Will Kyrie Irving be a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers for his entire career? Maybe. OK, but will he at least stick around once his rookie contract expires? Nobody knows. Not him, not you, not anybody. Here’s the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

When it comes to retaining the Cavaliers’ superstar, it’s never too early to begin the discussion – if only to appease the Cleveland faithful that had their hearts broken three years ago.

So even though Kyrie Irving isn’t going to be a free agent any time soon — the Cavaliers can offer him a long-term extension next summer — when the topic came up for owner Dan Gilbert before the season opener, he was quick to assure that “we feel good about Kyrie being here for his entire career.”

A day later, Irving cautioned that it’s way too early to talk about contracts, but he will offer one bit of reassurance: He has a great relationship with Gilbert.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have waived center DeSagana Diop, forward Kenny Kadji, guard Jermaine Taylor and guard Elliot Williams, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts.

Diop averaged 3.7 minutes in three preseason games for the Cavs. Kadji played in seven preseason games with averages of 5.0 points and 1.7 rebounds in 9.4 minutes per game. Taylor averaged 5.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in seven preseason games. Williams played in six Cavs preseason contests, averaging 2.5 points and 2.2 rebounds in 7.9 minutes per game.

The Cavs roster now stands at 15.

The Cleveland Cavaliers announced today that the team has exercised the fourth-year options on guard Kyrie Irving and forward Tristan Thompson, as well as the third-year options on guard Dion Waiters and center Tyler Zeller.

Irving was the first overall pick in the 2011 draft by the Cavaliers and owns career averages of 20.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.3 steals in 32.8 minutes through 110 career games with the team. A 2013 NBA All-Star, Irving participated in the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge and also won the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest that weekend. Last season he averaged 22.5 points on .452 shooting, 3.7 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.5 steals in 34.7 minutes in 59 games. His 22.5 points per game were the highest for any player age 22 or younger in 2012-13 and the most among all Eastern Conference point guards.

Thompson was selected in the first round (4th overall) by the Cavaliers in 2011 and owns career averages of 10.2 points and 8.2 rebounds in 28.1 minutes through 142 (107 starts) games played. Last season, he posted 11.7 points on .488 shooting, 9.4 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 31.3 minutes. He set a franchise record for most offensive rebounds in a single-season with 306, which ranked second in the NBA, surpassing Zydrunas Ilgauskas’ 299 during the 2004-05 season. During NBA All-Star weekend, Thompson was selected to participate in 2013 BBVA Rising Stars Challenge.

Waiters was the fourth overall pick of the Cavaliers in the 2012 draft and appeared in 61 games last season, averaging 14.7 points on .412 shooting, 2.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.0 steal in 28.8 minutes. He was also named to the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team. During NBA All-Star weekend, Waiters was selected to participate in 2013 BBVA Rising Stars Challenge.

Zeller was selected in the first round (17th) overall in the same draft class as Waiters by Dallas, but was later acquired by the Cavaliers in a draft day trade. In 77 games last season, he averaged 7.9 points on .438 shooting and 5.7 rebounds in 28.0 minutes. He was named to the NBA’s All-Rookie Second Team and was selected to participate in the 2013 BBVA Rising Stars Challenge during All-Star Weekend.

Irving , Waiters and Zeller were among the 27 NBA players who participated in the three-day USA Basketball minicamp held in Las Vegas July 22-25, while Thompson led the Canadian National Team during the FIBA Americas Championship tournament.

Dion Waiters appreciates tough love.

The Cavaliers shooting guard admits he loves the way Mike Brown is coaching him.

“He takes me out, talks to me and then puts me back in,” Waiters said after the Cavs’ 92-74 loss to the Bobcats on Tuesday before a sold-out crowd of 4,047 at the Canton Memorial Civic Center.

Brown yanked Waiters out of the game at least three times to correct mistakes.

“He can be a high-level defender,” Brown said.

However, he wasn’t doing things at a high level in the first half when Bobcats shooting guard Gerald Henderson was scoring on him at will.

Brown called time out and brought the second-year shooting guard to the sideline.

“You’re better than this,” he told Waiters.

Reported by Bob Finnan of the Morning Journal and News Herald

Jarrett Jack could play through the pain if the Cavaliers were in the playoffs, coach Mike Brown said Tuesday, but Carrick Felix can take all the time he needs to heal – and he should familiarize himself with Canton while he’s down here because he’s probably coming back.

Jack is expected to miss about 10 days to let the inflammation in his left knee subside, but Brown doesn’t seem concerned about it. Jack doesn’t have much of an injury history with the knee, aside from missing six games during the 2011-12 season when he bruised it.

“It’s the preseason, take five days, six days, whatever it is. It doesn’t necessarily matter to me because it’s not anything pressing for the preseason,” Brown said. “Gives other guys an opportunity to play.”

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Blog)

When asked what was next on his to-do list, Irving never hesitated.

“To be the best player in this league,” he said. “That’s it.”

It’s an awfully high expectation, and one he’ll be unlikely to reach this season. Before he can become the best player in the NBA, Irving must first become the best at his position. That’s always a subjective conversation, but he’ll certainly get stiff competition from Chris Paul and guys like Rajon Rondo, Russell Westbrook and Derrick Rose, if they’re healthy.

That’s part of the irony in all of this. For once, the list of elite point guards either hurt or coming off significant injuries doesn’t include Irving. And if he wants the Cavs to offer him the full five-year, $80 million max contract he is eligible to receive next summer, Irving must manage to stay healthy all season for the first time in his career.

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Cavaliers center Tyler Zeller was diagnosed with acute appendicitis yesterday in Cleveland and subsequently had an appendectomy at the Cleveland Clinic.

He is now recovering at the Cleveland Clinic after the successful procedure and will undergo a period of additional recovery and re-evaluation before a timetable is established for his return to basketball activity.

His status will be updated as appropriate.

Video profile of Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Anthony Bennett:

Cavaliers center Tyler Zeller experienced a left hip flexor strain during the third quarter of the annual Cavaliers intrasquad Wine & Gold Scrimmage this past Saturday afternoon. Subsequent physical examination and MRI at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health confirmed the strain.

He is receiving treatment and participated in select non-contact elements of practice today. Zeller will continue to receive treatment and, as a precaution, is not expected to play in tomorrow’s preseason game at The Q vs. the Milwaukee Bucks.

His status will be updated as appropriate.

The four-year, $25 million deal [Jarrett Jack] signed over the summer is the most lucrative of his career and comes as he prepares to turn 30 two days before the start of the season. This is around the time players typically begin to decline, but Jack provides exactly what this young backcourt needs and the Cavaliers are confident he’ll maintain his level of production in part because of his proven durability throughout his career.

He averaged 12.9 points and 5.6 assists last season despite starting just four games for the Warriors. When asked if he would be disappointed if the Cavs failed to make the playoffs, Jack scoffed at the idea of just making the playoffs being the biggest goal of the season. Why bother, he reasoned, if players are happy just to show up and lose in the first round?

“What else are we playing for?” Jack asked. “Who cares if you got a free certificate to the playoffs and you went home with a free T-shirt they handed out for the first round? So what? Nobody cares or remembers that and I don’t think anybody should use that as a stepping stone. If you’re about to take a test, you don’t want to just get a 72, you want to get 100. Who wants to come in fifth place?”

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

The Cleveland Cavaliers have promoted Trent Redden to Assistant General Manager and Koby Altman to Director of Pro Player Personnel. Additionally, Alex Moore has been hired as High Performance Director and will oversee the Cavaliers Performance Team, which manages the team’s rehabilitation, physical therapy, nutrition, strength and conditioning, and athletic training areas.

Redden was most recently the Director of College Player Personnel for the Cavs and has been with the organization since 2006. Altman joined the Cavaliers in 2012 as the Pro Personnel Manager after spending several seasons as an assistant coach at Columbia University and as an Operations Manager with USA Basketball.

Moore, joins the Cavs from the United States Ski Team where he served as the program’s Strength and Conditioning Coordinator for six years.

Within the Performance Team, Steve Spiro has been promoted to Head Athletic Trainer after serving the last three seasons as assistant athletic trainer and Derek Millender has been promoted to Performance Specialist after three seasons as the team’s assistant strength coach. The Cavs have also hired Yusuke Nakayama as Assistant Athletic Trainer, Performance Scientist. Nakayama comes to the Cavs by way of Michigan State University, where he served as an athletic trainer with the Spartan Nutrition and Athletic Performance Program, while finishing his PhD. George Sibel also continues as Physical Therapist, a role he has held with the team for the last seven seasons.

Undrafted rookie Matthew Dellavedova has signed a two-year contract with the Cavaliers for about $1.3 million, but only a small portion of this season’s deal is guaranteed, a league source confirmed. The source was speaking on the condition of anonymity because the team had not announced the signing. The signing was first reported by Australian media.

Dellavedova averaged 2.8 points and three assists in five summer league games with the Cavaliers after leaving St. Mary’s as the school’s all-time leader in scoring, assists, games played, free-throw percentage and 3-pointers. The biggest knock against him is a lack of athleticism.

Dellavedova has an excellent chance to make the Cavs as a third point guard. The Cavs still have one roster spot open. Camp opens Oct. 1.

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

LeBron James never played college basketball but he will have a permanent place in Ohio State’s new locker room.

The Buckeyes have given James a locker and it will be used to display James’ branded Nike gear the school uses to help in recruiting, coach Thad Matta told reporters in Columbus on Tuesday. Ohio State started wearing James’ signature uniforms and shoes in 2007. Matta made James an honorary member of the team at a ceremony in 2009.

“We always want to pay our respects to him for what he did for us in ‘07, in terms of we were the first LeBron school,” Matta said. “And obviously we get tremendous product from him, and I know he’s very proud of what he does for us.”

Reported by Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com

The Cleveland Cavaliers announced today that the team has signed all of their 2013 NBA Draft picks, Anthony Bennett, Sergey Karasev and Carrick Felix, to contracts.

Bennett (6-8, 240, forward) was the first overall pick in the June draft and first-ever Canadian selected #1 in the history of the NBA. An early entry candidate from the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), Bennett starred for Canada’s junior national teams and was the Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year.

Karasev (6-7, 203, guard/forward) was selected 19th overall and led Russia to the Gold Medal in the World University Games in Kazan, Russia.

Felix (6-6, 210, guard/forward) was the third pick of the second round (33rd overall) following a senior season at Arizona State that earned him second-team All-Pac 12 honors and a spot on the Pac 12 All-Defensive team.

Irving’s future in Cleveland has been a topic of conversation since a New York radio host insisted on Twitter that Irving wouldn’t remain in Cleveland for long. Irving dismissed the report during a Team USA minicamp last month in Las Vegas, saying he was excited about the moves the organization made this summer and that “I’m a Cavalier right now. I’m happy to be a Cavalier.” Irving was asked Saturday why he qualified that with “right now.”

“Right now I’m a Cavalier. This is where I am. All that future stuff, I’m not really worried about,” Irving said. “I’m living in the moment right now and I’m just trying to get better with the teammates I have now and make the playoffs for Cleveland. That’s the only thing I can do right now is give it my all as it stands right now and that future stuff, I’m not really worried about it.”

The Cavs control Irving’s rights for three more seasons, and it’s worth noting no player has ever turned down a max contract coming off his rookie deal.

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Former NBA player Craig Ehlo was released from jail Friday and ordered to stay away from family members and his rural Spokane County home.

Superior Court Judge James Triplet set Ehlo’s arraignment for Aug. 14 on a charge of first-degree reckless burning, a Class C felony, the Spokesman-Review reported.

Ehlo also was ordered to stay away from fire-starting materials and remain in Washington state.

His lawyer’s name wasn’t immediately available Friday night.

Reported by the Associated Press

Local basketball star Craig Ehlo, who starred in the NBA and most recently coached at Eastern Washington University, was arrested early Thursday on a domestic violence charge.

Spokane County sheriff’s deputies arrested Ehlo, 51, on charges of first-degree reckless burning, domestic violence, according to the sheriff’s office. He was booked into Spokane county jail at 7:36 a.m.

The charge is a Class C felony.

Reported by the Spokesman-Review

One of the things David Griffin, Cavaliers vice president of basketball operations, said he loves about the organization is that the team’s ownership is “willing to invest in the process.”

It’s what allowed the Cavs to take time and to send multiple scouts to Europe to watch Sergey Karasev from St. Petersburg, Russia, play on junior national teams and in All-Star events on the international stage. That due diligence eventually led to the team targeting and then taking Karasev with the 19th pick in the first round of the NBA Draft.

“Throughout that process, what we were really excited about was his skill-set,” Griffin said Tuesday at Cleveland Clinic Courts. “His basketball IQ is excellent. He’s a very accomplished young player. To lead the Russian league in scoring at the age he did is unprecedented. He’s somebody, with his skill-set, [who] really spoke to us.”

Karasev, a 6-foot-7 left-hander with a good shooting stroke, according to many scouting reports, also has good court presence and is able to score with his right or left hand. That ambidexterity came about as Karasev shot with his left hand but off the court often lived as a righty.

Reported by Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal

Andrew Bynum is officially a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The free agent center signed a two-year, $24 million contract at the team’s suburban training facility on Friday, and he was introduced by general manager Chris Grant.

Bynum sat out the entire 2012-2013 season with Philadelphia because of knee injuries, but said he will be medically cleared to practice by the start of training camp. He underwent surgery on both knees in March.

– Reported by the Associated Press

Dion Waiters’ role will be simplified this season under Mike Brown. He’s the shooting guard, period. And the second word in that position is much more important to Brown than the first.

“I’m viewing him strictly as a 2-guard,” Brown said.

Former coach Byron Scott tried limiting Waiters to strictly shooting guard last year, but Waiters struggled adjusting to playing without the ball in his hands all the time, so Scott relented and allowed Waiters to run the point for long stretches. Brown is reverting back to making Waiters play off the ball, but made it clear the “guard” in his title is much, much more important than the “shooting.”

Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal