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August 17, 2015Next Up: The AL East … to Boston and New York
August 17, 2015Russian center Sasha Kaun was in Cleveland Monday, taking a brief tour of the city and doing a bit of house hunting, fueling speculation that he will sign with the Cavaliers soon. This report comes via NEOMG’s Chris Haynes.
Kaun, 30, and the Cavaliers have yet to reach an agreement. However, “it’s only a matter of time” before a deal is struck, according to a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations. The Cavaliers’ main focus is on locking up a longtime pact with restricted free agent Tristan Thompson.
Kaun is to depart town on Tuesday and it is anticipated that a deal will not be finalized before his exit, I’m told.
Kaun’s scoping out of the city almost certainly ensures he’ll finally make the jump to the NBA after playing seven years professionally for European powerhouse CSKA Moscow.
When last we discussed Kaun, who played four years of college ball at Kansas, he was in Las Vegas during NBA summer league in July. He said that money would not be a major factor in his decision to come overseas. Kaun made $2.9 million per year with CSKA Moscow, but was not concerned about taking a pay cut.
“That’s probably something that shouldn’t be a problem,” [Kaun] said. “Hopefully coming to this team, it will give us an opportunity to win, and winning is more important to me than money. I don’t think I want to do it [play basketball] because of the money. Just play basketball and enjoy it and play with some really great players. That’s the more important thing.”
Assuming the Cavs sign Kaun and come to terms with Tristan Thompson, those two would join Timofey Mozgov, Kevin Love, and Anderson Varejao in what projects to be a promising frontcourt.
The 7-foot Kaun started all 30 Euroleague games he played in with CSKA Moscow last year, averaging 9.9 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks in 20 minutes per game. He played under Cavs coach David Blatt on the Russian national team, which won a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Kaun was drafted by the then-Seattle SuperSonics with the No. 56 overall pick in 2008. On draft night, the Cavs traded cash for Kaun’s international rights and have held them ever since.
There was no word on where Kaun went house shopping, nor what kind of kitchen countertop he prefers.
4 Comments
What kind of kitchen counter top?
“That’s probably something that shouldn’t be a problem,” [Kaun] said.
“Hopefully coming to this team, it will give us an opportunity to win,
and winning is more important to me than money. I don’t think I want to
do it [play basketball] because of the money. Just play basketball and
enjoy it and play with some really great players. That’s the more
important thing.”
To bad that’s not a quote from Tristan Thompson! The Cavs already offer TT MORE than he’s worth at 80 mil!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XV5_WagxZg
I’m doing this dance right now