The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a hard time coming to an agreement with free agent shooting guard J.R. Smith, who reportedly wants money in the $15 million annual range. Cavs GM David Griffin recently said that the team had made Smith an “incredibly competitive and aggressive offer to re-sign him.” According to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, that offer was in the $10-11 million range, and Smith turned it down. LeBron James is not happy with how the negotiations have been going:
“Negotiations are always two-sides but J.R. did his part,” James said. “He showed up every day. Worked his ass off every day. Became a two-way player, a model citizen in Cleveland and he’s a fan favorite, obviously we all know that. All of the sudden now he’s a season ticket holder at the Indians games.
“We just miss him. We miss having him around. He’s a big piece of our team and they just need to get it done.”
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“I hate coming into another season – two years in a row – with one of my big guns not here,” James said. “So, for a leader of a team and for me personally, I just hate to deal with this s— again. It’s just too big of a piece to our team to have to deal with in another training camp.”
James said “it wouldn’t be good for any side” if Smith ultimately did not play for the Cavs this season.
When Smith gets hot, he gets hot. He’s nearly impossible to slow down when he’s feeling his shot, and he is a very important part of this Cavaliers team. Without him, it’s very possible that they would not have won last year’s championship. James is right in urging Cleveland to re-sign him.
