Report: Rajon Rondo, Mario Chalmers on Cavs’ radar as backup PG options

The defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers are in the market for point guard depth, and they may be considering shooting their shot.

According to a report by Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com on Thursday, the Cavs are eyeing backup point guard options and have Rajon Rondo of the Chicago Bulls and free agent Mario Chalmers on their radar.

Chalmers hasn’t played in the league since tearing his Achilles last March but is believed to be nearing a return. He won two championships with LeBron James on the Miami Heat and was also teammates there with current Cavs James Jones and Chris Andersen.

But Rondo is the one who provides the juicier storyline here. We know that his time in Chicago hasn’t quite worked out as he was recently demoted from the rotation entirely. But Rondo is known for his locker room toxicity, which would probably outweigh the elite playmaking he might bring to Cleveland’s second unit. Plus, could Rondo, a longtime Eastern Conference rival of James, really end up on his team just over four years after this picture?

What’s certain is that the Cavs have a need. They let Matthew Dellavedova walk this past summer and have been forced to give the backup point guard minutes to Iman Shumpert, Jordan McRae, DeAndre Liggins (all natural wing players) and 5-foot-9 rookie Kay Felder. But as urgency beckons with Kyrie Irving missing time recently due to a hamstring injury, Cleveland seems almost certain to make a move for a floor general within the coming weeks.