The Cleveland Cavaliers managed to pull off several deals before this season’s trade deadline. Their first order of business on Thursday was a transaction that brought Larry Nance Jr. from the Los Angeles Lakers to his native state of Ohio.
Nance Jr., now 25 years of age, is a 6-9 power forward who hails from the beautiful city of Richfield, Ohio. His father, Larry Nance Sr., played with the Cavs in the late 80’s and early 90’s and won the NBA’s Dunk Contest in 1984, as most fans of the team will remember.
In a post-trade deadline interview, Cavs general manager Koby Altman noted that Nance Jr. was nearly brought to tears when he heard that he was coming back to Northeast Ohio to play for his hometown team.
Nance thanked the Lakers with a heartfelt Instagram post after learning of the trade.
“I’ll be forever grateful for everything that the @lakers organization, the fans, and my teammates have done for me! It’s been an unbelievable experience and I couldn’t be happier with where I started this journey! Thank you guys for the past 2 1/2 years!
On to THE LAND I go.. #JustAKidFromAkron”
Nance Jr., who will wear the No. 24 on his jersey, has great low-post skills and a strong dunk hand. In his 42 games played with the Lakers this season, the former 27th overall pick in the 2015 Draft has turned in averages of 8.6 points on 60.1 percent shooting from the field, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.4 rebounds.
The Cavs will be back in action on Friday night, as they’re scheduled to face the Atlanta Hawks inside Philips Arena at 7:30 p.m. EST. However, it is unlikely that any of the players the Cavs received in Thursday’s trades will be available, as they still need to clear a team physical.
