Shawn Marion

Now, Shawn Marion (0) with LeBron James (6) will be wearing Cavs uniforms.

(AP)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Let's start with the obvious -- no LeBron James, no Shawn Marion coming to the Cavaliers.

Certainly not for the $1.4 million minimum veteran's salary that was agreed to on Sunday, according to league sources

But Marion was a much harder sell than some of the other veterans who have signed up to play with James in Cleveland.

Mike Miller was a teammate of James in Miami. He knows James helped deliver two championship rings. Miller turned down more money from Denver (three years and more than $10 million) to sign a two-year, $5.5 million contract with the Cavaliers.

James Jones also signed with the Cavs ($1.4 million, veteran's minimum). He played with James in Miami.

In fact, Ray Allen, Jones and James have taken family vacations together.

The Cavs have left the door open for Allen to sign a $1.4 minimum contract. The 39-year-old guard is still deciding if he wants to play another season. If he does, it probably will be with the Cavs.

So Miller, Jones, Allen and James all have been together in Miami.

But not Marion.

And in many ways, he may be the most important free agent acquisition after James for the Cavs this season.

Cleveland Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin has known Shawn Marion for 16 years.

RECRUITING MARION

After James signed with the Cavs on July 11, one of the names at the top of the free-agent list for Cavs General Manager David Griffin was Marion.

With the possibility of Andrew Wiggins being part of the deal to Minnesota for Kevin Love, the Cavs knew they had to find another small forward to play behind James.

Like most veteran free agents, Marion was interested in playing with James and having a shot at the title. But he was not close to James, not part of the inner circle that includes Miller, Jones and Allen.

But Marion had a long relationship with Griffin, dating back to when Marion was the first-round pick of the Phoenix Suns in 1999.

At that point, Griffin was early in his front office career, and he didn't have an influence on the selection of the draft.

Marion was with the Suns from 1999-08. During that time, Griffin gained new responsibilities. By 2007, he was the top assistant to former Suns General Manager Steve Kerr.

So Griffin developed a solid relationship with Marion. And that would be important, as Marion considered where he wanted to play this season.

Shawn Marion gives the Cavs desperately needed depth at small forward.

FALLING INTO PLACE

The 6-foot-7 Marion was with Dallas last season, averaging 10.4 points and 6.5 rebounds.

For his 15-year career, Marion is a 16-point scorer who has averaged 9.0 rebounds. He was a key part of the 2011 Dallas Mavericks, who upset Miami and James in the NBA Finals.

His salary last season: $9.3 million.

At this stage of his career, Marion wanted to play for a serious championship contender.

But he also wanted to be paid more than the veteran's minimum. That was a problem because all the top contenders are close to or over the salary cap -- meaning the minimum salary was all that was available.

Dallas could pay him more, but the Mavericks pursued another small forward -- Houston's Chandler Parsons.

A restricted free agent, Parsons received a three-year, $46 million offer sheet from Dallas. The assumption was that Houston would match, but Dallas added special language dealing with trades.

Chandler could not be traded without his approval. He also could opt out of the final year of the deal. He is paid $14.7 million this season, $15.4 million next year. Parsons could not be traded to any team without his approval. He also could become a free agent in the summer of 2016 -- two seasons into the deal.

Houston decided not to match the offer.

That meant Dallas had to make salary cap room for Parsons. It's complicated, but they were forced to "renounce the rights" to Marion.

This meant two things:

Dallas could not go over the salary cap to sign Marion. Dallas could not work a sign-and-trade deal for Marion, which would have allowed Marion to receive a larger contract with another team.

Suddenly, he was very much a possibility for the Cavs, who are limited to offering only the veteran's minimum.

LeBron James coming home has been a magnet to other veterans to join him in Cleveland.

THE VISIT, THE CALL

Marion came to Cleveland on August 4, and had long meetings with Coach David Blatt and Griffin.

Marion felt very comfortable with Griffin, because of their relationship dating back to Phoenix. Blatt impressed Marion with his ideas of how Marion can fit into the team.

Even at 36, Marion remains athletic. He can play small forward, or even some power forward. Blatt talked about the Cavs having some combinations on the floor featuring James at power forward, Marion at small forward.

No one needed to say a word about Kevin Love (because the deal is still pending and can't be announced until August 23), but the idea was Marion/Love/James could all be on the floor at the same time in certain situations.

Assuming Wiggins is traded, the Cavs had no other viable small forward besides James.

At this stage of his career, Miller seems better suited for shooting guard. He has averaged only 2.6 rebounds in the last two seasons. He also battles a cranky back.

Jones is a small forward, but primarily a shooter. He played little in Miami because Coach Erik Spoelstra thought Jones was soft and a major defensive liability. The 6-foot-8 Jones is a 40-percent career shooter from 3-point range, and the Cavs believe he can help in special moments of a game where outside shooting is required. Jones is especially effective shooting from deep in the corner.

After talking about the roster and possible roles on the team with the Cavs brass, Marion received a phone call.

It was from James.

The theme was clear: "Come on board, this is going to be fun."

THE WAIT

Marion liked everything he heard from the Cavs except the contract figure.

He visited Indiana, where the Pacers could offer him up to $5.3 million. But that would have put them in luxury tax territory. After star small forward Paul George broke his leg playing for the USA National Team, the Pacers realized a title was not a real possibility.

Because of that, they didn't want to pay the luxury tax. The most they could offer Marion without paying the extra tax was $1.7 million.

Miami also was interested, but the Heat also had no cap room to sign Marion for more than the minimum.

The Cavs had been upbeat about their chances of signing Marion, but were worried about the wait. They became more concerned when the Clippers made a bid. Coached by Doc Rivers, the Clippers are an attractive team with Blake Griffin and Chris Paul. But they also are over the cap, and could only offer the veteran's minimum.

Griffin spent time talking to Marion on Saturday, and finally heard Sunday morning that he had committed to the Cavs.

The Cavs have not commented on Marion and no official announcement has been made, but the deal is done.

WHAT IT MEANS

While Marion is 36, he has only missed an average of five games per season over the last five years. He averaged 31 minutes a game in that span.

His strengths are passing and defending, along with shooting 36 percent from 3-point range. But the Cavs also like his durability.



Starting with the 2010-11 season (the first for James in Miami), James has played the most minutes in the NBA. This is according to ESPN's Tom Haberstroh, and it included the playoffs. That makes sense because James has been in the last four NBA Finals.

As he approached the age of 30 and starting his 12th season, James wants to cut back some of his minutes -- especially in the regular season, where he averaged 37.7 minutes.

That's why Marion is important.

Here's something else to consider, and a peek into the big-money world of the NBA. Why would Miller take less money from Cleveland than Denver?



According to Basketballreference.com, Miller has already been paid $76 million during his NBA career.

As for Marion, it's $133 million for his career.

Ray Allen is at $184 million.

Yes, that's before taxes -- but it's certainly enough money to give these men plenty of options.

And that is another reason why Miller and Marion have followed James to Cleveland -- and perhaps, why Allen may eventually do the same.