The Cleveland Cavaliers are signing former Philadelphia 76ers first-round pick Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, inviting him to training camp to try and win a roster spot on the Cavs, per Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
Luwawu-Cabarrot was selected by the Sixers with the 24th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, only to appear in just 121 games across his first two seasons in the NBA with Philadelphia.
A 6-foot-6 wing, the 24-year-old French native averaged 6.1 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 16.5 minutes per game for Philly from 2016-18, shooting 39.0 percent from the field, 32.3 percent from 3-point range, and 83.4 percent from the free throw line.
Luwawu-Cabarrot also spent some time in the G League, playing in three contests for Philly’s affiliate — then called the Delaware 87ers — during his rookie season.
Prior to the 2018-19 NBA season, Luwawu-Cabarrot was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Dennis Schroder-Carmelo Anthony three-team deal with the Atlanta Hawks. Luwawu-Cabarrot played in 21 games for the Thunder, starting in one, and barely finding playing time, however.
Oklahoma City would move the Frenchman again near the NBA’s trade deadline last February, sending him to the Chicago Bulls for a 2020 second-round pick. The small forward played in 29 games for the Bulls to finish last season, averaging 6.8 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.
At the end of the 2018-19 campaign, Luwawu-Cabarrot became a free agent, mulling his future in the NBA until the Cavs signed him to a training-camp deal on Tuesday.
The Cavs’ young team will be a groundswell for competition under first-year head coach John Beilein, with three rookies in Darius Garland, Dylan Windler and Kevin Porter Jr., second-year guard Collin Sexton, and three players with only two years of experience. Only Kevin Love remains as a true veteran with double-digit years in the NBA.