The Cavaliers have discussed waiving and stretching Cam Whitmore's $5.4 million salary after deals for James Harden and Peyton Watson tightened their cap situation.
The Cleveland Cavaliers may not keep Cam Whitmore for long after acquiring him from the Washington Wizards.
Cleveland has discussed waiving Whitmore and stretching the $5.4 million remaining on his contract over three seasons, Cleveland.com's Chris Fedor said on the Wine and Gold Talk podcast.
"I'm told that Harden's starting salary in year one is going to be around $30.5 million," Fedor said. "So the Cavs have had conversations about the possibility of a waive-and-stretch for Cam Whitmore."
Doing so would leave Cleveland with a $1.8 million charge for Whitmore in each of the next three seasons. His 2026-27 number would drop by about $3.6 million.
ESPN's Bobby Marks expects Cleveland to take that route.
"They are going to waive and stretch Whitmore over three years," Marks said.
James Harden Deal Leaves Cavaliers Working Against First Apron
Cleveland became hard-capped at the first apron when it acquired Peyton Watson in a sign-and-trade. The first apron is $209.02 million for 2026-27. The second apron is $221.69 million.
Marks had Cleveland roughly $29 million below the first apron before Harden was re-signed. Harden's new contract is worth $97 million over three years and includes a player option for 2028-29 and a trade kicker.
Harden declined a $42.3 million option in June before agreeing to the new contract.
Cleveland acquired him from the Los Angeles Clippers on Feb. 4 for Darius Garland and a second-round pick. Harden averaged 20.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 7.7 assists in 26 regular-season games after the trade.
The Cavaliers also don't have a first-round pick available to trade, Marks said.
Whitmore came to Cleveland from Washington for Tre Mann, a 2027 second-round pick that originally belonged to the Clippers, and cash.
Mann's stay with the Cavaliers was even shorter. Cleveland had acquired him from the Charlotte Hornets in the Dennis Schroder trade before folding that transaction into the five-team Watson deal.
Houston drafted Whitmore with the No. 20 pick in 2023.
He played 21 games for Washington last season and averaged 9.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 0.7 assists. Whitmore shot 45.6% from the field and 28.6% from 3-point range.
His rookie year remains his best scoring season. Whitmore averaged 12.3 points and 3.8 rebounds in 18.7 minutes per game for Houston in 2023-24.
Cleveland is his third NBA team in four seasons.
Peyton Watson Became Cleveland's Major Wing Addition
Watson received a four-year, $88 million contract from Cleveland. The deal has a player option and a 7.5% trade kicker.
Denver selected Watson 30th overall in 2022. Last season, he played 54 games, averaging 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.1 assists, with a shooting percentage of 49.1% overall and 41.1% from three-point range.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, the Milwaukee Bucks, Portland Trail Blazers, and Clippers also submitted offers for Watson prior to his deal with Cleveland.
Denver acquired Cleveland's unprotected 2031 first-round pick, Sacramento's 2032 second-round pick, and two-way forward Julian Reese. Max Strus was traded to the Clippers, and Schroder along with cash went to Charlotte.
The Cavaliers also picked up the draft rights to Ismael Kamagate from the Clippers.
Kamagate was selected as the No. 46 pick in the 2022 draft and has yet to play in an NBA game. His rights have previously been held by Detroit, Portland, Denver, and Los Angeles.
Last season, the 6-foot-11 center played 20 Turkish BSL games for Besiktas, averaging 8.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks. He has now committed to join Varese in Italy's Serie A for the 2026-27 season.
Cleveland has made several additional changes following their 52-30 record and appearance in the Eastern Conference finals last season.
Dean Wade left for Philadelphia. Keon Ellis signed with Brooklyn, and Larry Nance Jr. joined Indiana. The Cavaliers signed Mario Hezonja and re-signed Thomas Bryant.
Kenny Atkinson will return for his third season as Cleveland's coach.
Whitmore's status is among the remaining roster decisions before September's training camp. If Cleveland opts for the waive-and-stretch, his tenure with the Cavaliers ends before he plays a game.
