Cavs sign 'Wild Thing' Anderson Varejao to 10-day contract

CLEVELAND — Anderson "Wild Thing" Varejao will end his NBA career where he started it. Already with a full 17-player roster, the injury-ravaged Cavaliers successfully petitioned the NBA for a hardship exception and signed the popular veteran to a 10-day contract Tuesday. The team is expected to file more paperwork and then give the 6-foot-10, 273-pounder another 10-day deal so he can finish the season — and his career — with the Cavs, with whom he spent the first 11½ years of his initial 13-year NBA career. "Cleveland is home for me," Varejao said on a Zoom call following the team's morning shootaround, repeatedly flashing his trademark smile during a 15-minute interview. "I've been in Cleveland since 2004. I love the city, I love the fans, I love the organization. I'm extremely happy and excited about coming back. "It's not just the end of this season, it's the 12 (previous) years that I've been here (as a player). That all counts to me. The love and support I had from Day 1, it's just amazing." The 38-year-old Varejao was traded to Portland during Cleveland's title-winning 2015-16 season. Part of the deal that helped the Cavs land Channing Frye, he was quickly waived by the Trail Blazers and eventually signed by Golden State, for whom he last played on Feb. 2, 2017. "It's part of the business," Varejao said of not playing for the Cavs in the 2016 NBA Finals. "I wasn't the first one or the last one who got traded." Varejao, who maintained a home in Cleveland when he was traded, worked out in his garage during the height of the coronavirus pandemic and avoided contact with others as much as he could, largely because he and wife Stacy have a 1-year-old daughter, Serenee. "I was lifting in the garage, I was lifting in the basement, I was doing basketball with one coach," he said. "I didn't want to expose myself or anything like that. I'm glad I did all that because now I'm back with the Cavs. It's a great feeling. It's amazing, actually." Now reunited with former Cavs teammates Kevin Love and Matthew Dellavedova, Varejao appeared in 591 regular-season games (208 starts) in his first stint in Cleveland, averaging 7.6 points on .512 shooting and 7.5 rebounds. He was a second-team All-Defensive pick following the 2009-10 season. Admired by fans for his relentless, hustling style, the Brazil native ranks among the franchise's career leaders in rebounds (6th, 4,434), games played (8th), blocks (T-8th, 397) and steals (8th, 529). "His infectious work ethic and commitment to our community have earned him his rightful place in the fabric of this organization and all of Northeast Ohio, and have established a genuine admiration that resonates strongly throughout our passionate fan base," Cavs general manager Koby Altman said in a statement. "There are not many athletes who can impact the game of basketball the way Andy has over his career." Varejao was part of the first Cavs team to reach the NBA Finals in 2007, but missed The Finals in 2015 due to injury. He ranks among the franchise's career postseason leaders in games (T-4th, 71), steals (4th, 67), rebounds (6th, 405) and blocks (T-7th, 39). Varejao was taken by the Orlando Magic with the 30th pick in the 2004 NBA Draft and traded to Cleveland that summer. After being dealt to Portland and spending parts of two seasons with the Warriors, he played for Flamengo in the New Basketball Brazil (NBB) league in 2017-18 and 2018-19. He last played competitive basketball for Brazil in the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China. "I want to thank (owner) Dan Gilbert for this opportunity, (and) Koby," Varejao said. "It's one of those things (where) I wasn't here playing for the Cavs, but I was here because I live in Cleveland. I was always ready to come back, to be honest. "It's 12 years (as a player) — it's a long time — and I got to know a lot of people who were great to me," he added. "They helped me a lot through all those years in Cleveland, especially in my first year when I didn't know any English or didn't know much about living in a city as cold as Cleveland. But I made Cleveland my home and I'm glad to be back." Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4046 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com. Follow him @RickNoland on Twitter.