Anderson Varejao interested in returning to Cavs

Anderson Varejao may be a forgotten man these days, but he is hoping that his longtime NBA club has not forgotten about him.

Speaking with The Athletic’s Joe Vardon in an interview this weekend, the Brazilian big man, who is competing for his home country at the FIBA World Cup this year, expressed interest in returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“I am focused on the World Cup and trying to do my best with Brazil and trying to help Brazil accomplish something big,” said Varejao. “But it wouldn’t be bad to come back to Cleveland.”

Vardon was quick to clarify though that the Cavs have not shown any interest in bringing back the 36-year-old, and in any case, Varejao was envisioning a role as an end-of-bench mentor for the team’s young players.

The former All-Defensive Second Teamer played 12 of his 13 NBA seasons in Cleveland but was traded away in 2016, missing out on his opportunity to win a championship with them. He averaged 1.3 points and 1.9 rebounds per game for the Golden State Warriors the last he played in the 2016-17 season.

The Cavs previously had interest in bringing back Varejao during the latter part of the LeBron James era, and with the team in a rebuilding phase, it remains to be seen whether they will consider the proposition again.