Despite not being part of the NBA’s roster bubble, the Cavaliers added two to their roster on Monday, giving them a full 15-man roster heading into the deadline on Tuesday night.
Cleveland agreed to sign former Warriors, Timberwolves, and Grizzlies forward Jordan Bell to a multi-year contract and also converted the two-way contract of forward Dean Wade into a multi-year contract according to multiple reports.
Bell appeared in 29 games this season between Memphis and Minnesota averaging 3.2 points and 2.8 rebounds in about nine minutes per game. The former second-round pick by the Warriors in 2017 has played at both the power forward and center positions and could be used as the center in a potential small-ball lineup heading into the 2020-21 season.
Wade was signed as an undrafted rookie last summer and has spent the majority of this season with the Canton Charge, Cleveland’s G-League affiliate. A stretch forward at 6’10, Wade shot nearly 40% from three-point range while also averaging 14.2 points and 7.6 rebounds for the Charge.
These roster moves also keep the Cavaliers underneath the luxury tax threshold according to Cleveland.com which was probably something team owner Dan Gilbert wanted to achieve considering the team has been in the luxury tax during their years of championship contention.
Being under the luxury tax gives the Cavaliers more flexibility like being able to utilize the full mid-level exception in free agency which is worth $9.8 million.