Latest / Best of: Features / Cavaliers president Altman shrugs off LeBron James' 76ers move, touts his team's 'sustainable' build

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Cavaliers president Altman shrugs off LeBron James' 76ers move, touts his team's 'sustainable' build · Best of: Features

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  Cavalier's President Altman shrugs off LeBron James 76ers move, touts his team's
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  sustainable build. This article is being read by an
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  automated voice generated by Everlett. Independence, Ohio, the AP.
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  Kobe Altman would have loved for LeBron James to return for a
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  third stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers. When the most popular player in
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  franchise history decided to sign with the Philadelphia Seventy Sixers after eight
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  seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, the Cavaliers president of basketball operations
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  wasn't phased. We can't be reliant on one outcome. I think we
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  have too much of a good thing going in terms of our
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  infrastructure, our foundation to worry about one outcome.
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  Altmann said at a news conference Friday before the Cavaliers begin training
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  camp next week. I'm not downplaying the enormity and magnitude of the
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  decision. I just think the way we're build as an organization is
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  we have a great foundation and a great sort of ecosystem in
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  terms of talent, coaching staff, our performance staff, and we're built for
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  a sustainable run here, regardless of one outcome. James agent, Rich Paul,
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  said on his podcast in July that the Cavaliers were They only
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  team to meet with James, while Miami and Golden State were The
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  other finalists. Altman has been able to build a contending roster since
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  James second departure in twenty eighteen, after he led the Cavs to
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  four straight trips to the NBA Finals in the franchise's first championship
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  in twenty sixteen. Cleveland has won at least fifty games the past
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  two years and reached the Eastern Conference Finals last last season. For
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  the first time since twenty eighteen, they were swept in four games
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  by the eventual NBA champion New York Knicks. The Cavs quickly pivoted
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  after James's decision and addressed their need for a wing player, acquiring
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  Peyton Watson in a five team trade and signing him to a
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  four year eighty eight million dollar contract. On the first day of
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  free agency, Donovan Mitchell signed a four year two hundred seventy three
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  million dollar contract extension. James Harden who was acquired near the trade
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  deadline, signed a three year ninety seven million dollars extension that gave
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  the Cavaliers some flexibility under the salary cap by going below both
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  aprons. You go through the last and zoom out and say, Okay,
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  was this off season a success? Were we able to get better?
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  Did we look at the future? Did we get more financial flexibility,
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  more sustainability with the roster? All of those things lead me to
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  say this was a really good off season, in spite of that
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  one decision, Altman said.
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  While the thirty seven year old Harden and thirty year old Mitchell
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  are the team leaders, the twenty four year old Watson gives the
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  Cavs another young player who can mesh with Evan Mobley, twenty five,
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  Jarrett Allen, twenty eight, and Jalen Tyson, twenty three. Watson started a
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  career high forty games last season with the Denver Nuggets and averaged
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  career bests in points fourteen point six, rebounds four point nine, and
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  assists two point one. What I've been seeing in the gym is
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  the defense, first of all. And then he shot forty one percent
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  from three last year. It's a one year sample, but there's a
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  lot of room for growth in his offensive game, especially the way
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  we play, Atkinson said. Atkinson also lauded Hardin for arriving three weeks
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  before the start of training camp and helping to organize workouts. Even
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  though the Cavaliers were one of the final four teams left standing
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  in the postseason, they haven't attracted much attention this offseason. The Knicks
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  title defense, Jalen Brown and James heading to Philadelphia, Giannis and Tetokumpo's
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  trade to Miami, and Indiana getting healthier with the return of Tyrese
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  Halliburton have left Cleveland under the radar. Altman doesn't think the calves
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  are being slighted. I'd be more worried if I was worried about
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  talent, our process, or some of the more day to day things,
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  he said. I think a lot of teams got better to chase
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  us. When you're a Final Four team, teams need to improve to
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  get to that level. And we're on that level. We want more.
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