Mario Hezonja will sign a one-year, $2.8MM contract with the Cavaliersagent Michael Tellem of Excel Sports Management tells ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link).
The 31-year-old forward was viewed as a future star when the Magic selected him with the fifth pick in the 2015 draft. However, he never lived up to that promise and returned to the EuroLeague in 2020 after five seasons with Orlando, New York and Portland.
Since then, he has become one of the top players in Europe, earning Spanish League MVP honors this season with Real Madrid while averaging 17.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 44 games.
The veteran’s minimum contract leaves Cleveland $35.5MM below the second apron with two roster spots left to fill, per Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). One of those will go to James Harden who is expected to sign a multiyear deal after declining his $42.3MM player option in June, and the other will likely remain open for most of the season.
Hezonja’s deal will count as $2.4MM against the luxury tax and aprons, according to The Third Apron (Twitter link), which points out that the Cavs still have their mid-level exception remaining to offer to Jonathan Kuminga. It will be worth $6.1MM unless they’re able to significantly cut costs elsewhere. They can also pursue Kuminga through the sign-and-trade route.
Golden State also reportedly had interest in Hezonja, who becomes Cleveland’s first offseason addition apart from the draft. He’ll help fill a gap on the wing that was created by the loss of Dean Wade and Keon Ellis in free agency and the failure to land LeBron James.
Hezonja appeared in 330 games during his first NBA experience, averaging 6.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 18.5 minutes per night.
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