As everyone who follows the Cavs already knows, Tom Izzo still hasn’t given ownership a thumbs up or thumbs down regarding the head coaching offer prepared by Reptile. Earlier today, Woj posted this article re: the source of the hold-up. In it, he makes a couple of points that I wanted to address briefly.
1) Izzo’s hesitation stems from his lack of certainty over who in the Cavs organization still has a relationship with LeBron
I just have this question: considering that Danny Ferry and Mike Brown were supposedly run out of the city by LeBron’s unspoken wishes, who in the organization EVER had a relationship with him? As far as I can tell, there are three potential answers here. First, some of the other players on the roster. The problem here is that this has nothing to do with the front office. It could also potentially be a landmine if Chris Grant and/or Reptile rule LeBron’s friendships on the roster out of the equation when making personnel moves this summer—which, for the record, I believe they should absolutely do.
The second answer is LeBron’s pre-existing friends, i.e. the guys who were given jobs with the team because LeBron wanted them to have jobs with the team. Randy Mims, the renowned “player liaison,” is at the forefront of this group. But this answer doesn’t provide any comfort for Izzo (or fans clinging to James), since all of these jokers would just as easily be given the same jobs and perks at whatever new team LeBron decided he wanted to play for.
The third answer is the assistant coaches who have been retained. Chris Jent, Mike Malone, Melvin Hunt. This seems like the most substantive and logical answer. Jent, of course, has been traveling and working with James year-round since at least this last summer, a kind of promotion from the heavy in-season work he was conducting with James in previous seasons. Keeping Jent and the others on staff was one of the savvier moves I’ve seen Reptile make in this whole chess game. Ultimately, it may not make much of a difference. Although I would guess that LeBron does in fact have a relationship and some loyalty to these coaches, I don’t think either is strong enough to prevent him from jumping ship on its own. This isn’t Manny Ramirez, who was reportedly so taken aback when he found out that he couldn’t take the Tribe’s trusted equipment manager with him after he signed with Boston (because, you know, the guy was still employed by the Indians) that he considered trying to rescind the contract.
But as our old friend B-Dub reports, at this point, it sounds like Izzo’s best bet in the guessing game of who has inroads to James may be to look in the mirror. But that’s still far from a guarantee that James will return.
2) One of the main reasons Izzo is seriously considering the jump to the NBA is his frustration with Michigan State’s inability to recruit elite talent
This is a huge red flag in my book. I really wish it wasn’t, but it is. The reason is that, as I’ve written before, it’s arguable that Cleveland is the least appealing NBA city in the league. Admittedly, I don’t think this is a fair assessment. Even without James, the Cavs have an owner willing to spend, world-class practice facilities, a (supposedly) highly regarded young GM in Chris Grant, and the minor name cache that has come with their continued regular season success the past several years. Compare that to, say, Detroit, where the team is being offered for sale, the GM has earned a well-deserved reputation as a complete bumbler, and the city itself is in even worse shape than Cleveland. I’d rather play for the Cavs, but perception is reality.
Let’s also not lose sight of the fact that even if the Cavs aren’t the least appealing franchise in the NBA, they’re nowhere near the top. Short of a complete transformation of the city’s economy, there’s very little that’s ever going to change that. We’ve all seen free agents pass over the Cavs to take equal money elsewhere (for recent entries, see: Artest, Ron and Ariza, Trevor). I maintain that LeBron’s unwillingness to give the team a long-term commitment has played a large part in their inability to recruit better. But when it comes to pitching the team to potential new players, the reality is that the Cavaliers are in an even worse bargaining position than Michigan State is in the NCAA. If this is really one of Izzo’s main frustrations with his current gig, he should think long and hard about this particular alternative before he decides it’s really going to be any different.
Of course, if LeBron chooses to stay with the Cavs long-term, that changes the entire equation. But if Izzo’s being honest with himself, the above reasons make it less than difficult to imagine why Reptile’s lucrative offer continues to give him pause.
-T
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