Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
The Celtics aren’t happy about the situation. They felt they were totally forthcoming about Thomas’s injury during negotiations. It has been reported all summer, when it appeared a certainty Thomas would play the final year of his contract with the Celtics, that the point guard would spend the summer rehabilitating his torn labrum, without a projected return date.
Celtics coach Brad Stevens had said the team would know more on Thomas after another series of tests in early September. So the Celtics were rather annoyed that the Cavaliers expressed concern about Thomas’s injury after he underwent a physical last Friday.
…
Privately, Irving felt he could no longer grow under the tutelage of LeBron James, and he felt stifled by Tyronn Lue’s offense and the influence James had on the schemes. Irving felt like he played with a revolving door of players and lineups, and that most certainly would go to a further extreme should James leave the Cavaliers next summer.
Monday came and went with zero movement on the Thomas/Crowder/Irving trade. Nothing. Nothing except for a report that Cleveland hadn’t even sent Boston a counteroffer.
This is ridiculous.
In the seventh day after the trade and the fourth day after going ‘public’ (via leaks to Woj) with ‘concerns’ the Cleveland Cavaliers, to all intents and purposes, have absolutely no idea what’s going on.
Look, if you’re a Cavs fan, I’m sorry. I’ve had to put up with decades of Reinsdorf ownership of the White Sox and, like you guys, all I’ve got to show for it is one accidental championship.
But the Cavs are a mess. Just an absolute mess.
Look at what they’re doing to Isaiah Thomas.
Don’t come back with ‘look at what Boston did to Isaiah Thomas’, that doesn’t compare. Boston traded a two-time all star with an injury. Cleveland turned around and hung their newest acquisition out to dry, implying that Boston had lied to them, that Thomas’s injury was far more severe than initially reported, and then…
…nothing….
Nothing. No counter offer (other than these laughable reports of Cleveland wanting Jayson Tatum, the Lakers pick and the Old North Church included in the deal as compensation).
They hung IT out to dry Friday night and they haven’t done a thing to resolve this situation. They seem content to let IT twist in the wind while they regroup after the Celtics called their bluff.
At this point in time I don’t know if Altman is the primary mover behind this garbage conduct or if it’s Gilbert or if it’s Lebron, and frankly, I don’t care. Ultimately, this is on Dan Gilbert, but don’t think Altman escapes blame here.
Both of them have dirty hands now.
And so does Lebron.
Lebron has pulled all sorts of passive aggressive crap since he got back to Cleveland, he had Blatt fired and he routinely overrules Ty Lue. He’s repeatedly spoke out to get above-market deals for guys that he “likes”, and he effectively demanded that the Cavs trade Andrew Wiggins as a condition for his return to the team.
When you have a track record that long of meddling in and influencing management decisions, when you have a track record of grousing about things that displease you and lobbying for players you like, there’s a simple Latin phrase for what’s going on here:
Qui tacet consentit
“He who is silent consents”
Oh, but didn’t Lebron go on a nice internet rant about ‘loyalty’ seemingly in defense of IT?
Sure did–or so you’d think. But go back and take a long look at what he wrote–and realize it’s not so much about IT and being traded as it is about him defending his freedom to do what he wants.
Since then what has this wannabe Phil Jackson* done or said? Nothing. No childish tweets with obvious “hidden” meanings, no public comments, nothing. If he’s upset about what’s going on with IT, he knows for a fact that management will listen if he says something–especially if he says so in public.
But it ain’t gonna happen. Lebron’s already checked out on the Cavs.
If When Lebron leaves, that’s exactly what Dan Gilbert deserves. Cavs fans don’t deserve it, well, most of ’em don’t.
But Gilbert? Well, when you’re content to let your team use an injured player as leverage to try to renegotiate a deal that you already agreed to, you deserve to get jerked around yourself. You’ve earned it. When you decide that the best way to renegotiate that deal is through the media, well, don’t expect sympathy when you get hung out to dry in public.
Oh, I know people blame Lebron for the chaos that has surrounded the Cavs ever since he came back, and he deserves his fair share of it, but Gilbert deserves even more blame.
When the NBA gifted him Lebron James, Gilbert got a perfect match: He got an 18-year old who rapidly became every bit as manipulative and deceptive as he was.
But Gilbert, Gilbert set the tone. Did Lebron use Dan Gilbert? You bet he did, and you bet he felt justified in doing so because he knew that Gilbert was using him and had been using him ever since he came into the league.
Yeah, there was that one title, but there has been nothing but chaos and dysfunction surrounding it, and I’m not a Kyrie fan, but I’ll tell you this much: Insisting on a trade out of that Cuyahoga-River-fire may well be the smartest thing he’s ever done.
*Really–think about it: They both love manipulating people via passive aggressive verbiage, and neither one of them are worth a hoot when it comes to building a team.
The rest of the links
MassLive: Boston Celtics rumors 2017: Thomas Robinson working out as Celtics wait to finalize Kyrie Irving deal | Kyrie Irving Trade: Will Boston Celtics add value? 10 questions to answer
CSNNE: Haynes: Wouldn’t be surprised if this was Cavs plan all along WARNING: VIDEO CONTAINS GARY TANGUAY
Boston Herald: Bulpett: New-look Celtics won’t work right away, but their eyes are now on the top prize
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