CLEVELAND — After losing out in the LeBron James sweepstakes earlier in the week, the Cleveland Cavaliers set their sights on adding another small forward and on Sunday landed a star player overseas—agreeing to terms with EuroLeague star Mario Hezonja, as ESPN's Shams Charania first reported.
Hezonja and the Cavs agreed to a one-year, $2.8 million deal that gives Cleveland a much-needed wing player and brings Hezonja back to the NBA.
Originally selected by the Orlando Magic out of Barcelona with the fifth overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, Hezonja spent five seasons in the NBA between the Magic, the New York Knicks and the Portland Trail Blazers.
For the past five seasons, Hezonja has played overseas. He began playing with Panathinaikos in 2021 before signing with the Russian team UNICS, and in 2022 joined Real Madrid, where he's risen to stardom.
Hezonja became a EuroLeague champion in 2023 and over the years earned a number of accolades, including Spanish Liga MVP, a Spanish Cup win, and two Spanish Supercup wins.
This past season in EuroLeague play, Hezonja averaged 13.5 points, 2.2 assists and 3.9 rebounds while shooting 42.7% from the field and 30.2% from three. In Liga ACB play this past season, Hezonja averaged 17.5 points, 1.9 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 1.0 steals while shooting 46.5% from the field and 36.6% from three.
Hezonja hopes to have his resurgence overseas translate to his second stint in the NBA, while the Cavs are hoping to solidify a strong wing player who has been a position of importance for several seasons.
