Dan Gilbert: Orlando Loss Still Stings and We Are Now More Determined Than Ever to Break Through
September 17, 2009 – 9:15 am by Jimmy ShapiroSRI continues to work in new writers. This post is courtesy of Chris Fedor of WKNR in Cleveland. Dan Gilbert took over ownership of the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2005 and vowed to bring a championship to Cleveland. While he hasn’t gotten that far, he has managed to turn the Cavs into one of the premier franchises in the NBA. A lot of the recent success for the Cavs has to do with the greatness of LeBron James, but it also has to do with Dan Gilbert’s commitment to winning and his commitment to do whatever it takes to bring a championship to Cleveland. Whether it was building an unbelievable practice court that the players rave about, turning Quicken Loans Arena into one of the biggest home-court advantages in the entire NBA or going out and spending money to put the best supporting cast around LeBron James, Gilbert has done almost everything that he can do to bring a championship to a starved city. The Cavs finished the season last year with the best record in the NBA, they had home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, they had the MVP of the NBA, and everything seemed in line for them to walk away as NBA champs, but the Orlando Magic had other ideas. The Cavs cruised through the first two rounds of the playoffs before meeting up with Orlando in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Magic went on to beat the Cavs in six games and it ultimately led to a busy, busy offseason for Cleveland.
The Cavs added Shaquille O’Neal, Anthony Parker, Jamario Moon and Leon Powe to build up the roster as best they could to take another run at an NBA championship before the summer of 2010, when LeBron James will become a free agent. This past offseason was critical and Cavs owner Dan Gilbert thinks he and the rest of his staff have done enough to keep LeBron in Cleveland. The way they play this season will have a lot to do with whether or not he is right.
Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert joined WKNR in Cleveland with Tony Rizzo to discuss the loss against the Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals, the moves the Cavs made this offseason and trying to keep LeBron James in Cleveland.
On the offseason moves:
“We’re very, very excited. Danny Ferry and his lieutenants of Lance Blanks, Chris Grant and there’s a gentleman there named Wingo, who’s just one word, like Madonna, Cher or Sting, a guy named Wingo in the back room pulling all the strings, but they did a great job this summer. I think they addressed our needs. I think some of our weaknesses got exposed unfortunately in the Orlando series. It still hurts. It still stings. It Stings not just me, but everybody in the organization. I think we are more determined than ever and we need to break through and bust through this ridiculous so-called curse drought and make it happen.”
On whether he feels he’s done enough to keep LeBron James in Cleveland:
“Like I said from the beginning, all we can do here is build the premier franchise, the premier place for LeBron or anybody else to play basketball, where they have the most opportunity and chance of winning championships, multiple championships. I believe that he believes that and certainly there is absolutely nothing that stops LeBron from getting any kind of endorsement sponsorship deal that he wants anywhere in the country. I think he’s proven that. What is he going to do? Go to New York and do an ad for a Chevy dealer in New York City? There’s nothing New York City, as far as sponsorship can offer him and as far as his profile goes. I don’t think he’s having a hard time getting press. Do you guys think?”
Listen to Dan Gilbert on WKNR in Cleveland with Tony Rizzo
Tags: 2010 NBA Free Agency, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dan Gilbert, LeBron James, Will LeBron stay in Cleveland after this season?
