Andrew Bynum suspended indefinitely by Cavaliers

The suspension came after Bynum reportedly started taking wild shots during practice and being disinterested in participating. Bynum had played in 24 games prior to his suspension, averaging 8.4 points and 5.3 rebounds in 20 minutes per.

The Cavaliers signed Bynum to a two-year, partially guaranteed deal this summer and must waive him prior to Jan. 7 in order to save $6.2 million in salary, otherwise he’ll be paid the full $12.2 million he’s owed in the first year of his deal. The Cavs have been in trade discussions with multiple teams, but the market is minimal for the oft-injured center.

The Cavs will weigh their options and aim to make a decision by Monday. If they were to release him, they would have to do it by Tuesday, as it takes three days for players to clear waivers and his contract would become guaranteed for the year on Jan. 10.

The Cavaliers reportedly began exploring trade options involving Bynum by reaching out to other teams, asking for much more than what anyone was willing to part with.

That Bynum’s attempt to resuscitate an injury-savaged career didn’t pan out hardly registers as a shock. Neither did the immediate reaction by those both inside and outside of the NBA. As one league source told Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports:

He doesn’t want it bad enough. That’s essentially been the chief narrative surrounding Bynum the last two seasons. It was the case when he missed all of last season in Philadelphia, a year in which his last reported injury was sustained while bowling. It was the case even before that as well, as an anonymous former teammate once said: “I’ve never met another player in the league who likes basketball less [than Bynum].”

Bynum missed the entire 2012-13 season while recovering from knee issues, but Cleveland signed the big man to a contract full of stipulations and unguaranteed money. In the first year of the two-year contract, Bynum is only owed $6 million of $12.2 million, and the Cavs have until Jan. 7 to trade or waive him, thus avoiding paying the full amount.

So it appears the Cavs may be forced to waive him or keep him, hoping he could still buy in to Cleveland’s culture. Going the trade route hasn’t panned out with a week to go before Bynum’s contract becomes fully-guaranteed.

Bynum signed a two-year, $24 million contract with the Cavs based largely on incentives in July. Just $6 million of his 2013-2014 salary is guaranteed before the Jan. 7 cutoff. At that point, his guaranteed money doubles to $12 million.

That will likely affect trade considerations for Bynum, who could be swapped and waived, saving the incoming team serious cap considerations.