Alonzo Gee was one of those guys waiting for a better offer — one that he thought matched his potential — that was just not going to come. Sometimes that’s how the system works. So he took the one on the table.
Cleveland is near a deal to keep Gee for three years at about $10 million, a story broke by Cleveland television personality (on Channel 8) John Telich and confirmed by Sam Amico of Fox Sports, who added this deal has been on the table for a while.
And it’s not really a shock. Gee is a guy with potential — he scored 10.6 points in 29 minutes per game with the Cavaliers last season. He wasn’t very efficient doing it, shooting 41.2 percent, but he’s young, he’s athletic, he has the gifts to make a good two guard/swingman in the league. Some scouts think he can grow into the role.
Which is why teams considered rolling the dice on him. Phoenix was reportedly interested, as were others. But nobody was going to pay more than about $4 million a year for the potential of Gee, and Cleveland would have matched that (Gee was a restricted free agent). So teams moved on and looked elsewhere. And Gee had to finally turn to the Cavaliers offer on the table.
The Cavaliers have rookie and No. 4 pick Dion Waiters at the two, and they have some swingmen in Omri Casspi and C.J. Miles. Which is to say they have some young, developing players on the wing. The minutes will go to the guys who grab them.