Cavs agrees to deal with 2022 NBA draft pick

The Cleveland Cavs and their 2022 second-round draft pick Luke Travers agreed to a two-way deal , according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Australian NBA rookie who last played for Melbourne United of the NDL will split time between the Cleveland Charge, the Cavs’ G League affiliate, and the Cavs as they work to rebound from their Eastern Conference semifinal series loss to the champion Boston Celtics.

“Australian guard Luke Travers has agreed on a two-way deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers, his agent Daniel Moldovan tells ESPN,” Wojnarowski posted to X, formerly Twitter. “Travers was the 56th pick in the 2022 NBA Draft and had been playing with Melbourne of the NBL.”

After a modest performance for the Cavs’ summer league team following the 2022 NBA Draft, Travers returned to Australia for the 2022-23 season. Then, he returned to the Cavs’ summer league roster in 2023. Averaging 7.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game in five games, he helped them win the summer league championship before joining them for a third consecutive summer, posting 8.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in four outings.

Donovan Mitchell’s new deal set the tone for Cavs’ offseason

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The Cavaliers’ three-year, $150.3 million extension for Donovan Mitchell set the stage for a busy offseason. Then, after firing head coach J.B. Bickerstaff and hiring Kenny Atkinson ahead of signing Mitchell, the Cavs re-signed center Jarrett Allen to a three-year, $90.7 million deal.

But in filling up all three two-way roster spots, there is a good chance one of the three signings could latch onto the end of coach Atkinson’s 2024-25 player rotation by the end of the regular season. The Cavs inked free agent center JT Thor to a two-way deal last week.

Then, Cleveland signed free agent small forward Emoni Bates earlier this week before the Travers signing was announced on Wednesday.

Atkinson, the former Golden State Warriors assistant coach and head coach of the Brooklyn Nets from 2016-2020, emphasized the importance of getting to know his players when he was formally introduced by the Cavaliers front office in July. For Kenny, honing in on those relationships is vital for a team to reach its potential.

“Get to know your players. Establish your relationships,” Atkinson said during his introductory press conference. “Before we talk about tactics and style of play, it’s really that. And I really believe that’s, you know, a big part of player development. Establishing relationships. I’m going full-in on that… That was our first task.”

The Cavs host the Chicago Bulls in their preseason opener on October 8.

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