INDEPENDENCE: Cavaliers shooting guard J.R. Smith walked around Cleveland Clinic Courts a happy man on Sunday.
The 3-point sharp-shooter joked with teammates, hugged Cavs staff members and addressed the media about returning to play for the defending NBA champions.
“It feels great,” Smith said of being back with a reported four-year contract worth $57 million. “I didn’t take my physical yet, so I can’t practice, but it feels good to be in the gym, be around the guys and to be a part of it.”
Smith said he plans to practice Monday, which makes forward LeBron James happy.
“It’s great to have him here,” James said. “He is a brother of ours and we are happy that both sides came to an agreement. It’s time to get to work.
“He is a fan favorite and he is a team favorite, and I know he is excited about the opportunity to get out and prove even more what he is capable of.”
Smith has been a regular recently at Indians baseball games in the regular season and playoffs at Progressive Field, but he’s also found time to play basketball.
“I have worked out and done a bunch of basketball drills, but as far as 5-on-5 pickup I haven’t done anything like that,” Smith said. “I had a great team behind me as far as on the agent side. The Cavs wanted me and they knew I wanted to be here.”
Smith acknowledged the business side of things, and said it was “extremely difficult” to not report to training camp and be with his teammates.
“I got to kick it and hang with the guys off the court, but then I go home and they go back to practice the next day,” Smith said. “I go back to this lonely gym working out by myself [in Garfield Heights]. It was an extremely tough time, but fortunately it is over.”
Smith said he “expects to play Tuesday [in a preseason game at Ohio State against the Washington Wizards], but obviously it is the coach’s decision.”
“I am in great workout shape; it’s just a matter of getting into game-shape,” he said. “It is totally different when you’re running up and down the court guarding somebody and doing all of that. My legs and shot feel really good.”
Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said he plans to play Smith on Tuesday.
“I am very happy to have J.R. back,” Lue said. “It’s been a long process and I am glad that both ends were able to come to an agreement and get our starting two guard back. It was great just having him around today.”
Television cameras have spotted Smith and James at recent Indians playoff wins over the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays. Cavs players Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson, Richard Jefferson, James Jones, Channing Frye, Jordan McRae, Dahntay Jones, Chris Andersen and Iman Shumpert have joined Smith and James at the games.
The top nine in the Cavs’ rotation is now under contract for at least the next two seasons. Frye and Mike Dunleavy will be free agents in 2018, and James and Shumpert have the opportunity to join them. Love is under team control through the summer of 2019 and Smith, Irving and Thompson are under team control through 2020.
“This is a team that wants to grow together,” James said. “Go through bumps and bruises together. Go through successes and go through everything together. It is great to know that we will all be together for awhile. It’s fun times for all of us.
“... We have got a great nucleus, we have got a great staff, we have got a great system and we have got a great thing in place. I am happy to be a part of it.”
Buying locally
Smith and his wife, Jewel, are expecting the birth of a child, and plan to live in the area.
“I went to [New] Jersey for a month or two, and for the most part I was here,” Smith said. “My daughter started the first day of school and we have been here ever since.”
Smith said he plans to soon buy a house in “Cleveland slash Akron.”
“I am setting up shop,” Smith said. “This is going to be home.”
Repeat?
Smith is pumped about the Cavs’ chances to repeat as NBA champions, but also knows that several teams have improved, including the Warriors, who signed Kevin Durant to play alongside Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala.
“We have an unbelievable opportunity to repeat,” Smith said. “We have a great nucleus of guys once again. We are starting 0-0 just like everybody else and we are so far from that. We just have to continue to get better everyday and not focus on the championship.
“We are going to get everybody’s best shot, so we really have to take it game-by-game.”
Tribe time
James continues to be impressed by the Indians and players such as Francisco Lindor, Jason Kipnis, Corey Kluber, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen.
“Terry Francona has a great system in and those guys are following it,” James said. “It’s fun to see what they are doing. They are playing great ball.”
James said he watches baseball in October and keeps up on other sports, such as football. Smith said he was center fielder and pitcher in baseball, before focusing on basketball full-time during his sophomore year of high school.
“I love baseball,” Smith said. “The hand-eye coordination and a lot of skills I use here is because of baseball. I am a huge baseball fan. I originally — I can’t lie — I’m a huge [New York] Yankees fan, obviously, but I am embracing the home team.
“I talk to a lot of the guys on the [Indians] team. I talk to Tito. He is an unbelievable manager. The guys are unbelievable. ... You gotta love Carlos [Santana]. The way he plays, obviously he’s a switch hitter and he plays the field. He can pretty much do it all. Surprisingly, to be so tiny he has so much power that he generates from behind that bat.”
Douglas waived
The Cavs waived point guard Toney Douglas to make room on the roster for Smith. Lue said rookie Kay Felder is the Cavs backup point guard to Irving.
“With [owners] Dan Gilbert, Nate Forbes and Jeff [Cohen], and Griff [general manager David Griffin], they do a great job of putting this team together,” Lue said.
Michael Beaven can be reached at 330-996-3829 or mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.com.