It really doesn’t seem as if Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert looks at re-signing LeBron James as his top priority, does it?
It was believed that the first round draft pick the Cleveland Cavaliers received in the Kyrie Irving trade, the Brooklyn Nets’ potential top-five selection from in the 2018 NBA Draft, would be the Cavs best asset to acquire the type of star needed to put the Cavs on equal footing with the Golden State Warriors and convince LeBron James to re-sign with the team in the offseason.
However, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been most unwilling to deal the pick, despite James as much as giving the Cavs the go-ahead to trade the pick when he said “it might not even be that good” earlier in the season.
James, who didn’t want the Cavs to trade Irving in the first place, is still irritated the Cleveland Cavaliers struck out on deals for Paul George and Eric Bledsoe, would certainly expect the franchise to move heaven and earth in order to take advantage of the championship window they have with him there.
They aren’t though.
They’ve made calls inquiring about high-profile players like Kemba Walker and DeAndre Jordan but still appear unwilling to move the pick because it’s likely those players would be on the roster if they were.
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Blake Griffin was just traded for a prince’s ransom, with young and talented players in Avery Bradley and Tobias Harris being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers along with a first-round pick. However, a deal centered around the Nets’ first round pick might have been enough to bring in Griffin too.
At this point, the Cleveland Cavaliers have missed out on three All-Star talents: Griffin, George and Bledsoe (twice).
It’s unclear if they’d have even moved the pick for DeMarcus Cousins should he have become available (although it’s possible they would have moved it for George).
While the three-team deal that would have brought George and Bledsoe to Cleveland in exchange for Irving was held up by Indiana Pacers general manager Kevin Pritchard, Bledsoe was available during the season and the Cleveland Cavaliers still missed out on him, as he was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for a package centered around Greg Monroe and a protected first-round draft pick.
All this raises the question, are the Cleveland Cavaliers, specifically team owner and shot-caller Dan Gilbert, still trying to everything in their power keep James in town?
From trades that won’t happen because the Cavs are holding onto the Nets pick for dear life to rumors of trades remove some of his closest friends (Tristan Thompson and J.R. Smith) from the roster, Gilbert doesn’t seem to interested in doing whatever it takes to convince James to re-sign.
In addition, there’s a social dynamic at play. James and Gilbert have had a strained relationship ever since the Cavs’ owner infamously wrote a vitriol-filled letter calling out James after he left to join Dwyane Wade with the Miami Heat in 2010. They’ve since came together and have had a cordial working relationship but they’re not friends.
In addition, James, one of the NBA’s powerful voices when it comes to speaking on social issues, has called out President Donald Trump a number of times this season (something you’d have to think Gilbert and Trump talked about). Gilbert and Trump are friends and if you look at the triangle, James is clearly at odds with the two.
It wouldn’t matter if Trump wasn’t the president of the country, perhaps. However, every time James speaks on Trump the remarks echo globally thanks to the positions of power these three men find themselves in.
You talk about bad locker room chemistry, James and Gilbert have bad chemistry, period. They’re been united by a single goal, which is bringing championships to the Land. But if Gilbert isn’t going to pull out all the stops to do that while James is around this season, does James stay?
Armed with a potential top-five pick in the upcoming NBA draft, Gilbert has an opportunity to get from under James’ thumb should he leave. James is often considered the de facto general manager largely because it’s widely known that the Cavs front office will go get him whatever he wants if they can.
Or at least they used to.
Furthermore, if James leaves, Gilbert has a ready-made leader to take James’ place in Isaiah Thomas. Given the roller coaster ride that’s been Thomas’ first ten games of the season, that’s not said to be facetious.
Excerpt from an article by Bleacher Report’s Ken Berger:
"Thomas has become a favorite of Gilbert, and they often exchange calls and text messages, a league source familiar with their relationship told B/R. This isn’t necessarily unusual on a team with an owner who is as involved in the basketball side of things as Gilbert is. It also isn’t great for locker room chemistry, because the rest of the players know it.“LeBron just looks at everybody as a shill for Dan,” the league source said."
Considering the relationship that Gilbert and Thomas have compared to the one that Gilbert has, Gilbert would be inclined to hand the reins to one of last year’s NBA MVP candidates. A player who averaged 28.9 points per game last season and received deserved high praise for his leadership, clutch performance and scoring talent.
With or without James, Gilbert could still have two All-Star level players (Thomas and Kevin Love) and a promising young player. Despite Gilbert’s reputation throughout the league, that’s an actual recipe for success although most people, including James himself, have expected the team to gamble on trading the Nets’ pick rather than keep it.
James is still the NBA’s best player but he’s no longer the Cleveland Cavaliers’ top priority.