We had told you before that Chris Andersen was headed to the Cleveland Cavaliers to be a backup center.
But Friday a little salary cap maneuvering had to happen for the Cavaliers to pull that off. From Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical at Yahoo Sports.Free agent Chris “Birdman” Andersen agreed to a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers, league sources told The Vertical.
To clear the roster spot for Andersen, the Cavaliers sent center Sasha Kaun and cash to Philadelphia on Friday. The Sixers plan to waive Kaun, league sources said. Cleveland also gets a $1.33 million traded-player exception for the Kaun deal, a source said.
To put it simply, the Cavaliers sent the Sixers cash to use their cap space. The cash the Cavs sent to the Sixers certainly covers Kaun’s $1.3 million salary, plus a little. Also, the Sixers got the rights to Chukwudiebere Maduabum.
Andersen is a lower cost replacement for Timofey Mozgov (who was overpaid by the Lakers). The way Lue wants to play, smaller and faster, the backup center spot is going to get limited minutes anyway, and at this price Andersen will be a good fit.
