REPORT: Tristan Thompson Won’t Return To Cavaliers Next Season

The Cleveland Cavaliers will not be bringing back Tristan Thompson for the 2024-25 NBA season.

Apr 20, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) reacts in the second quarter against the Orlando Magic during game one of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports / David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Cavaliers will not be bringing back fan favorite big man Tristan Thompson for next season, via Sam Amico of Hoopswire.

Thompson played in 49 games with the Cavaliers this past season. He was hit with a 25-game suspension for taking a banned substance in January.

During his time with Cleveland in the 2023-24 campaign, Thompson averaged 3.3 points and 3.6 rebounds over 11.2 minutes per game while shooting 60.8 percent from the floor.

It marked Thompson's second stint with the Cavs.

The 33-year-old, who played his collegiate basketball at the University of Texas, was originally selected by the Cavaliers with the fourth overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft.

He spent the first nine years of his career in Cleveland and played a pivotal role in the Cavs making four straight finals appearances between 2015 and 2018. In 2016, he helped lead the Cavaliers to a championship thanks much in part to his defensive versatility against the 73-win Golden State Warriors.

Thompson was also something of an ironman in the early stages off his career, having played in all 82 games four straight seasons between 2012-13 and 2015-16.

Since departing Cleveland for the first time in 2020, Thompson has played for five other teams: the Boston Celtics, Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.

Thompson is not even remotely close to the player he once was and has generated very little interest on the free-agent market as a result.

He owns career averages of 8.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.