Getty Images Matthew Dellavedova during his first stint with the Cavs.
It feels like yesterday Matthew Dellavedova was playing with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Well, probably because that’s almost the case. Maybe that was a bit of a stretch, but seriously, this guy was made to play with the Cavaliers. Back in 2013, Dellavedova went undrafted, but the Cleveland Cavaliers were the team that wanted to take a chance on him. He ended up lasting a solid three seasons, and it paid off with an NBA Finals ring.
A ring wasn’t the only way Dellavedova was paid off though. Despite being an undrafted prospect out of Saint Mary’s, Dellavedova ended up picking up some traction from another team, which got him dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks. Delly was one of the first players to leave from the Cavs championship roster, as that entire 2016 regime quickly fell apart.
Dellavedova would leave for a while, but there’s no way they could keep him out of Cleveland for long. Just the other day, the Bucks decided to phone their old friends in Cleveland, dangling the bait that was the beloved Dellavedova. Naturally, Cleveland was interested and decided to get a three-way trade going, which landed Delly back in his natural habitat in Cleveland. Obviously, Cavs fans were thrilled, and they showed their guy tons of love on Wednesday night during his 2018 debut with the Cavs.
An Ovation Was in Order
It didn’t take long for the newest member to the team to get on the floor against the New York Knicks. Naturally, the Cleveland crowd went crazy as Dellavedova has strangley had the city of Cleveland in the palm of his hand since playing with them during his first stint in the NBA. Already, Dellavedova is fitting right in with his new role as he has already surpassed his average points-per-game in just under ten minutes against the Knicks.
So far this season with the Bucks, Delly was a bit under-utilized, as he only saw around eight minutes-per-game. It’s clear that his return to Cleveland will definitely get him to pick up some more playing time in a more prominent role off the bench. You would have to think that Cleveland made that move for reasons other than just to make the fans in the crowd happy, right?