Cavaliers Are Suitors for Mario Hezonja, but LeBron Decision Has Put It on Hold

As LeBron James continues to take the NBA hostage over where he will play next season, it seems that the EuroLeague is also being dragged into the mix.

And as a result, the Cleveland Cavaliers seemingly have something to fall back on in case James chooses to head somewhere else when he makes his choice.

As first reported by Marc Stein and Jake Fischer, the Cavs have expressed interest in Real Madrid forward Mario Hezonja, as they ponder their roster positions.

Hezonja, who began his career in Spain for FC Barcelona, has made it known that he wants to return to the NBA, where he played for the Orlando Magic, New York Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers between 2015 and 2020 before returning to the EuroLeague to play for Greek side Panathinaikos Athens.

Last season, the Croatian played for Real Madrid and averaged 13.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists. He has spent four of his last six seasons with the Spanish giants, but has an NBA exit clause in his contract.

Hezonja is hanging on LeBron’s decision

Right now, Hezonja hasn’t reached an agreement with an NBA side, and that is mainly because no club is signing anyone as they await James’ decision on which club to join.

"I think we're going to see eight or nine players sign right after LeBron makes his choice. Maybe more," a source told The Stein Line.

But despite the pause in activity across the NBA, Hezonja is adamant that his future is in the league, despite interest from three EuroLeague clubs, as reported by European basketball website BasketNews.

“Hezonja reportedly rejected offers from three EuroLeague teams to sign conditional contracts that would have become active only if his NBA return ended prematurely,” the news report said.

Do you remember Super Mario?

While a pivotal part of Real Madrid, Hezonja was more of a role player during his five-year stint in the NBA, averaging 6.8 points and 3.1 rebounds across 330 games.

His best season came in the 2017-18 campaign for the Magic, where he posted career highs in minutes (22.1) and points (9.6), but aside from being a decent three-point shooter (31%) and a free-throw shooter (82%), he was more of an energy player.

More recently, the 31-year-old has become one of Europe’s more all-rounded players and, while representing Croatia at the FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers, posted a triple-double of 11 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists in the win over Cyprus along with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds in the victory over Israel.

In the qualifiers, Hezonja is averaging 19.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists.

Add us as a preferred source on Google