Cavs Cut Former Second-Round Pick in Surprising Move – What’s Next for the Player?

Over the past week, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been busy reworking their roster, focusing on bolstering the middle and backend positions. They’ve shaken things up by trading De’Andre Hunter in exchange for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, letting go of Chris Livingston, and bringing Tristan Enaruna aboard with a two-way contract. This flurry of moves doesn’t stop there—ESPN’s Olgun Uluc dropped news late Saturday that the Cavs are also waiving their former second-round pick, Luke Travers. The team’s churning roster reflects their ongoing search for the right chemistry, especially as they navigate the challenges of blending young talent with seasoned players. Curious about the full scoop and what these changes could mean for the franchise’s future? LEARN MORE

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been reshaping the middle and backend of their roster over the past week. They recently traded De’Andre Hunter for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis, waived Chris Livingston, and signed Tristan Enaruna to a two-way spot.

That trend continued as ESPN’s Olgun Uluc reported late Saturday evening that the team is also waiving former second-round pick Luke Travers.

As part of this three-team trade, the Cleveland Cavaliers are waiving Australian forward Luke Travers, sources told ESPN. He had been on a two-way deal with the Cavs. https://t.co/fBvabEeD11

— Olgun Uluc (@OlgunUluc) February 1, 2026

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The Cavs selected Travers with the 56th pick in the 2022 draft. He spent the next two seasons playing in Australia’s NBL before signing a two-way deal with Cleveland in August 2024.

Travers spent the majority of the last two seasons playing with the Cleveland Charge, the Cavs’ G League affiliate. This season, Travers averaged 18.1 points, nine rebounds, and 5.1 assists on .430/.284/.636 shooting splits with the Charge in 14 games.

Travers has struggled to make the transition to the NBA game. He’s a good team defender and rebounder, but hasn’t found his role on the offensive side. Travers doesn’t have the handle or athleticism to continually get to the basket, so he needed to develop as an outside shooter. So far, that hasn’t happened. Travers shot just 28.4% from three this season with the Charge and shot 26.2% the year before.

The offensive limitations kept him from getting meaningful minutes with the Cavs. He played just 24 games and 191 minutes in two seasons combined with the Cavaliers. Most of which were in garbage time.

With the move, the Cavaliers currently have one open two-way spot with Enaruna and Nae’Qwan Tomlin currently occupying the other two. Tomlin will likely not be in that role for long. He’s eligible for just six more games with the Cavaliers under his current contract, which will presumably be converted to a standard deal after the All-Star break.