Report: Cavs, Tristan Thompson still far apart; optimism low on both sides

Tristan Thompson already missed out on a pre-camp Miami summit with his Cleveland Cavaliers teammates. Now one week out from training camp, he remains a restricted free agent.

The Cavs and Thompson remain roughly $14 million apart in contract talks, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, and "there isn't much optimism on either side."

Thomspon's camp has reportedly long maintained they want a maximum contract that would pay him roughly $94 million over five years. The Cavs, meanwhile, have reportedly offered a five-year, $80-million deal. Thompson's primary leverage is that he can sign his one-year, $6.9-million qualifying offer, play out the 2015-16 season at a discounted price and become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

If the situation isn't resolved within the next couple of days, Thompson's hand could be forced into signing the qualifying offer, something that's always been reported as a strong possibility. Agent Rich Paul has played the long game before, waiting until the last minute last summer with Eric Bledsoe, all the while dangling the qualifying offer as a possibility, before finally working out a lucrative long-term deal.

Superstar LeBron James has expressed his fondness for Thompson, with whom he shares an agent. That's an important consideration, but with the Cavaliers headed toward a potentially historic luxury tax bill, every dollar they pay Thompson will cost them far more than the contract's face value.

While the Cavs have some leverage with frontcourt depth, Kevin Love, Timofey Mozgov, and Anderson Varejao are all coming off surgeries. Thompson's camp surely knows the franchise is all-in to bring the city its first sports championship in over 50 years, and they've repeatedly floated that they believe a maximum offer will exist for Thompson if he enters next summer's market as an unrestricted free agent.

The 24-year-old Thompson averaged 8.5 points and eight rebounds last season, shooting 54.7 percent from the floor and taking on a larger role in the playoffs as injuries required.