Cavs extend qualifying offer to Jarrett Allen; he’ll be RFA

Jarrett Allen was a quality trade acquisition by the Cleveland Cavaliers from the Brooklyn Nets, who was shipped to Cleveland, along with Taurean Prince, as part of the James Harden-centric blockbuster trade in mid-January.

Allen initially came off the bench behind Andre Drummond, but that didn’t last long, as Drummond/his camp and the Cavs eventually agreed that he’d sit up until Cleveland could find a trade partner for him. That didn’t happen, as the two sides came to a buyout agreement.

On the plus side, Allen looks to have been a nice addition, as noted. He had 13.2 points, 9.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per outing in 51 games with the Cavaliers last season, and formed quite the pick-and-roll pairing with Darius Garland.

It would appear as if Allen could very well be a key piece for the Cavs moving forward as well, although he is set to be a restricted free agent next month. Cleveland it’d seem could definitely match a potential offer sheet for him, and to that point, as was a formality basically, the Cavaliers extended a qualifying offer to Allen this afternoon, per a report from Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor.

The qualifying offer is set to be $7.7 million, per Spotrac.

This was a no-brainer decision by the Cavs.

This was again essentially a mere formality, as with what Allen showed and I believe can be moving forward for Cleveland as a solid starting 5, who I think can pair well with 2021 NBA Draft prospect Evan Mobley, this was a simple move. It was a no-brainer.

Allen is a player that needs to improve on the offensive end, sure, I’m not disputing that, but he is a very efficient roller and has both great touch with both hands inside and is an outstanding lob threat/target for the likes of Garland and others.

Plus, even while Allen does need to put on some more weight feasibly, he is a really effective screener, both on and off the ball. And that’s made a difference for Garland, and can be moving forward for Collin Sexton, if he sticks around (in regards to recent trade rumors), and others.

On the defensive end of the floor with Allen, he is a legitimate rim protector/shot alterer in the paint as well, and his potential fit with Mobley, with Mobley’s versatility/team defensive instincts/rim protection, could be a big-time defensive duo for Cleveland, too.

Granted, the long term potential pairing with those two, projecting onward, is not a guaranteed fit in relation to offense, as Mobley needs to, while I buy it, show more as a perimeter shooter/shot creation in the mid-range to maximize that dynamic.

But that pairing, with Mobley’s touch he’s shown in other areas, to go with his guard-like handle and passing vision for a big, could be a great one for years to come for the Cavaliers, I personally think. That’s in the event Mobley’s Cleveland’s pick, which could very well be the case at #3 overall, though.

So, while a potential Allen contract could be over $100 million, based on prior reports/rumors, or perhaps seemingly be in the $20 million per year realm for four years maybe, I still couldn’t blame Cleveland for doing that/matching a possible offer sheet. Allen looks to be a crucial member of the Cavs core long term, and per Fedor, Cleveland re-signing him to a long-term deal is reportedly an “offseason priority.”

And although there haven’t been too many instances of it, with his touch on some looks in the mid-range off-the-catch, and a respectable free throw hit rate, there could be some true three-point shooting potential/pick-and-pop stuff that’s untapped with him. He is again only 23, and I’d expect the Cavaliers to keep around.

As far as the likes of Isaiah Hartenstein, who reportedly declined his $1.8 million player option for next season earlier on Friday and will become a free agent, you can view more on that/a potential qualifying offer for him at this link.

With Allen, however, I again would still expect him to stick around, and if a potential trade eventually came down the road, okay. But I would expect him to be around for a while.