Tristan Thompson, Cavaliers Still $14 Million Apart on New Deal? [NBA News

Unless the two sides can reach some sort of compromise before training camp, Tristan Thompson may have to entertain the idea of signing Cleveland’s one-year qualifying offer of $6.9 million and then become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Next season the Cavs are expected to have the highest payroll in the league at $94.8 million, according to Spotrac.com, with more than $59 million, or 62 percent, tied to James, Love, and point guard Kyrie Irving. The Cavaliers would have the right to match any offer Thompson may have signed with another team. Love will just be out of the woods of his recovery from shoulder surgery, while Anderson Varejao and Timofey Mozgov also underwent surgeries in the offseason.

The issue is apparently the annual money Thompson will make. With another solid year, Thompson will likely garner a max deal on the open market next summer, which all but guarantees he is on his way out of Cleveland. But the $80 million contract offer already is a gross overpayment, as it puts Thompson – a bench player in Cleveland – on par with recently re-signed players like Draymond Green and Jonas Valanciunas, and is more valuable than Klay Thompson’s four-year, $69 million extension with the Golden State Warriors.

As far as the Cavs are concerned, the team believes they are offering the fair-market contract to Thompson.

Thompson has the same option to sign the Cavaliers’ $6.9 qualifying offer and become and unrestricted free agent next summer.

Fox Sports reported, “Its hard to take his agent’s threats seriously even if Thompson plays this season with one-year of qualifying offer”.

Thompson remains somewhat of an enigma. Rich Paul, Thompson’s agent, remained doubtful about Thompson’s contract in 2016 with Cleveland if he doesn’t get the maximum contract which he is seeking. “Things need to be worked out from his side and the Cavs, but we need him back”, LeBron said.

That could be the case unless both the Cavs and Thompson end up mending the issue verbally – something that could happen in the coming days.