Isaac Okoro may not have gotten the contract he was hoping for out of restricted free agency, but he’s still coming away with a pretty good one.
Okoro and the Cavaliers agreed to a three-year, $38 million contract, keeping the defensive wing in Cleveland, Okoro’s agents told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The sides were expected to reach an agreement before camp opened and this contract — just below the mid-level exception — seems fair, with $33 million of the contract fully guaranteed, reports Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Okoro sought a raise from the $8.9 million he earned last season (the final year of his rookie deal) and he got it, even if restricted free agency didn’t give him much leverage (other teams expected the Cavaliers to match any reasonable offer ). ).
Okoro averaged 9.4 points per game last season and shot an improved 39.1% from 3, but the consistency of his offense is still the question mark. Okoro was a key defensive wing for the Cavaliers, a plus defender for them at a key position, but the Cavaliers wanted more offense, so they went and got Max Strus. Okoro likely comes off the bench and splits time at the three with Strus this season.
The Cavaliers brought back the same core players — Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley all signed contract extensions this summer as well — and the franchise is betting that new coach Kenny Atkinson can spark some movement in the offense and help the team take the . next step up from 48 wins, the number 4 seed and a first round playoff win. That will be a challenge in a stacked top of the East, but the Cavaliers are betting that the core players can add more than we’ve seen in years past.
Okoro is now locked as part of that core.
