Cleveland Sports Forum

I did not know but I wouldn't have guessed Ohio.

Agreed to contract. Immediately took off to Europe.

LA Lakers now with a flurry of moves following this Lebron move up. We've seen it - this Laker team will look pretty differently likely in a short time..

(PS - When the Cavs did this.....well, Andrew Wiggins has NOT evolved to his potential at all so IMO that did turn out to be a very good move in retrospect trading him)

Boogie Cousins just signed with Golden State !

What an absolute joke.

I'm hoping he screws that team up when he's ready to play in January.

I mean really, how many balls are there in an NBA game? Curry has already had to take a back seat to Durant.

Wow, great one Cedi

Cedi Osman’s farewell message to LeBron James will make you emotional
By Kelsey Russo Jul 3, 2018, 12:54pm EDT

When LeBron James announced he was leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers for the second time to sign a four-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, the social media messages to James about his departure took a different tone than when he left for Miami eight years ago.

Not only have fans, celebrities, and other notable people been expressing their thoughts on social media, Cavs player and James’ now former teammate Cedi Osman posted a photo to his Instagram account with a farewell message to James.

Check out the post here:


cediosman
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cediosmanSome people bring out the worst in you, others bring out the best. And there are remarkably rare ones, who just bring out the most of everything that even you don't know that you have. They build you up. They make you feel alive. They make you feel strong. They make you feel indisputable. From the first moment we met, you’ve always been that rare one for me, King. I don’t believe in coincidences. I choose to believe my path crossed with you for a reason. And that reason will be uncovered as I continue to walk through. Please accept my highest gratitude for your support and appreciation for your inspiration. I’m truly blessed to have been surrounded by your charm.



In just his one season so far as a Cavs player, the sincerity and emotion of Osman’s message rings throughout the whole post and offers James recognition for what he has done for him. And just as Osman offers his support and gratitude in his farewell to James, the messages from Cavs fans and owner Dan Gilbert have been similar. This time around, the focus is on what James did for the city of Cleveland, for the fans, and for players like Osman.


James is leaving “The Land” having made his mark, both on the city and on the players, as Osman testifies to in his post. With that, James can leave Cleveland, having done what he had promised to do, and have the support of fans and players like Osman behind him.

Jeez, talk about ass kissing.

Sounds like a Trump Cabinet meeting requiring people to blow smoke up the King's ass.

For example, Seagull? Just one example of that?

Because I can give you several examples of his cabinet members disagreeing with him on a wide range of subjects. Trade, Climate Change, the wall at the border, his travel ban, just to name a few.

I bet you cannot name one example of a cabinet member going against his own opinion just to agree with the president.

Because that is the way you work. You rarely ever post any opinions on subjects. And you never post facts. You just sit back and snipe at every body else's opinions. And once in a while, like this morning, you make a grumpy hateful dumb ass comment.

Let me be the first to say it. If healthy, big if because Magic Johnson has some bad karma around him, I expect the Lakers to be in the Western Conference championship game and I will not be surprised if they win it. Where then Kyrie and the Celtics will prevail.

Have never been a fan of the Celtics. 76ers fan going back to Wilt, Hal Greer, Billy Cunningham and Luke Jackson and did not like the Celtics even with Bird. Since then Cavs and part time Hornets fan. Still will be adamant Cavs fan but will be rooting pretty hard for the Celtics for the first time.

I think Lebron got out of the East before Kyrie and the Celtics made him look silly. Would have happened this year if Kyrie was healthy. Lebron got lucky it did not happen.

To cheapen what Cedi said and posted is pretty sad. Perhaps, just perhaps, he said what he honestly felt. Maybe, just maybe Lebron helped him out in his career.

Without any evidence to the contrary I am going with it. (After all, he doesn't even "work" for Lebron anymore ).

Grumpy old bastards like myself just don't understand why a personal "thank you" needs to be communicated thru social media and not person to person. It's not like he couldn't have thanked him in person or made a phone call. It's like everybody should like me because I'm thankful to Lebron.

Humbug!

seagull wrote:Grumpy old bastards like myself just don't understand why a personal "thank you" needs to be communicated thru social media and not person to person. It's not like he couldn't have thanked him in person or made a phone call. It's like everybody should like me because I'm thankful to Lebron.

Humbug!

Lol, but he may have done that? You don't even know that yet you chose to overlook that fact (yes it is a fact that you don't know that) and believe what furthered your grumpiness....

But anyways thanks for telling it how it was. PS - we all do it.

Cavs will likely be bad, but it doesn’t have to be painful


By David Zavac Jul 5, 2018 9

LeBron​ James is​ off to​ the Los Angeles Lakers,​ and the Cavs​ are now left​ to​ pick up​ where he​​ left off and carry on. They will not make their fifth straight NBA Finals, and if they’re smart, they won’t even attempt a push toward the NBA playoffs. They get to keep their first-round pick next season only if it’s in the top 10, so they have every reason to make sure they are among the worst five or six teams in the league.

New lottery rules will mean a lower chance for the worst teams at the top overall picks, so the Cavs might not have to tear all the way down to have a good shot at lottery glory. That being said, if the wheels really do fall off, the new rules would make it less likely that they would get a top overall pick if they end up with one of the worst records in the league.

In reality, the Cavs likely won’t have to work very hard to struggle. They’ll have rookie Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson running the point. Neither are proven distributors, though both seem to have terrific mental makeup; you likely won’t have to question their effort in what will be a difficult season in terms of wins and losses. Sexton will be the most exciting and interesting part of the Cavs season. If the roster stays the same, though it shouldn’t, he’ll have Kevin Love and Kyle Korver as shooters around him, plus Larry Nance Jr. and Tristan Thompson as potential roll men. If you’re looking to help him develop, that’s pretty good.

But this year probably isn’t the time for that. Kyrie Irving actually flashed pretty nice pick-and-pop chemistry with Antawn Jamison as a rookie, before the team decided second- and third-year Thompson was a good enough roll partner for him in the years leading up to James’ return. That … did not go well. The Cavs should trade Love, both because it’s the right thing to do for the player, who deserves a chance to compete in the playoffs and play in meaningful games, and because it’d help them tank.

Love has played for lottery teams before, of course, and probably isn’t good enough to drag the Cavs to the playoffs by himself, even in an Eastern Conference that somehow continues to get worse. Even so, it’s unlikely the Cavs should risk even a few extra wins that might come from employing Love; he can opt out of his contract next summer, and his value risks diminishing as the year goes on. Getting a first-round pick, even if it isn’t a particularly good one, should be the priority. They may have to take on additional salary to do it, but that’s always been something Dan Gilbert has been willing to do.

Given the scenario, progress for the Cavs won’t be measured based on wins and losses. Sexton isn’t likely to be all that efficient, but we’ll be looking for signs he can be a starting-level NBA point guard. We’ll be looking to see whether, given his lack of size, he can be a viable NBA defender. He won’t be good right away, of course. But steps forward over the course of the year with bumps and bruises along the way will be fun to chart.

The same goes for Nance and potentially Rodney Hood. Hood is a restricted free agent and, despite disappearing in the playoffs, has the tools to be a viable starting shooting guard. If he returns, he’ll have every chance to show he can get to that level. Nance will get the chance to show whether he’s a starting center or energy big off the bench. Of course, fan favorite Cedi Osman is in the same boat. Can he shoot at a respectable rate? Can he stay out of foul trouble? Nance and Osman bring energy for days and will have time to learn and work it out. Along with Sexton and Clarkson, they bring the right mindset to the table for a team that won’t win but will look to improve all the same.

This is not the team of misfit veterans that was left the first time James departed Northeast Ohio. Sexton, Osman, Nance and potentially Hood are an intriguing bunch, even if they don’t have particularly high ceilings. But George Hill, J.R. Smith, Thompson, Korver and Love remain. Hill and Smith represent buyout candidates, if not now, then later. They, along with Thompson, might want to be traded, but the Cavs shouldn’t give up assets or take on bad salary just to make them happy. Thompson could be a great veteran for the young guys and lead by example, but he’ll have to decide if that’s what he wants.

Hopefully the Cavs can maximize losses and minutes for the young guys. The goal is a relatively clean salary cap sheet and a top-five pick heading into the draft next year, with Sexton, Nance, Osman and potentially Hood on board. It’s a far cry from competing for championships, but it’s not the worst place to start rebuilding.

The trade they made with the Lakers during the year for Clarkson and Nance looks good now. By the way they shipped off IT in that trade from the Kyrie deal.

Also getting that #8 pick in the Kyrie trade.

They knew. Kyrie knew.