Sources: LeBron agrees to $100M deal with Cavs
LeBron James will re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers on a three-year, $100 million maximum contract, league sources told The Vertical, and the three-time NBA champion also pressured the Cavs to finalize a deal to keep free agent J.R. Smith.
James and Smith have the same agent in Rich Paul of Klutch Sports Group, and the situation appears reminiscent to Tristan Thompson’s holdout past training camp last year. Thompson eventually signed a five-year, $82 million contract in late October.
James announced the contract on a video posted on social media and added near the end of the video: “Let’s get J.R. done. It’s that time.” Smith and the Cavaliers have remained in discussions on a multi-year agreement, sources said.
James will earn $31 million under the maximum salary for the upcoming season.
In his 13th NBA season, James led the Cavaliers to a historic 3-1 series comeback to win the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. James is a four-time NBA MVP, three-time Finals MVP and 12-time All-Star.
The Cavaliers signed veteran James Jones and rookie Kay Felder last week and reached terms with James on Thursday – with the signing of Smith hovering over the franchise’s future. Smith averaged 12.4 points and shot 40 percent from three-point range last season.
James averaged 25.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists in 2015-16. He stated after the season that he intended to re-sign with the Cavaliers.
ESPN first reported the terms of James’ deal.
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