Cleveland Cavaliers Roster: How the Lockout Affects Every One of the Cavaliers

With the NBA Lockout finally over, there are a lot of questions surrounding the team up in old northeast Ohio, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

With a handful of players having played overseas, a few players getting ready to play their first NBA games and a fruitful debate over the amnesty clause, there are quite a few interesting subplots coming into this NBA season.

Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson are going to start a new era in Cleveland, Baron Davis could be done as a Cavalier or he could end up staying with the team for another two seasons, and everyone is wondering just how the team will look.

How did the lockout impact the Cavaliers, and ultimately, what is the season going to look like, you ask? Well, you've come to the right place to have the question answered, because that's just what I've been wondering myself.

Here, I've taken a look at each player under contract with the Cavaliers, and the two rookies they drafted and who will be under contract soon.

Kyrie Irving

Obviously, the biggest effect that the lockout has on Kyrie Irving and every other young player in the league for that matter, is that they'll have virtually no time to learn the playbook and get into the flow with their team before the season starts.

With just 16 days between the start of training camp and the opening day of the season, Kyrie will have very little time to learn the basics of the professional game.

On top of that, Irving will probably be thrust into a much bigger role earlier than he would have with a full season, as fans are itching to see what he can do.

If the season started on time, odds are Irving wouldn't have come into the starting role until about three weeks or a month into the season.

However, now that there are only 66 games on the docket, it looks like he could be in there starting much earlier, possibly just a week or two into the season.

Tristan Thompson

I actually see Tristan Thompson coming under much more scrutiny than Kyrie Irving this season.

First, he was picked virtually out of the blue when many expected the Cavs to go after Jonas Valanciunas, the big guy out of Lithuania who looks like he could be this decade's Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Also, it seems as if his acquisition is a big reason the Cavs traded JJ Hickson, a move many are still questioning.

This could mean he gets put into more minutes earlier than expected, a situation that he could thrive or fall apart in.

Ramon Sessions

The shortened season likely means Ramon Sessions is even more probable to get dealt to a contender.

Sessions is a good young point guard who won't require much more than a draft pick in return when teams come knocking at Cleveland's door, and in a short season, they'll be looking much earlier.

By the time the March trade deadline rolls around, Sessions should already be in a new uniform, possibly in Los Angeles with the Lakers or New York with the Knicks.

Baron Davis

One word. Amnesty.

I've argued over the past few weeks about letting Baron Davis hang around to see if he's serious about playing for the Cavs and waiting until next year to trade him, but his contract is too much of an albatross to ignore.

Baron is owed nearly $30 million over the next two seasons, and if they think they have a shot at swaying a major 2012 free agent to Cleveland (fat chance), then they'll sign the amnesty papers as soon as the collective bargaining papers are signed.

Anderson Varejao

Very little has been said about Anderson Varejao ever since he got injured early last season (although he did have an impressive moment in an exhibition game a few weeks ago).

How the lockout impacts Varejao remains to be seen, as he is coming off ankle surgery and will have to test it out on an NBA floor at the end of December.

The lockout is probably going to cause him to have a salary dip once he comes up for free agency again, but for now, he's sitting pretty.

His value could be high if the surgery didn't hurt his game much, and a few teams around the league could kick his tires if they're looking for a power forward/center, as he has just three years left on his contract.

Antawn Jamison

Antawn Jamison is looking at his last high-paying season, as he is far from superstar material and is looking like one of those high- to mid-level players that could be hurt from the new CBA.

What he's worth depends massively on what team he's on, as he doesn't add much to the Cavs, but he could be the piece that puts a good team over the top, as he's still a legitimate scoring option and can stretch out the defense.

One thing is for sure: this is the last year you'll see Jamison in a Cavs uniform. The only thing left to be determined is whether he gets traded midway through the season or if his contract is allowed to expire.

Daniel Gibson

Daniel Gibson's salary shouldn't be hurt much by the new CBA once he ends up a free agent either next year or the following year.

Gibson's role on the Cavs, however, could end up increasing as Anthony Parker may end up in a new uniform this season.

If that were the case, one would assume that Gibson would assume the starting shooting guard role unless Cleveland decides to go small and start two of their three point guards.

Omri Casspi

The lockout has given Omri Casspi the chance to stay in shape, as he signed with Maccabi Tel Aviv in mid-November, and while their season hasn't officially started yet, he had to stay in some kind of shape if they wanted to bring him in.

However, once the season starts, Casspi, as the presumed starting small forward for the Cavs, will be under intense scrutiny.

Cleveland gave up JJ Hickson for the Israeli forward, a move that many people are continuing to question, and if he can't perform to the people's liking, he could end up under a lot of criticism.

Ryan Hollins

Basically, Ryan Hollins is the low-level player that's going to benefit from the new CBA. Teams will concentrate on the talent near the top of their roster and then try to fill in the holes with bargain players.

Hollins is a Cavalier for the remainder of the season, but after that a team could look at his height and his increasing offensive ability and give him a few million dollars to be their backup center.

This season, however, Hollins is going to have some competition if he doesn't toughen up on defense, something the Cavs seem to be concentrating on this season.

With a scrappy (although undersized) guy behind him in Samardo Samuels, he could see fewer minutes this season.

Skyenga

In Christian Eyenga's second season, the Cleveland Cavaliers are looking for the young athletic forward to step up and play a bigger role.

They have put a lot into him in terms of building him overseas, and they'll be looking to see what they've gotten out of their investment.

Eyenga stayed in shape with FIATC Joventut in Spain, playing in two games, and should be ready to go when the season starts at the end of December.

Joey Graham

Joey Graham is going to be another one of those throw-in players who fill out a roster over the next few years, much like he has been for the Cavaliers over the past season.

Graham's role should be the same this season as it was last season, as he doesn't offer much on either end of the floor, but could be of some value to some other team.

What the hell am I talking about? Joey Graham is about as useful as fingerless gloves in a snowball fight.

Samardo Samuels

Samardo Samuels could be one of those bargain players that everybody's talking about a year from now, but right now, he's got a lot of work to do.

Watching him last season was interesting, as he made an impact for the Cavaliers with just the will to stay on the court.

I see him continuing to scrap and play tough basketball, which should win him minutes from Byron Scott.

Manny Harris

Manny Harris is looking to get into the mix to get major minutes at shooting guard (sad, I know), and the undrafted guard out of Michigan could prove that he is worth something to the Cavs.

Harris had some impressive games last season, and then again he had some games where he was nearly useless. If he can have more of the former and fewer of the latter, then he could get a lot more minutes.

Alonzo Gee

Alonzo Gee is more of an entertaining basketball player than he is a good basketball player, and if Cleveland falls into a hole quickly (which they probably will), you could see more of him.

Fans love to see him flying around the court, and when there's nothing to lose on the court, they might as well keep the fans happy.

Luke Harangody

Luke Harangody will likely end up getting cut by the Cavaliers unless they see something in him in training camp that'll convince them to keep the big guy around.

He shot an atrocious 38 percent last season, and offered very little on the defensive end of the floor to make up for his offensive shortcomings.

Semih Erden

I'd say there's a 50-50 shot that Semih Erden ends up getting cut once training camp comes together in just over a week.

Erden has some value because he's nearly seven feet tall, but he broke his thumb a few days ago, and he'll likely be in a suit for a few months before he can play.

In the end, I think the Cavs will hold onto him and see if they can get some use out of him this season.

If you are one of those twitterers, you can follow me @JDorsey33.