The chances of LeBron James returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers are slim thanks to the salary cap issues involved. And because of one important figure in Cleveland who may want no part of a James return.
Dan Gilbert is still the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers. By the time James decided to leave the Cavaliers for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018, his relationship with Gilbert wasn’t great, with James ignoring the team owner on the way to accept the trophy as the 2018 Eastern Conference champions.
It was even worse when James left Cleveland the first time in 2010. Gilbert posted an open letter to fans — in Comic Sans font — stating, “”I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE.”
The letter called James “narcissistic,” “heartless” and “callous” and wildly declared, “Some people think they should go to heaven but NOT have to die to get there.”
The letter stayed on the Cavs’ official site for four years, until just before James returned in 2014. James was upset, but still returned to lead Cleveland to their first title in 2016. Along the way, he put pressure on Gilbert to add talent and mortgage the future — as they should have with James — by signing a series of one-year contracts with player options.
The result is that even if it weren’t logistically difficult, thanks to the Cavaliers being a second-apron team, it’s unclear that Gilbert would welcome a return by James. With Cleveland coming off a 64-win season and three rivals — the Boston Celtics, Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks — losing star players to Achilles injuries, Gilbert and the Cavs may think they can win a title without James. Doing that would validate Gilbert’s ability to win without the “self-titled King.”
James and his agent Rich Paul may or may not be angling to get him to the Cavaliers, but at this point, the interest from Cleveland isn’t there. As long as Gilbert is around, it may never be.
