Fan Blog: Behind the Building of the 2012 Cavs

So many things go into making a team. It seems like a simple enough thing to do. Make a few trades, draft good players, save money where you can, and hope the end product is satisfactory to your fans. But like many things, it's a whole lot more complex than it seems. There are so many factors that go into a team. Salary cap, luxury taxes, trade exceptions, drafts, trades, free agency, and much more. In this blog post, I am going to give a brief background on how this years team came to be.

Draft:

 - Daniel (Boobie) Gibson was drafted 42nd overall by the Cavs in the 2006 NBA Draft. He went to college at the University of Texas and has become a key addition for the Cavs during his time in Cleveland. He is rather small for the NBA but his shooting ability has kept him a fan favorite in Cleveland.
 - Christian Eyenga was drafted 30th overall by Cleveland in the 2009 NBA Draft. Eyenga ia 22 years old and is an athletic Small Forward from the Congo. He has great leaping ability and has become a good role player for the Cavs.
 - Kyrie Irving was drafted number 1 overall in the 2011 NBA Draft. This draft pick was acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers in a trade earlier in 2011. Irving attended Duke University for one season. Although his time has been rather short here in Cleveland, he is making a name for himself and showing the league that he will be a force in years to come.
 - Tristan Thompson was selected number 3 overall in the 2011 NBA Draft. He attended the University of Texas and is just a meir 20 years old. His long, lanky figure promises to be a great asset to Cleveland on the defensive end moving into the future.

Trades:

 - Anderson Varejao was drafted by the Orlando Magic in 2004 but then traded to the Cavs for Tony Battie and two second round picks. Varejao is from Brazil and has become a major fan favorite in Cleveland during his seven years playing with the club.
 - Antawn Jamison is a 13 year NBA veteran who found his way to the Cavs by way of a three team trade in 2010 between the Cavs, Washington Wizards, and Los Angeles Clippers. The Cavs had to give up a first round pick and Zydrunas Ilgauskas and received Jamison and Sebastian Telfair.
 - In the summer of 2010, the Cavs traded for two players that are currently on the roster from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Cleveland gave Minnesota their 2013 second round pick as well as Delonte West and Sebastian Telfair. In exchange, Cleveland got center, Ryan Hollins and point guard, Ramon Sessions.
 - During a midseason trade in 2011, the Cavs acquired two current players in a trade with the Boston Celtics. Cleveland received both Semih Erden, a center from Turkey, as well as Luke Harangody, a young power forward from Notre Dame. Boston got Cleveland's second round pick for that year.
 - Omri Casspi is a tall small forward who was acquired in a trade from Sacramento to Cleveland in 2011. Cleveland received Casspi and Sacramento's first round pick for 2012 and gave the Kings JJ Hickson.

Free Agents:

 - Anthony Parker was claimed out of free agency by the Cavs in 2009. Parker had been released by the Toronto Raptors the prior year. He is an 8 year veteran out of Bradley University.
 - Alonzo Gee was claimed by Cleveland out of free agency in 2010. He played overseas for a year before returning to the Cavs in 2011. Gee is a 24 year old small forward who attended University of Alabama.
 - Samardo Samuels was claimed from free agency by Cleveland after being released from the Bulls in 2010. Samuels signed a 3 year deal with the Cavs and is currently playing backup Center for them. He is a 2 year NBA player out of University of Louisville.
 - Ben Uzoh became an undrafted free agent in 2011. He was picked up by the Cavs to be a shooting guard off the bench. He has not yet seen much playing time but is still just a rookie from Tulsa University.

As you can see, this team was not acquired over night. It has taken many different acquisitions and I think the Cavalier front office has to be proud of the direction they are taking. Hopefully within a few short years, all their hard work will have paid off!