Report: LeBron James Frustrated with Cavaliers’ Offseason

According to a report from USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt, LeBron James is frustrated with the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 2017 offseason up to this point.

Here’s an excerpt from the report:

LeBron James, the NBA’s most powerful player and biggest star who brought the Cleveland Cavaliers their first NBA championship, is concerned about the Cavaliers’ offseason, a person close to the situation told USA TODAY Sports.

Expecting an aggressive offseason approach that would close the gap on the champion Golden State Warriors, James soon found his anticipation and optimism diminished after Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert dismantled the front office, declining days before the draft and free agency to bring back general manager David Griffin and vice president of basketball operations Trent Redden.

Gilbert’s decision left the Cavs without the franchise’s top two front-office execs at a critical time, and it left James frustrated and concerned about the team’s ability to put together a roster that can better compete with Golden State, the person with direct knowledge of James’ thinking told USA TODAY Sports. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity…

…Further exacerbating James’ frustration is the Cavs were close to making a deal for then-Chicago Bulls All-Star Jimmy Butler the day Gilbert decided to mutually part ways with Griffin and Redden, two people familiar with negotiations told USA TODAY Sports. They requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the negotiations.

LeBron has a player option next summer and there have been reports since the Cavs lost the 2017 Finals that James will possibly leave Cleveland for a second time.

There’s a lot to unravel in the USA Today article, which also cites Dan Gilbert’s inability to sign Chauncey Billups for a front office role, the improved rosters of numerous NBA franchises (including the Golden State Warriors) and Cleveland’s salary cap issues as major reasons for LeBron’s frustration.