Remember Ray Allen? LeBron James does and he is wondering when his former teammate is going to come back into the league. Allen has been sitting on the market as a free agent while expressing little to no interest in returning following his time with the Miami Heat. Allen has not stated that he is retired from the NBA which is leading James to continue his recruiting pitchers to the guard.
According to multiple NBA sources via ESPN.com, James recently made a recruiting pitch to Allen while down in Miami. The Cleveland Cavaliers star was recently in South Beach for two weeks while he rehabbed a strained left knee and lower back issue. While taking in the warmer weather, the forward reportedly paid a visit to free agent Allen to inquire about his interest in coming back to the league. Allen has 18 seasons under his belt, but has not played since the Heat lost in the NBA Finals to the San Antonio Spurs. James is hoping he decides to come play the remainder of the season in Cleveland.
ESPN's Ryen Russillo reported that Allen has been telling teams calling about interest in a contract to check back with him at the end of January. It had been speculated that Allen was preparing to wait until after the All-Star break to sign with a team that looked to be contending for a championship. The veteran has no interest in wasting his energy with a team that is not poised for the playoffs at this point in his career.
James has been recruiting Allen hard since signing with the Cavaliers. He believes the guard could be the final piece to the championship puzzle. While Cleveland is struggling with chemistry, they have shown signs of improvement which could entice Allen back onto the court. There is also the fact that his former teammates Mike Miller and James Jones are also in Cleveland.
The Cavaliers could make the signing work without having to trade anyone away. The team has one roster spot open that could be used for Allen. The guard will demand more than the veteran's minimum, but Cleveland has money from trade exceptions. The guard averaged 9.3 points per game during last year's playoff run and was shooting 41 percent during that time. The Cavaliers would welcome those numbers.
Getting Allen would cap off a number of roster changes over the past few weeks in Cleveland. The team acquired Iman Shumpert, JR Smith and Timofey Mozgov in trades. They are still interested in getting a backup point guard to help if Kyrie Irving gets injured. The team has looked at players like Nate Robinson and Jordan Farmar who are sitting on the free agent market. However, that will come into question if the team gets Allen. They would have to release a player to make the deals work.