by Much like the previous three wins for the Spurs, Game Five was another blowout for them with a 104 – 87 series clinching victory. Kawhi Leonard put on a show with 22 points and 10 rebounds. He would be later named the series MVP. LeBron James did everything he could to try and will the Heat to a victory, including an incredible 17 point first quarter performance as the Heat built a 22 – 6 lead.
As usual, Jams did not have the needed help around him and the Spurs mounted a 37–13 run from the beginning of the second quarter through the middle of the third to take a commanding lead. James finished with 31 points and 10 rebounds in only 41 minutes as he sat out the last half of the final quarter. As he sat there, you could see the frustration on his face and almost sense a major change was coming.
There were rumblings as far back as 2012 about LeBron James eventually coming back to Cleveland after the 2014 season. He had an option in his contract to opt out of it and become a free agent. As the Miami Heat wore getting crushed in the 2014 NBA Finals by the San Antonio Spurs, those small rumblings of a return started to heat up. Suddenly, it didn’t seem like such a long shot with the way the Heat were crumbling in the NBA Finals.
One major factor was how a move from LeBron James back to Cleveland would affect his brand. 92.3 The Fan Radio Host Ken Carman explains why he thinks it is important for LeBron to stay in a positive light and some of the challenges he would face, “LeBron James is going on 30 years old and going on the second half of his career. He is on the back nine of his career so to speak. That is where some of the trust in his players really comes into play. LeBron very much wants to become a brand and very much so wants to become an icon.
Well if you’re going to become that then people need to trust you because people need to trust brands. You need to be able to trust what you’re buying. I really think a move back to Cleveland would be his final move because the Cavs are going to bend over backwards to do everything they need to do for him. And now that he is smack dab in the middle of his backyard and he is proven. I think that it entices other players to come in for a little bit less and you can have that salary cap open up. I do think the biggest difference between then and now really is trust.”
As the Heat wore losing in the finals, the Cavaliers were starting to gain steam. They were awarded the number one pick in the upcoming draft. They convinced European coaching legend David Blatt to travel across the pond and become their new coach. General manager David Griffin worked hard to come to an agreement with Kyrie Irving to sign him to a max contract extension, paying him 90 million dollars over five years. The Cavaliers had locked up their best player for a long time to come, and this also spoke volumes of the positive direction the team was headed in.
The Mike Brown firing was the second time his stint in Cleveland didn’t work out, Ken Carman of 92.3 The Fan explains why that was, “What Mike Brown does defensively is great, but what Mike does on offensive looks completely inept. You saw times when he was hamstringing LeBron and a couple of those guys. I remember there was a couple of articles that came out written by various articles stating that LeBron thought that it would be better if the team got out and ran and moved up and down the court as a fast break offense, and coach Brown wanted to keep things slow and stagnant. He did not allow them to really get out and be race horses.
With Mike, that was always the problem. He was hard headed and I understand he is the coach and supposed to be a part of things but his hard headedness has gotten in his way. We have had the same arguments countless times with him. You can see in the games against Western Conference teams it seemed like Mike was coaching not to lose. Which is a method that is supposed to be a complete disaster and a complete mistake.
When he was coaching not to lose, he let his team run up and down the court because the west was so much faster than the teams from the east. They played much better for the most part. That to me should have been a clear sign. When they did run and do some different things they played much better. I thought that was a part where this is what they are supposed to be. I thought that was a little bit of a reason they went after Mike Brown in the first place, because he was from San Antonio with that dynamic offense of being fast and preaching ball movement.
He coached under Gregg Popovich and the jury was still out. They were able to make the playoffs and make a nice run. Sometimes when you are an assistant coach under a great coach, you may be able to stand next to him or sit next to him five inches away on the bench, but sometimes there can be a Great Wall of China between you and him in actually how to coach your players. We hoped he would be like Gregg Popovich or Phil Jackson and some times they become a disaster in the pro game. I wish I can say different of Mike Brown, and ever since he didn’t have Mike Brown it became a bit of a problem for him.”
Meanwhile back in San Antonio the Spurs were putting the finishing touches on a 4 – 1 series win, just in time to end Fathers Day on a happy note for most men across America rooting against LeBron James. The Spurs won big to close the series, averaging a point differential in the Finals of 18 point per victory. It was the largest in NBA Finals History. LeBron James was upset and didn’t even play the last six minutes of the series clincher. You could sense in the air, the fate of the NBA was about to greatly change.
When asked in the post series press conference about his plans for the off-season and if he would opt out of his contract early, James was very non committal and simply stated that he needed time to spend with his family. He wasn’t tipping his cards, although the majority of the national news felt strongly that the chances of James staying in Miami were almost guaranteed.
As the off-season frenzy began, the odds of LeBron staying in Miami remained strong. What the national media couldn’t control was the fairy tale starting to take shape. LeBron James wife was the first to hint that a possible return was in the works when she sent out a message on her Instagram account that read, “Home Sweet Home, the countdown is real!” It was attached to a picture of Ohio with a heart on James hometown Akron.
It was the first indicator, that maybe just maybe, LeBron was coming home. It wasn’t long after that it was confirmed Savannah James was pregnant with the couples third child. The rumors continued to go wild when shortly after it was announced that LeBron had enrolled his sons into the Bath School system. It was the glimmer of hope that Cavalier fans needed to once again believe it was possible.
Things continued to look more and more possible when LeBron James opted out of his contract days before he had to. This didn’t mean that his days in Miami were done just yet, it did mean that now James could sign with any team he wanted. His fellow teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh also opted out.
The thought was that they would all take smaller contracts so GM Pat Riley would have the cap space to build around them, perhaps with fellow free agent All Star Carmelo Anthony. The common thought was that the Heat were simply re-tooling for yet another run at the title. The fans of Cleveland, did not give up hope.
LeBron James continued to show his maturity and this time did everything the right way. He spent time with his family and allowed everything to cool off. He did not have another spectacle of groups from teams across the league pitch to him, instead he let his agent Rich Paul of LRMR handle it with only a few teams at their offices. He was determined to do things the right way and give everyone a chance. Although it would shortly be revealed that James only had two options in mind the whole time, Cleveland and Miami. The drama was about to explode off the charts!
With the world watching and everyone claiming to have their sources, LeBron watch, 2.0 began to hit its full stride. Miami Heat general manager Pat Riley did not help his own cause when he stated that the Big Three needed to stay together to finish what they started, if anything that played more into LeBron coming back home then staying in Miami, as many had stated for years that James had unfinished business in Cleveland to attend too.
The longer it went without LeBron James re-signing with the Heat, more and more people started to believe that maybe just maybe, Cleveland was in the game once again for the services of King James. The hysteria hit an all time high on Sunday Night July 6th when Dan Gilberts private jet was spotted flying to South Beach. The rumor mill ran rampant with speculation that Gilbert was there to talk LeBron into coming back.
At first it was denied, but we would later learn that it was true. In an interview with Yahoo Sports Adrian Wojnarowski on July 11, Gilbert described the exact scenario about the meeting, and why it was so important to apologize and clear the air with James over the letter from 2010 after he left. Gilbert explains, “We had five great years together and one terrible night,” Gilbert told James, and so started the process of reconciliation on Sunday night in Miami. “I told him how sorry I was, expressed regret for how that night went and how I let all the emotion and passion for the situation carry me away.
I told him I wish I had never done it, that I wish I could take it back.” It took a lot of guts and humbleness from Gilbert to admit that he reacted too harsh too quickly in the heat of the moment. LeBron James told Gilbert that he himself had wished he handled it differently and that they both made mistakes they needed to move on from. LeBron James was angry at himself for “The Decision” and how he handled it. It was a breakthrough moment for James and Gilbert, and for the first time in four years, peace was on its way to being achieved.
Dan Gilbert felt awful about the letter and said that he didn’t want that to be the thing that defined him. Gilbert was sure to give credit to the management team of James, Maverick Carter and Rich Paul. They made Gilbert feel comfortable and that there was a sense of peace in the air during a stressful situation. Gilbert described them as, “So professional with us through the whole process”.
The meeting with Gilbert and LeBron showed the power of forgiveness. Even if LeBron never came back to Cleveland, it was a moment that needed to happen. Both men needed to clear the air for the ease of their own souls. Gilbert left that day with no deal in place, but for James and himself, they did something more important than dollars and numbers, they both cleared the heavy weight on their souls and in their hearts, no matter what happened next, it was a healing they both needed.
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