CAVALIERS Pavlovic could be new Kapono

Cleveland is desperate for outside shooters.
CLEVELAND (AP) -- As quickly as the Cleveland Cavaliers lost their best outside shooter, they found a replacement.
Jason Kapono was selected in the expansion draft by Charlotte, but the Cavaliers also reached a tentative agreement to acquire forward Sasha Pavlovic from the Bobcats. Pavlovic was picked by the Bobcats after he was left unprotected by the Utah Jazz.
Charlotte coach and general manager Bernie Bickerstaff said the deal will be announced today.
The 6-foot-7 Pavlovic should help offset the loss of Kapono, Cleveland's second-round pick last season who made 48 percent of his 3-pointers as a rookie.
Newcomer's numbers
Pavlovic averaged 4.9 points in 79 games after being taken with the No. 19 overall pick by the Jazz. The 20-year-old went 19-for-70 on 3-pointers, but with the emergence of Raja Bell and Gordan Giricek as Utah's top outside shooting threats, the Jazz decided to leave Pavlovic unprotected.
"We added a team to the league and we had to put somebody out there," Jazz vice president for basketball operations Kevin O'Connor said. "We think he's going to be a good player, but we think we've got good players at that position and we had to let somebody go."
In Utah, Pavlovic worked extensively with new Cavaliers assistant coach Kenny Natt.
The Cavs are desperate for outside shooters after making just 31 percent of their long-range shots last season.
Kapono, 23, averaged 3.5 points in 41 games for Cleveland, which selected him with the No. 31 overall pick out of UCLA. The 6-foot-8 Kapono had his best game on Feb. 23 against New Orleans, going 5-for-5 on 3s and scoring 19 points to help rally the Cavs from a 25-point deficit in a victory over the Hornets.
The Cavs hated to see Kapono go.
Regrettable
"Jason is someone we didn't want to lose," general manager Jim Paxson said. "We tried a number of different avenues to keep that from happening. We tried to work something out. He did a nice job for us."
Bickerstaff said the Cavs offered Charlotte "incentives" not to pick Kapono.
However, the expansion club couldn't resist Kapono's potential, versatility, range or contract -- just $620,000 next season.
"He's a guy Cleveland really didn't want to lose," Bickerstaff said. "We like Jason's ability to make shots. He's also able to stretch defenses. He's going to create spacing for us on offense. He knows how to play the game, and he's also 6-8, so he has the ability to play either forward or guard for us."