Cavaliers Add Familiar Face After Strong Summer League

One of the four players signed by the Cleveland Cavaliers Monday could make a legitimate impact.

Apr 14, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward JT Thor (21) looks to the basket beside Cleveland Cavaliers forward Pete Nance (8) and forward Isaiah Mobley (15) in the fourth quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. / David Richard-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed a slew of players to Exhibit 10 contracts including Jules Bernard, Nae'Qwan Tomlin and Gabe Osabuohien according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype on Monday night. 

However, the most interesting name of the group is power forward Pete Nance.

The signings bring the Cavs to the limit of 21 players on their roster for training camp. Nance ended last season on a two-way contract with the Cavs, where he appeared in eight games. 

It wasn’t a productive stretch of games for the big man, averaging just 3.4 minutes per game and hitting just one of his six shots. 

Nance did follow up a strong G-League performance last season with a solid Summer League effort this year. Offensively, the 24-year-old averaged 11.6 points per game, and was able to show he could space the floor, shooting 34.8 percent from beyond the arc. On the other side of the ball, Nance averaged 1.4 blocks per game.

The forward that went undrafted in 2023 could prove to be a helpful addition under new head coach Kenny Atkinson. Based on his previous time as a head coach and spending the last three years under Steve Kerr with the Golden State Warriors, it can be assumed the Cavs will look to emphasize the three pointer this season. Cleveland’s roster still lacks players with a combination of height and range, which may allow for Nance to carve out a role.

While it’s a difficult road for Bernard, Tomlin, and Osabuohien to make the roster, Nance has a legitimate chance of getting a two-way contract by the end of training camp.