Cavs acquire Welsch from Celtics

02.24.2005

Cleveland, OH (Basketball News) - The Cleveland Cavaliers acquired guard Jiri Welsch from the Boston Celtics Thursday in exchange for a 2007 first-round draft pick, provided that it is not a top-10 selection.

To complete the deal, Cleveland’s first round pick in 2005, which is owed to Charlotte (via Phoenix), is now an unprotected pick, which was previously playoff protected.

"We’ve been interested in Jiri for some time now and we felt it was the right time to get him here," said Cleveland general manager Jim Paxson. "He is an aggressive, complete player that can impact offense and defense, so we look forward to his involvement on both ends of the court. Jiri has the talent needed to make a difference for us this season and we look forward to seeing him excel as a Cavalier."

Cleveland needed an outside shooter alongside star LeBron James as well as a three-point threat. Welsch, 25, has buried 32 of his 99 shots from beyond the arc this season.

Welsch, the 16th overall pick of the 2002 NBA Draft, is averaging 7.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 55 games (32 starts) this season.

The 6-foot-7 native of Pardubice, Czechoslovakia is expected to be in uniform versus the Indiana Pacers on Friday. Welsch has also spent time with the Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks.

In a related move, the Cavaliers waived forward James Thomas, who was signed to a 10-day contract on February 22.

BOS CLE

Post your comment:

No profanity or inaproppriate remarks. All i.p. addresses will be saved and abuse/hate posts will be reported to providers and authorities as part of the anti-spam act of 2003, thank you for posting comments on the articles only.