25 years ago 'The Reign Man' came to Cleveland: Shawn Kemp and the Cavs

On Sept. 25, 1997, the Cavaliers made what might have been the biggest roster acquisition in the franchise's history when all-star forward Shawn Kemp came to Cleveland as part of a three-team trade.

Kemp was a 27-year-old five-time all-star with the Seattle SuperSonics, who was named second-team All-NBA three straight seasons from 1993-94 to 1995-96. He had finished in the top-10 in the league in rebounds for three consecutive seasons.

Given the moniker 'The Reign Man' by Sonics announcer Kevin Calabro, Kemp formed an impressive duo with point guard Gary Payton in Seattle.

The 1995-96 Sonics advanced to the NBA Finals before losing to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in six games. Kemp averaged 23.3 points and 10.0 rebounds per game while shooting .551 from the field in the series, cementing himself as one of the league's brightest young stars.

Needless to say, his arrival excited Cavaliers fans.

The trade that took Shawn Kemp from Seattle to Cleveland

After eight successful seasons in Seattle, Kemp had a new goal: To make $100 million, he told The Players' Tribune.

"I kind of knew I was going to have to leave because they [Seattle] weren’t going to pay me $100 million," Kemp said in the interview.

So that opened the door for a trade. The Cavaliers, SuperSonics and Milwaukee Bucks were all involved.

Former Cavs all-stars Terrell Brandon and Tyrone Hill, along with a first-round draft pick in 1998 were sent to Milwaukee.

Vin Baker was traded from Milwaukee to Seattle. And Sherman Douglas was sent from Milwaukee to Cleveland, although he was traded to Denver for Greg Graham 11 days before the season started.

Shawn Kemp part of a revamped Cleveland Cavaliers roster in 1997

The 1996-97 version of the Cavaliers that went 42-40 featured a regular starting lineup of Brandon, Bobby Phills, Chris Mills, Hill and either Danny Ferry or Mark West. Bob Sura also started 23 games.

Kemp was just one of several new additions, as the Cavs had a whole new rotation in 1997-98. Brevin Knight, Wesley Person, Cedric Henderson, Kemp and Zydrunas Ilgauskas were the regular starting lineup, with Derek Anderson starting 13 games and averaging the most minutes off the bench.

Knight, Henderson, Ilgauskas and Anderson were all rookies. Person, a sharpshooter who had spent the previous three seasons with the Phoenix Suns, was the only other veteran along with Kemp to finish in the team's Top-6 in minutes played.

The reaction to Shawn Kemp coming to Cleveland

"He is flamboyant. He is exciting. He is the marquee player Cavaliers fans have been begging and pleading for," was the opening paragraph from Chris Broussard's article in the Beacon Journal about the trade.

In the same issue of the Beacon Journal, columnist Terry Pluto wasn't as enthusiastic, bemoaning the loss of Brandon:

Dave Boling, (Tacoma) News Tribune columnist, thought the Sonics came out on top by getting rid of Kemp: "In his eight seasons in Seattle, Kemp was a spectacularly exciting player who was an equally spectacular pain in the keister – an irresponsible, chronically tardy juvenile, bereft of discipline, dedication and commitment," he wrote.

Shawn Kemp era started off slowly before Cavaliers caught fire

The Cavs lost the first two games with Shawn Kemp, road losses on consecutive nights at Houston and at San Antonio. Kemp, along with Vitaly Potapenko and Henry James were suspended for the first game for their involvement in a preseason fight with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Kemp then scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in his debut.

The first 10 games were tough for the Cavs, resulting in a 4-6 record, but the team caught fire on Nov. 21, 1997 against Minnesota. Following a 103-80 win over the Timberwolves, Cleveland went on a 10-game winning streak until a Dec. 13 loss against the Charlotte Hornets.

Shawn Kemp an all-star in first season with Cleveland

The Cavaliers had a 14-7 record following the streak-ending loss to the Hornets and played .500 ball until the All-Star break. Their record stood at 27-20, and Kemp was named an all-star starter for the game held Feb. 8 at Madison Square Garden.

Kemp joined Anfernee Hardaway, Jordan, Grant Hill and Dikembe Mutombo as the East's starting five. He finished with 12 points and tied for the game-high with 11 rebounds.

For Kemp, it was his sixth-straight, and ultimately final All-Star Game.

Cavaliers finish fifth in Central, face familiar foe in NBA Playoffs

Cleveland went 20-15 following the All-Star break, ending the season with a 47-35 record, which was only good for fifth place in the ultra-competitive Eastern Conference Central Division.

The Bulls tied for the NBA's best record with 62 wins and the Pacers, Hornets and Hawks all won 50 games in the Central.

The Cavs were matched up with the Pacers in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. The two teams split the regular season series, with each team winning twice on its home court.

The playoffs looked to follow the same pattern with the Pacers taking the first two at home, and the Cavs taking Game 3 in Cleveland. The Pacers were able to take Game 4, 80-74 and win the best-of-five series.

It wasn't from lack of effort from Kemp, who despite going 6-for-16 from the field, finished with a game-high 21 points and 12 rebounds.

What impact did Shawn Kemp have on the 1997-98 Cavaliers?

Cleveland went from a 42-win team that missed the playoffs the season before to a 47-win playoff team.

Kemp was the top veteran that featured four rookies and one third-year player at the top of the rotation. Knight and Ilgauskas were named First Team All-Rookie along with Ron Mercer and Keith Van Horn, as well as future Hall-of-Famer Tim Duncan. Henderson and Anderson were named Second Team All-Rookie.

Kemp finished the season averaging 18.0 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, but shot a then-career-low .445 from the field.

How the Shawn Kemp run ended in Cleveland

Following a successful first season, Kemp and the young core were never able to replicate the promise shown in 1997-98.

The Cavaliers went 22-28 in the strike-shortened 1998-99 season and 32-50 in 1999-2000, missing the playoffs both years.

Kemp averaged a career-high 20.5 points in 98-99. His scoring dropped to 17.8 points per game the next season, his lowest average since 1992-93. He also only shot .417 from the field.

The Cavs and Kemp parted ways in the 2000 offseason, again as part of a three-team trade. Kemp was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers. Cleveland picked up Clarence Weatherspoon, Chris Gatling, Gary Grant and a 2001 first-round draft pick in the trade, which also sent Brian Grant to the Miami Heat.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Shawn Kemp traded from Seattle to Cleveland: A look back at 1997