CLEVELAND (AP) -Shannon Brown missed all five shots, made two turnovers and didn’t score in six minutes of Cleveland’s 92-74 season-opening loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night.
After the game, he got swatted – by the Cavaliers.
The club decided not to pick up its contract option for 2008-09 on Brown, a former first-round draft pick from Michigan State whose rookie season was slowed by injuries. The Cavs had until midnight to exercise the guard’s $1.1 million salary for next season.
It was assumed the club would extend Brown’s deal, but general manager Danny Ferry opted otherwise.
“I really don’t know how disappointed I am,” Brown said after practice Thursday. “I really don’t know what the future will bring. All I can do right now is play for now and see what happens.”
Brown played in just 23 games last season because of a serious leg injury. The 6-foot-4 slasher figured to get more playing time this season, but the Cavs’ signing of Sasha Pavlovic to a three-year contract and addition of rookie Demetris Nichols may have altered plans for Brown.
“We really like Shannon,” Ferry said. “At this point, we haven’t used him a whole lot. We figured this was the right decision for now and we can still readdress it at the end of this year.”
Brown will be an unrestricted free agent after this season.
A few days before training camp opened, Brown was involved in a fight at a Cleveland night club. No charges have been filed related to the incident. A video filmed by a witness showed Brown pinned to the ground and handcuffed by the club’s staff.
The Cavaliers did pick up the $1.7 million contract of forward Cedric Simmons for next season. Simmons was acquired in a trade with the New Orleans Hornets in September.
Meanwhile, the Cavs got back to work following the ugly loss, which came on the night they unfurled a banner celebrating their Eastern Conference championship from last season.
While the loss was disappointing, the Cavaliers are far from panicking.
“It’s a marathon in this league,” LeBron James said. “It’s not the best impression you want to make, but it’s not the last.”
Pavlovic officially signed his new deal, which reportedly averages between $4 million and $5 million per season, during Wednesday’s game. The Serbian swingman had been holding out for more money and the Cavs finally worked out an agreement.
“It’s really good to have him back,” Ferry said. “He can help us from a scoring standpoint and a depth standpoint.”
However, Pavlovic can’t help the Cavs until he gets other important paperwork completed.
On Thursday, he was in Buffalo, N.Y., to get a new visa. On Friday, he’ll be in Toronto for another visa before he can cleared to play. It’s unlikely he’ll have everything in order in time for Friday’s game against New York.
“Doubtful is how we would list him and not due to injury,” Ferry said, “due to immigration.”
Ferry reported no change in talks with restricted free agent forward Anderson Varejao, who is also holding out. Varejao is seeking a deal worth $9 million per season.
“It’s a guy we respect and like and would like to have back with our team,” Ferry reiterated. “We’ve made fair proposals, several times. We’ve got to make decisions based off not just the short term, but the long term of the franchise.”
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