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Tag Archives: David Griffin
CLEVELAND CAVS OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE ON KYRIE IRVING CONTRACT SIGNING
CAVALIERS AND KYRIE IRVING SIGN CONTRACT EXTENSION
July 10, 2014
CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Cavaliers announced today that the team and Kyrie Irving have agreed upon and signed a contract extension. Per league policy, terms of the contract were not released.
“We couldn’t be happier to have Kyrie firmly at the core of our Cavaliers team and family for years to come,” said Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin. “He’s already proven he’s among the best in the NBA and we’re excited to watch his continued growth and success. To know that he is all in and shares our high expectations and championship goals is something we’re extremely proud of. It is a clear reflection of how we all view our future together, with Kyrie fully vested in this franchise and the city of Cleveland.”
Irving was the first overall pick in the 2011 draft by the Cavaliers and has career averages of 20.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 33.7 minutes through 181 games with the team. An NBA All-Star in each of the past two seasons, Irving was MVP of the 2014 All-Star Game where he became the second-youngest player to win the award. Since Irving, the 2011 NBA Rookie of the Year, entered the league, he has the third highest scoring average among all NBA point guards. In 2013-14, he led all Eastern Conference point guards with 20.8 points, while also averaging 3.6 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.5 steals in 35.2 minutes per game. He was one of only six players in the NBA with averages of at least 20 points and six assists per game last season.
“We are excited that Kyrie has officially committed to be here long-term with the Cleveland Cavaliers,” said Cavs Majority Owner Dan Gilbert. “The future has never been brighter as we are building the team and franchise for sustainable success. Kyrie is obviously a very big piece of our plan.”
FIVE PREDICTIONS ABOUT LEBRON JAMES
Everyone else is making their prediction on where “The King” is headed, so I guess it’s time for the “The Great Rodini” to make his prediction on where he thinks LeBron James will be playing basketball next season.
After talking to old and new sources, in bars, stores, at the library, via Twitter, through e-mails and of course using my crystal ball, I have come up with these five predictions about LeBron James.
1. LeBron will choose to sign with Cleveland over Miami because of:
The Cavs younger, deeper roster, led by two-time All-Star Kyrie Irving who just committed long term. Add to that #1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins, Dion Waiters, Tristan Thompson and LeBron’s buddy Anderson Varejao. This gives “King James” a chance to win now and in the future. The Cavaliers could also use some of that young talent in a trade to lure another All-Star like Kevin Love to C’Town. Plus G.M. David Griffin has salary cap and roster flexibility to go along with multiple first round draft picks to use in deals to improve the roster. Also, while they’re not the best of friends any more, LeBron knows that owner Dan Gilbert will pay money into the luxury tax if necessary to help the team win.
2. LeBron will announce this “Decision” via social media on his website at LeBronJames.com and on Twitter @KingJames.
“The Decision” TV show was a disaster and LeBron knows that and learned from that. As I’ve been saying for months now, he will use new media to announce this “Decision” and in turn, drive traffic to his website and add more followers to his Twitter account.
3. LeBron’s website headline – “Coming Home – Unfinished Business”.
The headline says it all. He returns home to Akron/Cleveland and fulfills his original promise of bringing a championship to the Cavaliers.
4. LeBron will switch from his old #23 he wore with the Cavs to his new number #32.
He’s returning to C’Town, but since a lot of people burned his old number #23 jersey, why not start fresh with a number he wore in high school his freshman year at St. Vincent St. Mary’s high school and at the McDonalds All American Game at The Q. Plus it forces those who did keep their #23 jersey’s to go out and buy the new #32 LeBron jersey. Just a smart business move.
5. LeBron will convince Ray Allen to come play for the Cavs.
The one area the Cavaliers still need to improve in is their outside shooting and why not bring in the greatest 3-point shooter in NBA history with him to Cleveland since Allen is a free agent.
There you have it, not one, not two, not three, not four, but five predictions about what’s next for LeBron James.
Welcome Home LeBron!
PS – On the slight chance “The Great Rodini” might be a little off and “The Godfather” of the NBA Pat Riley convinces James to stay in South Beach, expect it to be for just one or two years and then we’ll go through this all over again!
HANDICAPPING THE LEBRON SWEEPSTAKES
For those asking me to handicap the LeBron James sweepstakes, I will, but I really don’t know. Only James does, just like in 2010.
I will say this though, the fact that the Cavs, with a group that reportedly included Dan Gilbert, had a meeting with LeBron’s agent Rich Paul, is a good sign. That tells you that the fences have been mended to a degree between the two sides or the Cavs would have never even received a sit down with Paul to talk about LeBron’s future. Are things all hunky dory between Gilbert and James? No, and they may never be like they once were. But, business is business, and I’m sure the two can tolerate each other enough if it meant winning championships and making lots of money.
So with that in mind, I’ll put on my handicapping hat and give you my best guesses on where I think LeBron James could end up.
As far as the percentages of LeBron staying in Miami versus coming back to Cleveland or going to another team, right now I see it this way. Pat Riley and the Heat are still the front runners until “Riles” proves he can’t add the necessary players to Miami’s roster to make LeBron happy. So let’s put the Heat’s chances at 50 percent. As of now they’re still the leaders in the clubhouse. But if he does stay with Miami I expect his contract will be for only one or two years.
The Cavs, with an All-Star point guard in Kyrie Irving, plus that young nucleus of high lottery picks, cap space and multiple future first round picks are in second place in my opinion. This young roster has to be enticing to LeBron especially with the addition of Andrew Wiggins, or knowing that David Griffin could take some of those young players and trade them for a proven All-Star like Kevin Love. Add in he could come back home to be closer to his family and his Akron roots, along with it being a great story that would help repair his image even more. All that plays in to me giving the Cavaliers about a 30 percent chance, which is a better percentage than they had in the recent draft lottery. That percentage goes up if none of the All-Star caliber free agents want to take less money to play in Miami, or if Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade can’t agree on how to divide up the free agent money with their salaries.
So how do I break up the remaining 20 percent that’s left? There are reportedly four other teams that have talked with LeBron’s agent Rich Paul in recent days; Suns, Lakers, Rockets and Mavs. I’m adding a wild card just in case in the L.A. Clippers. Let’s give them each a 4 percent chance of luring LeBron away from South Beach.
The Lakers, only if Mitch Kupchak can miraculously team up LeBron with Kobe and Carmelo Anthony and it is “Hollywood”.
The Rockets, if James would consider playing with James Harden and Dwight Howard with all three getting max contracts, but what would the rest of the team look like?
The Mavs, because Dirk Nowitzki took a pay cut to create cap space for LeBron and maybe one other All-Star caliber player.
The Suns, who were 14 games over .500 last year and failed to make the playoffs in the Western Conference by just one game. Phoenix does have a nice young group of players, but no All-Stars and they’d have to make some serious moves to get LeBron and maybe another top flight free agent.
And finally my wild card out of left field the Clippers, because LeBron’s best friend Chris Paul is on the team. Also they’re a playoff team with a coach he respects greatly in Doc Rivers who is now in charge of pretty much everything. If the league acts swiftly and jettisons Donalrd Sterling, the Clippers could appeal to LeBron, but they’d have to make some serious moves to acquire James.
So there you have my best guesstimate as of today on where “King James” could end up. Tomorrow it may be different, and then change again on Monday and every day after that until he signs. LeBron is truly the only one who knows which way he is leaning. I believe he will give Miami every chance to bolster its roster, so he can stay there for another year or two, but the clock is ticking. If “The Chosen One” doesn’t feel that the Heat have improved enough in free agency, he is going to choose the team that he believes has the best roster and gives him the best chance to win. And who knows, that just might be Cleveland! If so, they’ll have beaten long odds again to win the sweepstakes.
THE CAVS STARTING FIVE RIGHT NOW
There is plenty of time in this off season for this to change and hopefully G.M. David Griffin will make it happen, because in order to be a playoff team, moves need to be made to the Cavs roster. And we’re talking significant ones! A lot of teams in the Eastern Conference are already better than the Cavaliers and others are making moves to surpass them as we speak. But for right now, in my opinion, here’s what David Blatt’s starting line up would look like if no major moves were made to enhance the roster.
POINT GUARD – KYRIE IRVING
While his scoring average (20.8ppg) and shooting percentage (43%) went down last year, he did set a career high in assists with 6.1 per game and made the all-star game for the second straight year and won the MVP. So not a bad year for “Uncle Drew”. However his offensive production and efficiency did decline and some people feel it was because of Mike Brown’s system. I don’t buy it. I think Kyrie just missed open shots and continued to dribble the air out of the ball at times allowing the defense to get set and be in better position to guard him. Move the ball more via the pass and not the dribble, and make your open shots and the offensive numbers and efficiency should increase. Also if he wants to go from all-star status to being mentioned as a superstar in this league, he needs to get better on the defensive end of the ball. Max contract or not, that is still the major weakness in his game and it needs to be addressed by the new coaching staff, and more importantly, by Kyrie himself.
SHOOTING GUARD – DION WAITERS
For now it’s Waiters by default. I like Dion off the bench best because I don’t think he’s a true 2-guard. To me he’s closer to a point guard or as I like to call him, a “ball guard”. He needs the ball in his hands to be effective. He doesn’t come off screens well, nor does he move well without the ball. Also, we haven’t seen any compelling evidence that he and Kyrie play well together when they’re on the floor at the same time. Could that change? Sure, but that’s on Dion realizing when he and Kyrie are out there together, he’s got to learn to play without the ball. Another area of his game that has to improve is on defense. He needs to understand defense better in the NBA so when he is on the floor he’s not a major liability to the Cavs on “D”. It’s great if he scores 20 points, but he has to realize it’s not great if he lets his guy score 23. Plus G.M. David Griffin got my attention on draft night when he said this about number one pick Andrew Wiggins, “If Andrew finds greatness in this league, it’s going to be as a very big 2-guard.” That tells me the Cavs are hoping to find a small forward, preferably a 6’8 – 260 pound 4-time MVP to play the 3, so they can slide Wiggins to the 2 and use Dion off the bench, or maybe even involve him in a trade. But because there’s nobody else on the roster right now with enough experience to play the 2, Dion Waiters is your starting shooting guard.
SMALL FORWARD – ANDREW WIGGINS
I have always looked at Wiggins as a 3. His size, length and athleticism, to go along with his inconsistent jump shot from long range at this time make him a small forward in my eyes. Obviously the Cavs front office feels he will eventually improve that jumper to where he can start at the 2. But for right now, until they sign a free agent or trade for someone, Wiggins is your starting small forward. You don’t draft a player with his talents on both offense and defense first overall and sit him. He may the lack the physical maturity right now to guard some of the more powerful small forwards in this league, but based on your roster as it’s constructed today, he’s the best option you have at the 3. Again that could change if the Cavs make a significant move in free agency or via a trade.
POWER FORWARD – TRISTAN THOMPSON
Normally when you draft a player number one overall like the Cavs did last year with Anthony Bennett you expect him to start if not in his rookie year, at least in year number two. I can’t see that happening at this point with Bennett. He had one of the worst rookie campaigns ever for a first overall pick (4.2ppg and 3rpg). He couldn’t shoot (35%fg), play defense or rebound consistently. While Tristan Thompson in my opinion is more suited to be a back-up 4 in the NBA, on this team right now, he’s your starting power forward. He did average 11.7ppg and 9.2rpg last year, so he doesn’t hurt you a ton at that position, but again I expected more from a player when you selected him fourth overall in a draft as the Cavs did with Thompson in 2011.
CENTER – ANDERSON VAREJAO
Varejao is one of the hardest workers not only on the team, but in the entire NBA. Andy gives you everything he has, night in and night out and unfortunately that comes back to haunt him because it’s led to so many injuries throughout his career. Two years ago he was a 14 point/14 rebound a night guy, but he only played 25 games. Last year his game total went up to 65, but his numbers declined to just 8.4ppg and 9.7rpg. Again, he’s another guy on this team who would be better suited coming off the bench, but because you don’t have anyone else on the roster who is a starting caliber center, Varejao gets the nod. Like small forward, this is an area that David Griffin and the Cavs could address this off season in free agency or via a trade.
WOULD THE CAVS AND GORDON HAYWARD BE A GOOD FIT?
There are various reports from ESPN.com and Yahoo Sports that the Cavaliers have interest in Utah Jazz small forward Gordon Hayward. How much interest is the big question?
Are the Cavs willing to go max dollars for a player who has never been an all-star and is considered good, but not great? The four year pro out of Butler is a restricted free agent, meaning the Jazz have the right to match any offer made to Hayward if they so choose.
Last season in Utah, the 6’8 – 220 pound Hayward saw his average increase for the fourth straight season to a career high 16.2ppg. He also averaged a career high in rebounds (5.1rpg) and assists (5.2apg). However his field goal percentage decreased for the fourth consecutive year, falling to career low 41 percent. His 3-point shooting has been up and down over his four years in the Association, and last year it reached an all-time low at just 30 percent.
In order to make Utah think twice about matching a contract offer for Hayward, G.M. David Griffin and the Cavaliers would have to start with an average salary of at least $10 million per season over four years. Realistically that contract would have to be even higher, more like a max deal in the neighborhood of $14 million per season over four years. If that number was thrown at the Jazz, they might not match, or they could then possibly talk to the Cavs about a sign and trade for the 24 year old former first round pick if they at least want to get something in return for him.
I personally don’t think Hayward is a $14 million dollar a year player. I like his game, but his shooting is too inconsistent for me. I wouldn’t offer more than $11 million per year on a 3-year deal with a club option for a fourth year. But those numbers probably won’t scare the Jazz enough to let him go or feel the need to trade him. So if you’re the Cavs you’re going to have to over pay Hayward in order to have any chance of getting him out of Utah.
The only way I do that if I’m Cleveland is, one, you know for sure LeBron James is not coming back this summer. Two, all of the other small forwards you covet have told you no or there is no chance of them coming to C’Town. And three, you really believe that Hayward could develop into an all-star caliber player at the small forward position.
If the answer to any of those is no, then I wouldn’t offer Hayward a max contract. Hayward is on my list of free agent targets this summer, but at my price and only after I’ve explored all my other options.
Stay tuned free agency in the NBA is just getting started!
NBA FREE AGENCY AND THE CLEVLAND CAVS DEPTH CHART
NBA Free Agency begins tonight July 1st at midnight eastern time. The Cavaliers have plenty of cap space to go after a big name free agent like LeBron James, or if G.M. David Griffin feels there’s no chance of bringing James back to Cleveland, he can direct his attention and dollars elsewhere on maybe one or two other free agents.
With that in mind here is a look at the Cavs current depth chart that new head coach David Blatt and associate head coach Tyronn Lue have to work with.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS DEPTH CHART
PG – Kyrie Irving (4th year) Jarret Jack (10th year) Matthew Dellavedova (2nd year)
SG – Dion Waiters (3rd year) Sergey Karasev (2nd year) Joe Harris (rookie)
SF – Andrew Wiggins (rookie) Carrick Felix (2nd year) Scottie Hopson (2nd year)
PF – Tristan Thompson (4th year) Anthony Bennett (2nd year)
C – Anderson Varjao (11th year) Tyler Zeller (3rd year) Dwight Powell (rookie) Brendan Haywood(13th year)