Mobile Menu
HEADLINES

Cavaliers Notes: James, Griffin, Luxury Tax, Lue

June 10th 2017 at 5:08pm CST by Arthur Hill

LeBron James had opposition within his family when he decided to return to the Cavaliers in 2014, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. James shares the information in an episode of “Uninterrupted,” his web-based production, which was taped during All-Star weekend and posted Friday. Gloria James remained angry about a derisive letter written by Cavs owner Dan Gilbert when LeBron left Cleveland for Miami. “Some people was on the fence,” James explains. “Even my wife was like, I ain’t, my mom and my wife was like I ain’t with that. … I had to finally just be like, you know mom it ain’t even really about [the Gilbert letter]. For me, going back is more of this. It’s more of a bigger picture. It’s more of all these kids, all these people, that need inspiration and need a way to get out. And I believe I am that way out.”

There’s more today out of Cleveland:

  • If the Cavs wind up losing in the Finals, it won’t be easy to improve for next year’s run at the Warriors, according to Dave McMenamin and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. The first decision will involve whether to re-sign GM David Griffin, whose contract runs out at the end of the month. Griffin was sought after by Orlando and Atlanta before they hired other candidates, as well as Milwaukee, which trimmed its GM search to three finalists this week. McMenamin and Windhorst talked to several anonymous sources to get player personnel advice, with suggestions including trading away Kevin Love and trying to acquire Paul George from the Pacers. Cleveland’s biggest obstacle in making any roster moves is its cap situation. The franchise paid $24MM in taxes this year and because of the repeater tax would be looking at a $38MM bill if they keep the same payroll next season. The salary commitment could be even higher if the team brings back free agent Kyle Korver, who the authors say can expect a deal similar to the $14MM per year that Jamal Crawford received last summer.
  • Coach Tyronn Lue deserves credit for not changing the team’s rotation or style of play in Game 4, notes Bud Shaw of Cleveland.com. After hearing public outcry to slow down the tempo, the Cavs responded with 49 points in the first quarter and 86 in the first half of a 137-116 win. That meant only two minutes for Derrick Williams, who will be a free agent this summer, and no playing time for Channing Frye, who has one year left on his deal at about $7.4MM.
Retweet 14 Share 0 Send via email0
View Comments (24)