CLEVELAND TEAMS

Good for him . . . (via Cavs.com)

Dear Cleveland, All Of Northeast Ohio and Cleveland Cavaliers Supporters Wherever You May Be Tonight;

As you now know, our former hero, who grew up in the very region that he deserted this evening, is no longer a Cleveland Cavalier.

This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his “decision” unlike anything ever “witnessed” in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment.

Clearly, this is bitterly disappointing to all of us.

The good news is that the ownership team and the rest of the hard-working, loyal, and driven staff over here at your hometown Cavaliers have not betrayed you nor NEVER will betray you.

There is so much more to tell you about the events of the recent past and our more than exciting future. Over the next several days and weeks, we will be communicating much of that to you.

You simply don’t deserve this kind of cowardly betrayal.

You have given so much and deserve so much more.

In the meantime, I want to make one statement to you tonight:

“I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE”

You can take it to the bank.

If you thought we were motivated before tonight to bring the hardware to Cleveland, I can tell you that this shameful display of selfishness and betrayal by one of our very own has shifted our “motivation” to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels.

Some people think they should go to heaven but NOT have to die to get there.

Sorry, but that’s simply not how it works.

This shocking act of disloyalty from our home grown “chosen one” sends the exact opposite lesson of what we would want our children to learn. And “who” we would want them to grow-up to become.

But the good news is that this heartless and callous action can only serve as the antidote to the so-called “curse” on Cleveland, Ohio.

The self-declared former “King” will be taking the “curse” with him down south. And until he does “right” by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.

Just watch.

Sleep well, Cleveland.

Tomorrow is a new and much brighter day….

I PROMISE you that our energy, focus, capital, knowledge and experience will be directed at one thing and one thing only:

DELIVERING YOU the championship you have long deserved and is long overdue….

Dan Gilbert
Majority Owner
Cleveland Cavaliers

As Jason Whitlock said on Twitter, Dan Gilbert knows where the bodies are buried, and LeBron and his posse messed with the wrong billionaire.

Expect to hear much more about LeBron’s game 5 meltdown, and all the drama from behind the scenes. Gilbert knows LeBron wants to be a “global icon.” LeBron has already diminished his brand, and it looks like Gilbert is determined to expose the real LeBron to the rest of the world.

Wow – things are moving fast.

Yesterday we all thought Brian Shaw might be the new coach of the Cavs, but now we hear that Byron Scott has just agreed to a 3-year deal to coach the Cavs.

What does this mean for LeBron James? Who knows? It looks like Scott will be the new coach whether or not LeBron comes back to Cleveland. That said, this development can’t hurt.

Well, the Global Icon has been waiting for this day, and it’s finally arrived. He gets to make his own decision, and in doing so will reveal the kind of man he has become.

As the more astute writers have pointed out, this is strictly the decision of LeBron James. Others will have input, but Nike and his agents will not be able to push him in any direction.

Also, while LeBron will discuss “winning” as the basis for his decision, there’s no real reason to leave the Cavs. Gilbert is a great owner who will spend whatever is necessary for the Cavs to win. Anyone who blames LeBron’s supporting cast for the flame-out against the Celtics isn’t being honest. LeBron lost that series all on his own. He may have had a legitimate excuse, whether in his elbow or in his personal life, but in game 5 LeBron had a meltdown and the Cavs were never the same.

He also didn’t show the best side of his character in his comments after the game. Let’s chalk that up to the frustration of the moment.

Now it’s time for LeBron James to reveal his true character. Does he have any loyalty beyond himself? Will he abandon his home town team and the fans of Cleveland for . . . . what? Playing with other superstars? Will anyone really be impressed if LeBron latches on to Wade and Bosh to grab that first ring?

Also, the Chicago scenario offers a real window into how the man thinks. For long-suffering Cleveland fans, Chicago during the Michael Jordan years rivaled the Steelers as the team we loved to hate. And now LeBron is considering going there? If he does so he will be public enemy #2 in Cleveland, right behind Art Model, for the rest of his life. Does this city mean anything to him?

Again, we will see what kind of man he is. Does he have any sense of loyalty, or does the man who has everything need even more? Will he recognize that he has unfinished business in Cleveland, and that the owner and the city are 100% behind him, which is all any player should want?

We’ll see . . . .

Adrian Wojnarowski from Yahoo! Sports is no fan of LeBron James. He has made that clear with some scathing articles on LeBron and his posse over the past several weeks. His criticisms are often legitimate, as LeBron has shown that he’s a spoiled egomaniac who crumbled under the pressure this year in the playoffs.

That said, LeBron is one of the most significant talents in NBA history. Whether he achieves the highest levels of greatness remains to be seen, but we all know the NBA is built around star players, and LeBron still has the potential to grow up and become one of the greats.

With that in mind, here’s Adrian’s take on the Danny Ferry situation.

What’s been lost for the Cavaliers is the strong, steady leadership they had with Ferry and coach Mike Brown. Gilbert was honest with Ferry: He wanted to take back control and involve himself with everything again. Before Ferry was hired as GM, it wasn’t uncommon for Gilbert to pass notes to the bench for substitutions he wanted Paul Silas to make. Ferry had come out of San Antonio, and believed an orderly structure made for successful, winning organizations.

“LeBron never had to come out and say that he wanted Brown and Ferry gone,” one front-office executive familiar with the Cavs’ dynamic said. “But the anti-Brown and anti-Ferry sentiment from LeBron’s crowd was loud and clear to Dan Gilbert. He knew where LeBron stood.”

Ferry convinced Gilbert to step back, let him do his job. But more and more, the owner’s impulsive need to inject himself into everything took over the franchise. Most of all, Gilbert had become the biggest enabler of LeBron James and his inner circle, and that only promises to get worse. Ferry never loved the players’ pregame skits, the hiring of James’ buddies, the associates’ riding on the team plane, but Gilbert seldom said no to anything. He behaved like the permissive parent who believed his kid would love him more if he spoiled him rotten. And it got the Cavs a superstar, James, who never respected anyone and a cast of associates who had the run of the place. Had James wanted Ferry to still be the GM, Gilbert would’ve backed down and Ferry would have a new contract.

“Danny’s been miserable for the past two years,” a friend of his told Yahoo! Sports. “Even if they kept LeBron, do you still lose for winning there anyway?”

Ferry fought to retain Brown, but Gilbert, a staunch Michigan State man, is determined to hire away Tom Izzo. Unless James tells him he wants John Calipari, and then they’ll hire John Calipari. As much as anything, the Cavaliers are giving the franchise completely over to James and his inner circle now. Whatever he wants to stay, he’ll get. Now, Ferry isn’t there to play the wet blanket anymore. He never feared fighting Gilbert on issues because he had stature, money and, truth be told, he didn’t need the job.

I think he’s being too tough on Dan Gilbert. Has Gilbert enabled LeBron, his ego and his posse? Of course he has, but you have little choice in the NBA to do that with a star of LeBron’s caliber. Ferry may not have liked it, but the San Antonio model is tough to replicate entirely – they have a superstar who doesn’t have much of an ego. That’s very rare.

What Adrian doesn’t address is that Mike Brown was LeBron’s biggest enabler. Sure, he turned LeBron into a defensive player, but he had little control over LeBron during the games. He never disciplined LeBron for taking idiotic 3-pointers at critical points in the game without setting up the offense. LeBron ran the show, so the decision to get a new coach is one of the few things Gilbert could do to possibly control LeBron. Also, Brown’s performance in the playoffs was terrible this year. If Ferry was going to side with Brown, I don’t blame Gilbert for moving on.

Also, an owner who invests this much money has to have a team approach to the roster. He is putting up millions to get over the hump, and a GM needs to be on board with that. Ferry’s notion of total control make little sense in a setting where Gilbert is paying huge amounts in luxury tax money.

In the end, Gilbert is doing the right thing in trying to keep LeBron. Brown and Ferry are dispensable.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

We all know that Delonte West won’t be back in Cleveland next season. Putting aside the off-court rumors, Delonte was inconsistent last season and his contract makes him a very valuable commodity to teams looking to dump salary, given the $500,000 buyout clause.

The real issue involves Mo Williams. Brian Windhorst is reporting that the Cavs are exploring Mo’s trade value and are open to trading him.

That shouldn’t be a surprise givens Mo’s struggles on defense and in the playoffs. Naturally, it’s hard to figure out where the Cavs are heading without word on LeBron’s decision, but it seems clear that Dan Gilbert and new GM Chris Grant are looking to shake things up. It’s going to be an interesting summer.

UPDATE: Bob Finnan has some interesting tidbits on possible moves.

If the Cavs decide to trade Mo Williams, one possible destination could be Toronto in exchange for Jose Calderon. Williams is a more dynamic scorer and Calderon is more of a distributor. Both are great free-throw shooters, but neither player is a good defender.

Their contracts are similar in amount and length. The Raptors would like to move Calderon and swingman Hedo Turkoglu.

I wonder if the Cavs would be interested in Hedo Turkoglu? He’s another scorer and ball-handler who could compliment LeBron.