Cavs GM strongly dismisses narrative that LeBron 'runs organization'
Cavs GM David Griffin says LeBron James doesn't run the organization.
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1 min read
As the franchise player of the Cleveland Cavaliers, there is always an aura surrounding LeBron James and a speculation that he is the one behind the scenes pulling strings. There is some credibility to this speculation as the team traded for Kevin Love in large part at the behest of James and the trade for J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert was also run by the Cavs star before being executed.
But James was reportedly not consulted about the firing of head coach David Blatt, which sounds strange. Especially since the Cavs wouldn't be as successful as they are without him and it seems like in the past they made moves somewhat based on James' approval.
Cavs general manager David Griffin addressed this idea of James having a hand in how the organization is run at a press conference to announce the firing of Blatt and hiring of Lue on Friday. Griffin emphatically dismissed the idea that he and others in the organization follow James' orders.
From Cleveland.com:
"LeBron plays for this team and he's the leader of this team and he desperately wants to bring a championship to this team," Griffin said at his press conference at the team's practice facility in Independence. "LeBron doesn't run this organization. LeBron is about this organization and he is of this organization and he's above our community.
"But this narrative that somehow we're taking direction from him, it's just not fair. It's not fair to him in particular, but frankly, it's kind of not fair to me and our group any more."
Griffin is right that James doesn't truly run the Cavs. He is, after all, a player and not a member of the front office staff. He is also right that it is not fair to dismiss the day-to-day work of the Cavs' front office. They are the ones actually making the phone calls and dealing with opposing teams -- not James.
However, it is quite hard to believe that James, the franchise player and one of the biggest stars in the world, doesn't weigh in on some organizational decisions. He may not "run" the Cavs, but James probably gives his own opinion to the front office from time to time. This seems like the more likely scenario given James' outspokenness and attitude when it comes to the Cavs.
