Now that Andrew Bogut has been ruled out for the remainder of the season, the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers are actively seeking a suitable “big” who is both capable and available for this year’s playoff run and title defense. By most accounts, they’ve found their man in free-agent center, Larry Sanders.
For whatever reason, Sanders, 28, elected to step away from the game of basketball during his 2014-15 season with the Milwaukee Bucks. Now, however, the 6-foot-11 rim protector is ready to make a return, and LeBron James seems ready to help him in that process.
“It looks like he wants another opportunity and hopefully if we’re the team, hopefully we give him an opportunity,” James said before the Cavs’ shootaround this morning. “Why not? Everyone deserves a second chance and it looks like he wants to get back to playing the game he loves and hopefully this is his destination. You don’t know how much you can get out of a guy that’s been out so long, but I’d love to see it. Why not?”
A respectful James tells McMenamin that he isn’t sure how the two-year hiatus affected Sanders.
“I could talk about when he played,” James said. “An athletic big guy, incredible shot-blocking skills, anticipation around the rim, can finish around the rim and block shots and being able to guard perimeter guys as well. With his hiatus, I don’t know what he was going through, so I can’t comment about somebody’s personal life because I wasn’t a part of it.”
According to McMenamin, the Cavs could sign Sanders as early as Monday. However, there seems to be one other player who is in competition for the open roster spot that will be created when someone is waived. That someone is expected to be Bogut, who suffered a fractured tibia just 58 seconds into his debut. According to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, there is no guarantee that Cavs General Manager David Griffin will waive Bogut. Griffin could instead elect to keep Bogut onboard for the remainder of the season in hopes of signing him at a discount this summer. If Bogut stays, someone will have to go, as the Cavs’ roster currently stands at 15.
If anyone is good at helping players get back into form, it’s James. In the past, James helped J.R. Smith with his transition from the New York Knicks to the Cavs. Going back further, James played a big role in Chris Andersen winning a ring with the Miami Heat. At the time, Andersen’s name was being sullied in an Internet hoax. Even further back, “The King,” as James is justly known, had a hand in Greg Oden and Eddie Curry getting a second chance with the Heat.
So, as previously mentioned, James could play a big role in Sanders’ NBA revival. In fact, James tells McMenamin that he would welcome the opportunity.
“I haven’t been around Larry, so I don’t know what consists of him playing every night or him getting back to the flow of things,” James said of Sanders. “From the outside looking in, it looks like he wants to be back on an NBA floor again. He has the talent — we all know that. He has the ability. I think this will be a perfect locker room for him to try to help him. You know me, I’m always in favor of helping somebody get their things back right. I was part of it with Bird (Chris Andersen) in Miami, helped Greg (Oden) as much (as I could). I was part of it with Eddy Curry — he won a ring.”
“I don’t ever shy away from a guy getting a second chance and if this is his destination, I’d be happy to be part of his process.”