One of the biggest names from the trade deadline that didn’t change teams was Cleveland Cavaliers big man Tristan Thompson. According to Yahoo’s Chris Haynes, Thompson was pursued by the Houston Rockets, who are in the market for a big man. However, Thompson was never a serious buyout candidate, according to that same report.
While some things change rapidly in the NBA, that hasn’t changed now that the deadline has officially passed, as the Cavaliers have no plans to buyout Thompson, according to Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor. While Thompson’s place on the team is awkward after the Cavs landed Andre Drummond, keeping his bird rights would allow him to be a sign-and-trade candidate this summer for the Cavs.
At the same time, few expected Drummond to land with the Cavaliers, so it’s not as if everything has settled with Cleveland. Still, it’s clear that the preference for Thompson, one of the last remaining members of the 2016 NBA Championship team, is to play out the season with the Cavs.
