NBA free agency: Dan Gilbert clearing path out of Cleveland for LeBron James
NBA free agency: Dan Gilbert clearing path out of Cleveland for LeBron James, It is July 2017, and we’re just about a year out from the free agency of LeBron James. That means we are set up for about 50 weeks of mind-numbing sleuthing, interpreting a variety of mysterious quotes and cryptic tweets from James himself, hustling information from "sources close to James" and divining his preferred future destinations from his latest online photos.
James should put up a picture of a few bags of Lipton on Instagram, and he will have us literally reading tea leaves.
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| NBA free agency: Dan Gilbert clearing path out of Cleveland for LeBron James |
But whatever James does in the coming year, one thing is certain: Should he leave, he won’t be the black-hatted villain he was in 2010 when he very publicly ditched Cleveland for Miami, taking his talents and the shards of his shattered dignity with him. We all remember the anti-James backlash at that time, the torching of No. 23 uniforms all around Northeast Ohio.
No one should blame James if he leaves next summer. No one should burn his jersey this time. The organization — owner Dan Gilbert specifically — has made his potential exit all too easy and understandable.
Gilbert’s 2017 offseason strategy seems to have been something like this: Step 1, buy gun; Step 2, aim gun at foot; Step 3, pull trigger.
Reports that James is frustrated and concerned with the Cavaliers offseason have been trickling out for weeks now, and with good reason. The organization has sent signals to James all summer, none of which have included meaningful changes to bring the Cavs closer to the defending champion Warriors in the coming season.
In fact, James sat back and watched the Warriors dole out large sums (luxury tax included) for their own free agents, Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston. They brought back David West and Zaza Pachulia, showing appreciation for the contributions those two made last year. They took a chance on NBA vets Nick Young and Omri Casspi, and came up with a potential draft steal, Jordan Bell.
The Cavs added Jose Calderon and Jeff Green, and brought back Kyle Korver.
This is not the kind of offseason a team with the game’s best player — aging and at the end of his contract — should have had if it was serious about another championship. There was a potential deal for Jimmy Butler last month, and there was talk of a move for Carmelo Anthony. There was the chance to put together one last aggressive push, to change the Cavs’ dynamics when they, presumably, went up against the Warriors in next year’s NBA Finals.
There was at least the chance to bring in a quality veteran off the bench, like Jamal Crawford. Instead, the Cavs signed 22-year-old Turkish wing Cedi Osman, giving him a chunk of their limited mid-level exception. Nice for the Cavs to be thinking about the long-term future, but for James and Cleveland, the future is next June. Anything beyond that is a waste of time. The signing of Osman had to be taken by James as a thumb to the eye.
This should be expected of a rudderless organization, which is what the Cavs are now. They’re still operating without a head at the top of the basketball wing of the org chart. That’s been the worst aspect of the Cavs’ offseason follies.
Last month, of course, Gilbert utterly bungled the handling of general manager David Griffin’s contract, refusing to budge on a new deal for the guy who had taken flak all year when things had gone wrong, managed to improve a roster with virtually no assets on hand and had overseen the team’s 2016 championship, the first in franchise history.
Of all the places for Gilbert to look for changes to make to his team, dumping Griffin should not even have been on the list.
Alas, there is ego to consider. Gilbert was not much fond of the accolades Griffin got for the Cavs’ success. He is the owner. He wanted his glory, but that went to Griffin all too often. Gilbert, who signs the luxury-tax checks and does get involved in personnel matters, perhaps deserved more credit than he got for the Cavs’ recent run.
But so what? That’s part of being an owner. You’re better off behind the scenes, and when your name is in the media, it’s probably not for good reasons. I’m reminded of former Jets owner Leon Hess, who was so publicity-shy that one confidante said of him, “Leon Hess pays people to keep his name out of the papers.”
And so Griffin was shuttled out, followed by a half-baked plan to bring in popular former player Chauncey Billups to run the basketball outfit on a cheap contract. Billups turned that down, and the Cavaliers — the envy of the league a year ago — have looked to be short on competence since.
This does not preclude the Cavs from a championship run next year, though. They still have James, and they are still the favorites in the East. They were far more competitive in the last three games of this year’s finals series than the first two, giving some indication that they can play with the Warriors. Golden State is just a strained hamstring or twisted ankle away from being vulnerable to Cleveland in a seven-game series.
But there has been harm done to the relationship between James and his team this month. There are plenty of players who go into their summers, disappear for a tropical vacation, return to begin offseason training and prepare to rejoin their teams without taking meaningful looks at the machinations of their organizations.
James is not one of those. He’s keenly aware of what’s gone on with the Cavs, and the messages Gilbert has been sending — no meaningful roster additions, no firm hand at the top of the basketball operation — are being read loud and clear by the Cavs’ bedrock star.
Don’t be surprised, then, when James sends his own message next summer, and it goes something like, “G’bye!” And, this time, don’t blame him. The owner has done too much to clear an easy path for James to take out of town.
