CLEVELAND — Editor's note: Video at the top of this story was originally published in an unrelated COVID article on Dec. 20, 2021.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have bolstered their roster as the team deals with a COVID-19 outbreak.
The Cavaliers announced on Tuesday that they have signed forward Justin Anderson and center Luke Kornet to 10-day hardship exemption contracts. The Cavaliers currently have seven players in the NBA’s health and safety protocols as positive test results have swept through the league.
The Cavs are currently without center Jarrett Allen, forwards Lamar Stevens, Dylan Windler, Evan Mobley and guards Denzel Valentine, RJ Nembhard, Isaac Okoro. The NBA instituted a hardship rule forcing teams to sign more players once a certain threshold of players placed into the health and safety protocols had been reached.
As for the new players, Anderson was signed off of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA G League. Anderson had appeared in 11 games, starting all of them, for the Mad Ants this season where he averaged 14.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.9 assists in 33.8 minutes of action per game. He has played five NBA seasons, spending time with Dallas, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Brooklyn between 2015 and 2020.
Kornet has been signed to the Cavs from the Maine Celtics, the NBA G League affiliate of the Boston Celtics. He had played 10 games for Maine this season, starting all of them and averaging 11.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in 27.4 minutes. Kornet has appeared in NBA games across four seasons, spanning from 2017 through last season with the New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, and the Celtics. In his NBA career Kornet has played in 133 games, averaging 5.8 points per game.
The Cavaliers had their game against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday evening postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. They’re scheduled to be back in action on Tuesday on the road against the Boston Celtics.