Unhappy Smith wants Cavs to trade him

CLEVELAND» J.R. Smith has added another tier to the Cavaliers’ mounting troubles.

Dropped from the rotation and unhappy with his role on a team rebuilding through youth, Smith said Thursday that he wants to be traded. The enigmatic guard said he hasn’t formally requested a trade by Cleveland’s front office because the Cavs are already aware of his feelings.

“They know,” Smith said following shootaround. “They don’t want me, so they obviously know.”

The 33yearold Smith said he was told earlier this season that the Cavs would be focused on playing their younger players to develop them for the future. Cleveland’s back to being an alsoran in the Eastern Conference following LeBron James’ departure this summer as a free agent.

Smith didn’t play in Tuesday night’s win over Atlanta, the Cavs’ first game since coach Tyronn Lue was fired following a 06 start. And while Smith understood that his minutes were going to be drastically reduced — if not taken away completely — it’s been a challenge for him to stay motivated.

“It is hard,” he said. “Fortunately I got a great crew of people, former teammates, teammates, former coaches, lot of people in my ear that’s helped me to go through this process. But at the end of the day, I can’t take it out on my teammates. Regardless how hard it is to walk in here and actually put on, as hard as it may sound, to put on a Cavs jersey or shirt, I can’t do that to my teammates.

“I can’t do that to the fans.” It’s been a tough opening month for the Cavs, who fired Lue and believed they were replacing him with assistant Larry Drew. However, Drew said he doesn’t want the ‘interim’ tag unless he gets some assurance from Cleveland’s front office and the sides have not come to an agreement on a restructured contract.

Cavaliers awarded 2022 NBA AllStar Game.

The NBA’s spotlight faded from Cleveland last summer. It will shine brilliantly again in four years.

After numerous “passionate” discussions between the team and league, Commissioner Adam Silver announced Thursday that the Cavaliers will host the 2022 AllStar Game at Quicken Loans Arena.

The Cavaliers are thrilled to host the event, which will coincide with the league’s 75th anniversary.

Cleveland previously hosted the AllStar Game in 1997, when the league honored its Top 50 players.