Reinforcements are on the way to Boston.
Former Cleveland Cavaliers big man Tristan Thompson has agreed to a two-year contract with the Celtics worth $19 million, The Athletic's Joe Vardon reported Saturday. Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes was the first to report the agreement.
The 29-year-old big man spent his previous nine seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who selected him fourth overall in the 2011 NBA Draft.
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Thompson averaged a double-double for Cleveland last season (12.0 points, 10.1 rebounds per game) and should provide an immediate boost in Boston's frontcourt, which lost Enes Kanter and Vincent Poirier to trades this week. He's also one of the NBA's best offensive rebounders and ranked second in that category last season with 4.0 offensive rebounds per game.
Thompson's agreement comes hours after Gordon Hayward agreed to a four-year, $120 million contract with the Charlotte Hornets that netted the Celtics nothing in return.
Hayward's departure allowed Boston to use its mid-level exception to bring in Thompson, however, and the C's potentially could explore a trade after his signing.