David Griffin and a person close to former Cavs superstar LeBron James spoke after Griffin’s comments to SI went public on Thursday, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
Griffin said some controversial things about James to SI, including he didn’t have fun running the Cavs, building a team around LeBron is tough, and James isn’t the same animal after winning the 2016 championship over the Golden State Warriors.
Sources close to James told ESPN on Thursday they were “shocked” at Griffin’s characterization of the superstar
Griffin and a person close to James spoke after the SI story was published, sources told ESPN, and Griffin expressed that some context was missing behind his comments. James’ camp encouraged Griffin to clear up his stance on the record, sources said.
James’ contract structure with the Cavs may have contributed to the “inorganic” roster construction to which Griffin alluded. Upon returning to Cleveland for a second stint with the franchise in 2014, James signed a one-year deal with a player option for the second year. In 2015, he signed a one-year deal with a player option for the following season. And in 2016, rather than pick up the option after winning the championship, he signed a two-year deal with a player option for a third season.
In his second stint with the Cavs, LeBron James guided Cleveland to four straight Finals. The Cavs lost three and won one.
David Griffin and the Cavs parted ways in 2017. James was privately upset that Cleveland let Griffin walk.
It’s going to be very interesting to see what James and Griffin’s relationship is like moving forward after this SI story.