Mo Williams shocked the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday by informing them of his retirement just minutes before they were set to begin media day. Now, the Cavs are scrambling to figure out who will be their backup point guard.
Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com reports that the team has already reached out to free-agent guards Mario Chalmers, Kirk Hinrich and Norris Cole about replacing Williams. However, the team may wait to see what it has in second-round-pick Kay Felder before making a move for one of the free agents.
Chalmers and Cole are natural fits because of their experience playing with LeBron James on the Miami Heat. The 30-year-old Chalmers -- who famously had a tumultuous relationship with James -- is coming off a torn Achilles but had a strong season with the Memphis Grizzlies last season prior to his injury and has been cleared to resume basketball activities.
Cole, 27, is a free agent after two seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans. He had career-high averages last year in minutes, points, assists and rebounds per game despite being limited to 45 games. He has also received interest from the Denver Nuggets and Philadelphia 76ers, according to Sam Amico of Amico Hoops.
Hinrich, 35, played a reserve role with the Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks last season. It's unclear what he has to offer as a lead guard at this point in his career, but he has consistently been an above-average shooter (38 percent from 3-point range).
The team may just end up looking internally, as James has proven to be an adept point guard. Not to mention Felder, the team's only pick in June's draft, turned heads at Oakland University by averaging 24.4 PPG and 9.3 APG. Though he's only 5-foot-9, the rookie will get a chance to prove he is up to the task of replacing Williams.
--Sam Henken
