With the recent announcement of Mo Williams’ retirement and Matthew Dellavedova settled in as a new member of the Milwaukee Bucks, there’s a bit of a void at the backup point guard position for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com reported three names that were mentioned as being contacted by the Cavs on their media day:
Cavs contacted Norris Cole, Mario Chalmers, Kirk Hinrich to replace Mo Williams @clevelanddotcom https://t.co/gbYWy7bTEJ
— Joe Vardon (@joevardon) September 26, 2016
Cole, 27, and Chalmers, 30, both have experience playing and winning championships with LeBron James as members of the Miami Heat. Chalmers spent last season with Memphis but was released after suffering a torn Achilles in March. Cole averaged a career-best 10.6 points per game in 45 games with New Orleans last season. Hinrich, 35, is more of the seasoned veteran between the three. He was traded to Atlanta from Chicago last season and was rarely put to use.
But the Cavs are also preparing to groom 5-foot-9 rookie Kay Felder for the opportunity to earn that spot, via Vardon:
The Cavs have been in contact with all three players this summer, a source said, in anticipation of Williams’ move. But the team, at least at this point, is in no rush to sign one of them, preferring to let the 5-9, 21-year-old Felder get his feet wet in camp and see if Lue can work his rotation properly without them.
It looks like the Cavs will feel out their options here. If Felder looks capable and comfortable early, they won’t need to look elsewhere. Plus, they have the luxury of having LeBron James as the ultimate reserve point guard option.
