Now that the second LeBron James era for the Cleveland Cavaliers has officially come to an end, some never-before-heard rumors and reports regarding his time in Cleveland are coming to the surface.
In a roundtable discussion among Jason Lloyd of the Athletic, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, and Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, much of what was discussed dealt with the relationship between James and his former teammate Kyrie Irving.
Considering how his career in Cleveland ended, it wasn’t all that shocking to hear that Irving had his issues with James. However, it was somewhat more surprising to hear that James had his own problems with Irving as well.
“Even in the 2015 playoffs that year, if you remember, everybody was hurt and this was before Kyrie blew out his knee,” Vardon said. “He was having leg problems and he was limping through series and taking games off. This annoyed LeBron and LeBron’s people to no end. They were calling him soft and questioning his toughness, and LeBron was doing it in comments to the media. It took a while for there to be real respect between those two guys at all.”
Considering this report, it is somewhat even more impressive to consider just how much Irving and James were able to accomplish together. In three seasons as teammates, the two led the Cavs to three straight NBA Finals series, and of course won the 2016 NBA Finals.
It is fascinating to hear what went on between these two All-Stars behind closed doors. For Cavs fans, however, it is also hard not to imagine what might have been if the two had been able to build a more positive relationship with one another.
