Former Cleveland Cavaliers guard Baron Davis claimed that Cavs owner Dan Gilbert wouldn’t let him out of his contract if he planned to join LeBron James with the Miami Heat back in 2011.
I remember Dan Gilbert sent a message to me he wouldn’t let me out my deal if I went to play with LEBRON!!! Facts. He knew that where I was going so they played hardball… he said if I went to play with LEBRON he would win a title. I told him LEBRON gonna win one anyway. 🤦🏾♂️
— Baron Davis (@BaronDavis) March 9, 2021
Davis played just 15 games for the Cavs during the 2010-11 season, and he eventually received the amnesty clause from Gilbert which made him a free agent.
Davis wound up signing with the New York Knicks, but it just goes to show how angry Gilbert was that James left the Cavs for Miami.
The Heat went on to win back-to-back titles, but James ended up coming home to Cleveland and won the Cavs the 2016 title.
Gilbert certainly doesn’t hold the same animosity towards James now, but it is interesting to see how James’ decision to leave Cleveland in 2010 impacted other players’ careers at the time.
As for Davis, he played 29 games for the Knicks in the 2011-12 season before suffering a career-ending knee injury.
