Report: Cavs hold meeting with LeBron to express 'disappointment' over comments
The Cavaliers then went out and dropped a home game to Sacramento for their third straight loss
By
Matt Moore
•
2 min read
Before the Cavaliers played the Kings on Wednesday night, ESPN reported that the Cavaliers met with LeBron James to discuss his recent outbursts about the state of the roster. There was a team meeting, which Tyronn Lue commented on, and GM David Griffin met with the King one-on-one. To say they weren't thrilled with James' recent comments is an understatement.
Griffin, a team source told ESPN, expressed his disappointment in James for the manner in which he shared his thoughts on the roster. Regardless of James' whims, Griffin is steadfast in sticking to the plan he has had in place for months to acquire the backup point guard or playmaker he is in agreement with James that the team lacks.
In other words, James' statement will not force Griffin's hand or cause him to speed up his search for what the Cavs need. As Griffin told reporters on Cleveland's recent West Coast road trip, with the way the standings are crowded right now with so many teams in playoff contention, very few franchises have identified themselves as sellers.Until that happens, the Cavs do not anticipate having all their potential options available to them to fill that final roster spot.
While one team source told ESPN there was amazed disbelief that James could question the franchise's commitment to a repeat championship -- considering owner Dan Gilbert is on the hook for the largest payroll in league history at more than $127 million, plus luxury tax -- another source within the Cleveland front office told ESPN that the timing of James' words was "brilliant," as the Cavs have thrived in adversity the past several seasons and this chaos that James created could jolt the team out of the malaise that led to it losing five of the past seven games.
Source: Coach Tyronn Lue says Cleveland Cavaliers have talked to LeBron James about recent comments.
Some thoughts:
1. Well, first off, the Cavaliers immediately turned around and lost to the Kings, their third straight loss and fourth loss in five games. So that's probably not going to make things any better.
2. The idea of James using it to "create chaos" and "spark the team" is hilarious. The Cavaliers didn't thrive in that chaos last year, they just happened to get it together enough to secure the 1-seed and then they turned it on in the playoffs. It's hard to imagine James is really thinking, "You know what we need? For me to basically say that two rotation players, Kay Felder and DeAndre Liggins, are incapable of doing what we need them to do." That does not sound likely.
3. Gilbert has indeed shelled out the money for this super team, and J.R. Smith's injury kind of hangs over all this. His defense and shooting are sorely missed and would help. That said, James is still correct that they need another playmaker.
4. The Cavaliers' problems go beyond that, though, however. Their defense is in shambles, after being really good to start the year. That's not on the playmaker. That's just endemic to their team. Some of this is boredom and malaise of January, but some of it is a genuine concern that they need to address. They lost size in Timofey Mozgov and backcourt defense in Matthew Dellavedova and didn't recoup them in any way.
5. The answer, however, is not Carmelo Anthony, and the Cavs know that.
