the best for him in LA right now and his future. I want him to get that bounce back, get that spring back and I wish him the best, that’s for sure.”
As most hoops fans know by now, the Cavs made wholesale roster changes prior to Thursday’s trade deadline. In a bit of a surprising move, Cleveland unloaded six players, including Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye, Jae Crowder, Iman Shumpert, Derrick Rose, and Dwyane Wade.
James noted that the Cavs became a younger, more athletic team with their trade deadline moves.
Thomas, now 29 years of age, spent much of this season recovering from a hip injury he sustained in the 2016-17 Eastern Conference Playoffs. He made his debut with the Cavs on January 2, scoring 17 points in 19 minutes of action in a 127-110 win over the visiting Portland Trail Blazers. However, for a variety of reasons, the crafty ball-handler struggled to find a niche in Cleveland.
In his 15 appearances with the Cavs this season, Thomas racked up averages of 14.7 points on 36.1 percent shooting from the field (25.3 percent from beyond the arc), 4.5 assists, and 2.1 rebounds.
The Cavs, now the 3rd-ranked team in the Eastern Conference standings, will be back in action on Friday night, as they’re scheduled to face off against the Atlanta Hawks inside Philips Arena. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. EST with FOX Sports Ohio FOX Sports Southeast having live broadcast coverage.