Cleveland Cavaliers Rumors: Tristan Thompson Still not Signed, Will not Attend Media Day

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Tristan Thompson still have not reached an agreement. Thompson, a restricted free agent, is expected to miss Monday's media day, ESPN.com reported.

Thompson and his agent, Rich Paul, put up an offer of a three-year maximum deal worth $53 milion, which the Cavaliers turned down last week.

Sources: Tristan Thompson is WILLING to sign a 3-year, $53 million deal with the Cavs. Cavs have not yet agreed to the deal.

— Chris Broussard (@Chris_Broussard) September 24, 2015

If the two sides do not come to an agreement before Thursday, the 24-year-old center will have to accept the one-year qualifying offer of $6.9 million. Rumors are claiming that if Thompson goes this route, he will most likely sign elsewhere next summer when he becomes an unrestricted free agent.

Throughout the summer, the Cavaliers have made several different offers, including one that averaged $16 million per year (five-year, $80 million). However, the reports claimed that Thompson was only interested in a max contract (five-year, $94 million).

Cavaliers LeBron James, who has the same agent as Thompson, has stated before that he wanted the young talent to stay in Cleveland. However, James is not pressuring the Cavaliers at all.
Kurt Helin of Pro Basketball Talk wrote:

"Cleveland has a five-year, $80 million offer on the table - that's $16 million a year on average - and they are not willing to go higher for the reserve power forward. They aren't getting pressured by LeBron James. The Cavs are holding their ground. Unlike my colleague Dan Feldman here at PBT, I'm not in the camp that thinks the Cavaliers are okay signing him to a max deal, even with the television money coming in. I'm far from sold he's the kind of irreplaceable player you throw max money at, and I think that's the kind of contract they regret in a few years."

Thompson will also most likely miss the team's practices, which begin on Tuesday. Since he is not under contract, Thompson cannot be fined for missing these team events.

Thompson averaged 8.5 points and 8.0 rebounds during the regular season. In the postseason, he stepped up his game and averaged 9.6 points and 10.8 rebounds.