When the four-team James Harden blockbuster went down, the Cleveland Cavaliers emerged as one of the undoubted winners of the trade as they landed Jarrett Allen and Taurean Prince for Dante Exum and the Bucks’ 2022 first round pick. This offseason already saw them flip Prince for Ricky Rubio as they sought to upgrade their backup point guard spot (and potentially build in some Collin Sexton trade insurance), but Allen was expected to be seen as a foundational piece in Cleveland.
Even after landing the third overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and taking center Evan Mobley, the plan didn’t change in Cleveland as word emerged on Monday evening that they had inked Allen to a 5-year, $100 million deal that would keep him with the Cavs without requiring him to test the market and find an offer sheet for Cleveland to match.
Restricted free agent C Jarrett Allen has agreed to a five-year, $100 million contract to stay with the Cleveland Cavaliers, his agents Derrick Powell and Jim Tanner tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 2, 2021
Restricted free agent Jarrett Allen has agreed to a five-year, $100 million deal to re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 2, 2021
Restricted free agent Jarrett Allen and the Cleveland Cavaliers have reached an agreement on a five-year, $100 million extension, league sources tell @YahooSports.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) August 2, 2021
As promised here earlier, Jarrett Allen indeed has his five-year, $100 million deal from the Cavaliers.
More: https://t.co/A6ycVm5PUQ https://t.co/wIrcW06ejn
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) August 2, 2021
Allen was terrific in his first partial season in Cleveland, averaging 13.2 points and 9.9 rebounds per game on strong efficiency, and at just 23 he still very much fits the timeline for the young, building Cavs. Locking Allen up gives them their frontcourt of the future, while they now have to make decisions on which of their young players will be part of their longterm backcourt. Collin Sexton’s future seems particularly murky in Cleveland, and he could be one of the next big moves made on the trade market after Darius Garland’s emergence last season.
