One of the main reasons LeBron came back to Cleveland was so he could rule with an Iron Fist. He would never be able to do that in Miami, but in Cleveland he is the coach, GM, part-owner and Mayor of the city.
It means that his teammates really have no say. It is LeBron’s way or the highway and as you can imagine that rubs some of them the wrong way even when they are winning.
Basketball Insiders took a look under the hood of the Cavs and this is what they found.
Sources close to the situation have described the Cavaliers’ locker room as “miserable” at times, even when the team is having success. Part of the problem, according to sources, is that James is an extremely demanding leader and has a strong sense of urgency since he’s 31 years old, in his 13th season and has a ton of basketball miles on his body.
This intensity can be a good thing, as he has led his teammates to work harder and play to their full potential. However, it has also led to some issues, especially since James is at a different stage of his career than many of Cleveland’s other key contributors. Remember, players like Irving (23 years old), Love (27 years old) and Tristan Thompson (24 years old) among others are much younger and they can afford to be a bit more patient when it comes to winning a ring. Each of these players just got their first taste of the postseason last year, so it’s hard for them be as driven as James in his quest to bring the Larry O’Brien trophy to Cleveland.
It’s unclear if Irving is actually unhappy or – if he is – why exactly he wants out. But his history of disliking the city of Cleveland, the fact that he’s playing in James’ shadow to some extent and the comments made by people like Varejao and Griffin do lend credence to Smith’s rumor.
The Smith rumor they speak of is Stephen A. saying that Kyrie wants out of Cleveland and is tired of living in LeBron’s shadow.
Kyrie spoke on it and didn’t deny it as much as just brush it off.
“There’s nothing to really address,” Irving said, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “Obviously there’s going to be some misunderstandings; it’s part of being on a team. For me, as a maturing young player in this league, I know what we have and the opportunity we have in order to be something special. My communication is open with all of my teammates, just knowing what’s going on and how I feel about things.
If the Cavs don’t win a championship this year, it will be very interesting to see how they move forward.
