The Cleveland Cavaliers have a well-publicized luxury tax bill after they splashed the cash in order to bring a championship to Northeast Ohio. This past summer the spending continued, as the Cavs look to take advantage of a primed LeBron James in order to achieve success in this championship window.
The Cavaliers have a bounty of youthful talent in their starting line-up, with Kyrie Irving (24), Kevin Love (28) and Tristan Thompson (25). They have also become experts at attracting productive veterans, and maximizing what they can do for the wine and gold.
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Richard Jefferson, Channing Frye, James Jones, Kendrick Perkins, Mike Miller, Mo Williams and Shawn Marion are just some of the names that have joined the Cavaliers under James’ reign, and that looks set to continue. Cleveland are gearing up for the acquisition of a veteran back-up point guard in the coming days, and landed one of the League’s best three point shooters last week in Kyle Korver.
The average age of the Cavaliers is 29, (only the Spurs and Clippers have an older roster) and the James effect is instrumental. He has always been a fan of the veteran guys as he told Bleacher Report.
“It’s stability,” James says. “When you’ve got professionals who know what their role is and they’ve been doing it for years and years, it just makes your job that much easier. It’s always great to look on the bench and see those guys. They’re always ready to go. It’s good for our team.”
James’ influence of almost guaranteeing success is something veteran guys find hard to turn down, especially if they have found winning hard to come by during their NBA journey. James offers the pulling power of taking you along for the glorious ride, and it is a powerful tool to have at the disposal of Cavs GM David Griffin, who discussed the influence of James.
“We’re limited in the sense that if you want to come and be part of what we’re doing here—and San Antonio’s been the same for years—if you want to be part of what we’re doing, you really can only come on our terms.”
“That’s been helpful, in terms of weeding out the wrong veterans from the guys who are going to be the right fit,” Griffin continued. “They make a conscious decision to want to come here, which makes it easier to find the right fit. … We’re gonna give you a great culture, a great environment, a great team, a chance to play for a title, and we’re gonna give you LeBron James. But I can’t give you $5 million.”
James has the star power which only few have the pleasure of possessing. His selfless nature allows you to still get your numbers and touches, while achieving it in a winning environment. Veterans and NBA players alike have taken pay cuts to play with the King, and each of them have been a part of the NBA finals because of it.
Look for Griffin to continue to pitch the opportunity to play alongside James as the main factor in trying to lure another productive vet in the coming days, as the Cavs search for a back-up point guard heats up.
