Isaiah Thomas famously said over the summer that he expected the Boston Celtics to back up the proverbial money truck to his front door when it came to negotiate a new contract. Thomas was, of course, traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in order to get point guard Kyrie Irving in Boston.
The injured Thomas took the first few months of the NBA season to get right, finally making his debut for the Cavs in early January. But it is a contract year for Thomas, and his free agency now coincides with LeBron James’ ever-present decision later this summer.
What happens with these current teammates might not be so intertwined in the end, but right now it’s certainly a good question: What are the Cavaliers willing to pay Isaiah Thomas, and does that number change if LeBron James is playing somewhere else?
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, IT’s best chance at a big contract will indeed come from the Cavaliers. He reported on Tuesday that most NBA execs expect a big deal from the Cavs, especially if LeBron James goes off to play elsewhere next fall. And, as Windhorst writes, the Cavs aren’t likely to let Thomas walk away for nothing after the big trade that went down this summer.
“A team, even a rebuilding team as the Cavs might be if James walks, cannot allow prime assets to leave for nothing,” Windhorst wrote Tuesday.
Windhorst explored a few other teams Irving could go to, but the fact of the matter is that not a lot of teams will be eager to dish out a huge contract in free agency for a point guard.
The Bulls have a budding star in Kris Dunn, the 76ers have Ben Simmons, the Mavericks have Dennis Smith Jr., the Hawks have Dennis Schroder and the Lakers have Lonzo Ball. There are some options: Brooklyn, Phoenix and Indiana are possibilities, for example, though the Suns already traded Thomas once. It’s not inviting, even if Thomas had no injury concerns, which he does with possible degenerative hip issues.
This is why Cleveland makes the most sense. They will have his full Bird rights and can pay him.
It’s all still a long way away, and perhaps what actually happens on the court impacts all of this. But it’s clear that Thomas has a lot to prove over the next few months, especially if he wants the kind of deal he openly discussed over the summer.
