Cavaliers Bring Back Member Of 2016 Championship Team
The Cleveland Cavaliers are getting the band back together! Well, kind of. They are bringing back one of the key members of the 2016 championship team for the 2023-24 season.
The organization and Tristan Thompson reportedly agreed to a one-year deal on Monday afternoon. This is homecoming for Thompson who was drafted in Cleveland and spent his first nine seasons in a Cavs uniform and left a mark during his tenure.
Thompson averaged 9.4 points and 8.7 rebounds over 619 games while establishing himself as the team's iron man. There's only one player to play 447 consecutive games in Cleveland history and that's Thompson.
He signed with the Boston Celtics following the 2020-21 seasons and then spent time with the Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls, and Los Angeles Lakers since departing from Cleveland. Now, the Cavs bring Thompson back in a role where he could see a lot of playing time.
Cleveland's frontcourt weaknesses were greatly exposed in the playoffs last season and the need to address it was there. Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen simply couldn't handle everything themselves. The Cavs did bring in Damian Jones who has playoff experience but it still felt like they could add one more piece.
Mar 7, 2020; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) warms up before the game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
So, with the final spot on their roster, the Cavs bring back one of their key pieces in defeating the Golden State Warriors in the Finals after being down three games to one.
Thompson's role will be to play a solid 12-15 minutes off the bench which is more than doable for this 14-year veteran.
