Former Cleveland Cavaliers second-round pick Luke Travers reportedly has been granted a release from his contract with Melbourne United so he can pursue an opportunity in the NBA.
Melbourne United has granted Luke Travers a release from his contract, the team says. It’s a mutual release so Travers – the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 56th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft – can “pursue NBA opportunities”.
— Olgun Uluc (@OlgunUluc) August 7, 2024
According to Hoops Wire’s Sam Amico, Travers hopes to join the Cavs in the 2024-25 season.
“Either way, Travers is hoping to join the Cavs next season on the court, a source familiar with his thinking told Hoops Wire,” Amico wrote.
The No. 56 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, Travers averaged 12.3 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 51.6 percent from the field for Melbourne United during the 2023-24 season. During his time with Melbourne United, Travers played with former Cavs guard Matthew Dellavedova.
Cleveland currently has the rights to the 22-year-old, so it’s possible that he could join the Cavs in some capacity, whether it is a two-way deal or a standard contract.
The Cavs have not made any major moves to add to their roster this offseason outside of drafting forward Jaylon Tyson in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft.
Instead, Cleveland has focused on keeping its core together, signing Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley and Donovan Mitchell all to contract extensions. Those extensions are a sign that the Cavs believe that their core can take a step forward under new head coach Kenny Atkinson, especially since Cleveland reached the second round of the playoffs in the 2023-24 season.
Even though Travers doesn’t have any NBA experience, the Cavs could view him as a developmental piece that they want for the future. If Travers does end up with the Cavs in the 2024-25 season, he’ll have a lot of guards/forwards to fight for playing time in Atkinson’s rotation.
Since acquiring Mitchell ahead of the 2022-23 season, the Cavs have made back-to-back playoff appearances, finishing with the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference in both the 2022-23 campaign and the 2023-24 season.
Travers was drafted by the franchise prior to the Mitchell trade in the same draft where Cleveland selected Ochai Agbaji in the first round and Isaiah Mobley, Travers and Khalifa Diop in the second round.
Of the Cavs’ three second-round picks in the 2022 NBA Draft, Travers was picked the lowest at No. 56 (Diop went No. 39 and Mobley went at No. 49).
