LeBron James wants the Cleveland Cavaliers to sign Tristan Thompson to a long-term deal, but the Cavs and the free-agent forward have yet to find a common ground.

And according to player agent Rich Paul, Thompson could decide to accept a one-year qualifying offer from the Cavaliers this summer, but he declared the upcoming season will be the last year of the power forward in Cleveland.

"If [Thompson] is on the qualifying offer, [this] will be his last year with the Cavs," Paul told ESPN.

Thompson, who shares the same agent as James, is a restricted free agent this summer, which means he could accept offers from another team, but the Cavaliers just need to match the offer to keep him.

According to the ESPN report, Thompson and the Cavaliers are still far from striking a long-term partnership despite James' pronouncement earlier this year that the hardworking forward should be a Cavalier for his entire career.

"He plays his heart out every single night, and he has zero sense of entitlement in this league," James said of Thompson in May. "All he cares about is coming into work. Whatever is given to him, he relishes the opportunity, and he's a great teammate. So he'll be here for a long time."

Thompson, who was the fourth overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft, is reportedly looking for a maximum deal, which could be as high as $94 million for five years. However, the Cavaliers are reportedly unready to offer such amount at this point of Thompson's career.

If Thompson accepts the one-year qualifying offer, which would give him around $7 million next season, the 24-year-old forward will become an unrestricted free agent next summer. The former Texas standout will be free to sign with any team without giving the Cavaliers a chance to match to keep him.

If Thompson improves in the upcoming season, he could easily get a bigger deal next summer because the salary cap is expected to increase dramatically because of the new NBA television deal.

An NBA general manager told Brian Windhorst of ESPN that Thompson could become one of the top free agents next offseason if he decides to accept the qualifying offer from the Cavaliers.

"It's rare to see an unrestricted free agent that's 25 or younger, especially a big," said Thompson, who averaged 8.5 points and 8.0 rebounds last season. "If [Thompson] were to be an unrestricted free agent next summer and he's healthy, he probably would be one of the top free agents available."

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