Cleveland Cavaliers Director of Player Personnel Wes Wilcox has been named general manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers new NBA Development League franchise in Canton, Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant announced today.

"Having Wes in this role is another reflection of the synergy and connectivity that owning and operating our own D-League team in Canton provides. As Wes has been an integral member of our staff for the past eight years, it enhances the opportunity for us to extend our team and organizational culture further into the player development process. Wes has been intricately involved in the D League evolution over the last several years and the Canton franchise has already and will continue to, greatly benefit from his knowledge and experience."

Wilcox will oversee all of the Canton team’s basketball operations elements, as well as all team personnel and activities. He will also continue in his role as the director of player personnel for the Cavaliers.

Canton will be the site of the Cavaliers new NBA Development League team. The Cavaliers have called a noon news conference in Canton to formally announce the move.

While the selection of Canton is a bit of a surprise -- Youngstown had been the rumored site -- it was clear the Cavaliers were going to try their hand at running their own team in the D-League after the Erie BayHawks, the Cavs' D-League affiliate since 2008, recently signed an exclusive agreement with the New York Knicks.

Such exclusive agreements have become popular recently, with a number of teams preferring a one-on-one partnership. The Cavs shared the BayHawks affiliation with the Toronto Raptors.