CHICAGO -- The Cleveland Cavaliers traded Andrew Bynum in time - and got an All-Star in return.
The Cavaliers acquired Luol Deng from the Chicago Bulls late Monday night for Bynum and three future draft picks, beating the deadline to guarantee his full contract for the season.
Along with Bynum, who had recently been suspended indefinitely by the Cavaliers for conduct detrimental to the team, the Cavaliers also sent the Bulls a first-round pick, two second-rounders, and gave Chicago the right to swap first-round choices in 2015 if the Cavs are not in the lottery.
Deng has been an All-Star the last two seasons. He will be a free agent after this season.
''Luol reflects all that we are striving for in building our team,'' Cavs general manager Chris Grant said in a statement. ''He's a tremendous defensive player that can impact the game on both ends of the court with a team-first mentality and is a high character leader.''
Bynum signed a two-year, $24 million contract with the Cavs in July, but only $6 million of the $12.5 million he was scheduled to earn this season was guaranteed if he was wasn't still on Cleveland's payroll by Jan. 7.