The Cleveland Cavaliers are trying to put themselves in position to make a major trade around June's NBA draft, sources told ESPN.com.
To help facilitate it, the team made an unorthodox but strategic move Monday by signing point guard Scotty Hopson to a two-year, $3.8 million contract. Hopson has never played in an NBA game but will get a check for $1.35 million just for the Cavs' final seven games of the regular season, sources said.
The Cavs are interested in Hopson, a 6-foot-7 University of Tennessee product who went undrafted in 2011, as a prospect after he played well in Turkey this season. But this move is also aimed at expanding the team's options in June and July.
Team owner Dan Gilbert approved the last-minute spending in an effort to set his team up to be hunters over the summer. It's the second significant move made by acting general manager David Griffin, who traded for Spencer Hawes at the trade deadline.
The second year of Hopson's deal, worth $1.45 million, is nonguaranteed. The Cavs now have a stockpile of nonguaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts that could be attractive in trades around June's draft.
Combined with the contracts of Alonzo Gee, Matthew Dellavedova and Anderson Varejao, the Cavs have a trove of options to use as trade bait for a team that wants to clear salary-cap space. In addition to their all their own draft picks, the Cavs also own future first-rounders from the Memphis Grizzlies and Miami Heat.
At this time of year, teams routinely sign prospects to contracts with nonguaranteed second years. For example, the Brooklyn Nets signed guard Jorge Gutierrez to such a contract last week. The Heat signed center Justin Hamilton to such a deal two weeks ago.
But these contracts were given out at the league minimum, which is commonplace. The Cavs are taking the extra step of using their more expensive mid-level exception, known as the "room exception," to create a larger contract for Hopson so he becomes a more valuable trade piece.
The Cavs have won four of their last five games to pull within 2½ games of the Atlanta Hawks for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. After missing two weeks with a biceps injury, All-Star Kyrie Irving has been cleared to return to practice.
Hopson averaged 15.5 points and 4.2 rebounds playing in the Euroleague this season for Anadolu Efes.