Dec 5, 2012; Cleveland, OH, USA; Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah (left) defends a shot attempt by Cleveland Cavaliers center Anderson Varejao (17) in the second quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Cleveland Cavaliers center Anderson Varejao is in the midst of a career-year.

Through 18 games, Varejao is averaging career highs in points (15.0), assists (3.2), free throw percentage (.776) and player efficiency rating (23.6).

Not only is he scoring at a more proficient rate, in a career high 36.6 minutes per game, but he’s averaging 15.4 rebounds, leading the league. Varejao bests the NBA in both defensive rebounding (32.4) and total rebounding percentage (24.8).

You would be hard pressed to find anyone in the league cognoscenti that doesn’t view Varejao as an All-Star. But just how much would the San Antonio Spurs, in need of an infusion of frontcourt talent, offer to acquire the 30-year old Brazilian?

ESPN.com’s Chad Ford believes it will cost at least, and likely more, than Kawhi Leonard, DeJuan Blair and Matt Bonner:

They’re open to it. But it would have to be a very good deal. Varejao is playing as well as any big man in the NBA. There is no reason to trade him unless they are getting back multiple young assets in return. He has a cap friendly contract (based on his performance this year) … Kawhi Leonard would obviously be attractive to them, but it’s going to take more than that to get an All-Star center like Varejao.

Blair and Bonner make a paltry $8.6 million combined in the next two seasons, though some of their salary is unguaranteed. Varejao, meanwhile, is making $27.1 million in the next three seasons.

The biggest deterrent in the deal is Leonard, whose making $6.6 million before he enters restricted free agency in 2015-16. The Spurs are saving an average of seven million each season by keeping Leonard over Varejao and that could be enough to prevent any deal that sends Tiago Splitter’s frontcourt mate to San Antonio.

While this was a matchup between two international powers — one established and the other merely on the uptick of their progression, discovering the depths of their play — it felt empty. Empty in sense that it didn’t matter.

Which would make sense considering a loss would be more beneficial than a win, due to the quirky nature of the Olympic draw. The potential route of France and Russia is a much more auspicious path to the gold medal match rather than two comsecutive matchups against Argentina and Team USA.

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Brazil was the lucky (unlucky?) party after they defeated Spain, 88-82. Leandro Barbosa led the Brazilian attack with 23 points, 12 coming in the final frame. It was an untimely performance, if you prescribe to the notion of losing to control your route, but a nice one nonetheless.

Yet you can easily poke faults in Brazil’s interior defense which struggled mightily against the Gasol brothers and Serge Ibaka. Granted, that is likely the best frontcourt triumvirate in London but they allowed them to orchestrate the offense from the high post. The Brazilian defense continually broke at the point of attack as their rotations created passing angles that were easily exploited by plus passers in Marc and Pau Gasol.

The trio combined for 59 points, 16 rebounds and 74% shooting from the field. Brazil boasts a strong frontcourt themselves but they were weakened from the onset when Nene sat out with a foot injury. Anderson Varejao and Tiago Splitter scored 18 points while grabbing 13 rebounds.

Brazil and Argentina, assuming they don’t defeat Team USA by enough points, will face off in the quarterfinals. Should Brazil win, they’ll face the winner of the United States and Australia.

Spain draws France and the winner of Russia and Lithuania. They may have lost the battle but the war, or in this case — a medal, looks like a better bet than it was yesterday.