The Canton Charge, G-League Affiliate of the Cleveland Cavaliers, will be moving to Cleveland for next season, reports Chris Fedor of cleveland.com. The Charge have played in Canton for nine seasons, but with their 10-year contract with the Canton Memorial Civic Center expiring, Cavaliers ownership wanted to bring the team back to Cleveland.
“When we acquired the franchise and relocated it here to Northeast Ohio, our goal was to create the best operation and experience in the G-League, both on the court and off,” said Cavaliers’ Chief Executive Officer Len Komoroski. “We’ve had success working towards both those goals and that remains our commitment and focus.”
The team will be called simply “The Charge” as they transition, but the team hopes to officially rebrand as “The Cleveland Charge” by the start of the 2021-2022 season, which is set to tip off in November. The Charge will now be based out of Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center. The team is hoping this will lead to a long-term partnership between the G-League team and the Wolstein Center.
“We’re thrilled to welcome the Charge to the Wolstein Center and we look forward to collaborating with Rock Entertainment Group on what’s next,” said CSU President Harlan Sands.
According to Fedor, this move by the Cavaliers is indicative of a larger league-wide trend of teams trying to keep their G-League affiliates closer to home. The Charge are expected to use the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, the Cavaliers’ home court, as well as Cleveland Clinic Courts, the team’s player training and development facility.
As the relationships between professional teams and G-League teams become more dynamic, this will allow teams to optimize their player development goals, synchronize philosophies, and better monitor progress.
“As we look to the future, we’re very pleased to now be able to continue the growth of the Charge at the Wolstein Center,” said Charge General Manager Brendon Yu. “The proximity to Cleveland Clinic Courts and Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse creates an enhanced synergy between the two teams and will foster even greater personnel development that will be very impactful for us.”
The team reiterated its commitment to remaining engaged in its relationship with the community of Canton, especially through youth programs, including their Junior Cavs Camp.
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