- Report: Cavs member partly blamed Rajon Rondo for why Darius Garland was ‘drained’ by end of season
- Report: Chances of Cavs re-signing Rajon Rondo were always ‘slim’ due to 3 key factors
- Report: Many throughout Cavs organization are big fans of 2022 NBA draft class
- Damon Jones’ grateful response to LeBron James naming him one of the best shooters he’s ever played with
- Report: Rajon Rondo allegedly threatened to kill his former partner and pulled a gun on her
- Report: J.B. Bickerstaff and Koby Altman have discussed a potential change to the Cavs coaching staff
- Cavs insider indicates Rich Paul is expected to pursue extension in $180M range for Darius Garland
- Dan Gilbert’s confident statement regarding Koby Altman after he misses out on Executive of the Year
- Report: Kyrie Irving wanted LeBron James-like control with Brooklyn Nets
- Here’s how close Cavs exec Koby Altman came to winning Executive of the Year honors
Cavs Player Says JaVale McGee Not Smart Enough to Play in NBA Finals
- Updated: May 31, 2017

In the event the rivalry between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors wasn’t already at fever pitch entering the 2017 NBA Finals, one new report alleges that an unnamed Cavaliers player is questioning the intellectual capacity of Warriors center JaVale McGee.
On Tuesday, Dave McMenamin appeared with Brian Windhorst on the ESPN radio program “The Basketball Analogy Show,” passing on the remarks of the anonymous Cavs player after Windhorst had spoken highly of McGee (at approximately the 16:30 mark of the broadcast).
“I had a Cavs player disagree with your opinion of McGee,” McMenamin said to Windhorst. “He postulated to me that he doesn’t even think McGee’s gonna be able to get on the court or certainly not stay on the court because he doesn’t think he’s quote, unquote ‘smart enough’ to be able to play in this series.”
During the current postseason, the Warriors have made the most of McGee’s limited time on the court. In his 126 total minutes, Golden State has outscored opponents by 26.3 points for every 100 possessions, compared to 14.0 points in the same amount of possessions when he’s not playing.
On an individual level, McGee is averaging 10.5 minutes per game, contributing 7.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocked shots. However, with the prospect of having to deal with either Tristan Thompson on the boards or defend against the long-range efforts of Kevin Love, this Cavaliers player apparently believes that McGee’s past struggles on defense will resurface during the series.
Given the fact that the specific Cavs player wasn’t named and ESPN’s penchant for stoking controversy, the validity of McMenamin’s statement is open to question. However, it’s a certainty that the Warriors, and especially McGee, will be using it as a motivational tool.
Game 1 will tip off just after 9 p.m. ET on Thursday night.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login