After nine seasons with the Chicago Bulls, Luol Deng was surprised to learn that he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, but following his first practice that began a new chapter in his life with his new team, Deng is excited to be with the Cavs.
Deng, a two-time All-Star as a small forward, was traded to the Cavaliers from the Bulls on Tuesday in exchange for center Andrew Bynum and future draft picks. Deng, 28, knew he may be dealt and that his tenure in Chicago would end eventually, but he was blindsided by the trade.
"I've been very lucky," he said via ESPN. "Not a lot of guys can say they've been with one organization for too long. I was definitely surprised. You hear stuff, you hear rumors, but some of it's true and some of it's not. When it happened, I couldn't believe it. It took a while to hit me. But it's not like I'm stopping from playing basketball. I've been traded from one great organization to another one."
The Cavaliers will look for Deng and his positive attitude to help lead the team and provide some veteran presence to the young squad, which is 12-23 and in fourth place in the Central Division.
"He's a veteran who's still in his prime," said Cleveland coach Mike Brown, according to ESPN. "He adds to the culture of what we're trying to do here. He's definitely a two-way player that can add an amount of professionalism, a maturity, and winning ingredients to any ball club."
Deng averaged 19 points and 6.9 rebounds and will likely start on Friday night when Cleveland embarks on a five-game road trip starting in Utah with a meeting against the Jazz. Brown hopes that the five-game trip will prove to be help Deng get acclimated with his new teammates.
"It's great for him to get to know us, soon and better, and for us to get to know him," Brown said per ESPN. "So you couldn't ask for it to happen at a better time."
Deng, who turned down an offer for a contract extension from the Bulls this season, recounted the events that led to his trade.
"It's basketball at the end of the day, and it's my job," Deng told ESPN. "But the hardest thing is those are friends. It's really hard when you wake up the next day and know that your friend is gone and he's going to be competing against you. I think they understand the business part of it. It's a contract thing, and my time has come up. That's the direction the organization chose to go."
Deng is in the final year of his contract and is willing to work out a long-term extension with the Cavaliers.
"I'm definitely open to talking about it," he said. "I have no problem with that."
But for now, he'll try to get to know his new team better--starting with a five-game road trip that begins in Utah.
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