“When LeBron left, we fell flat on our face as a franchise" - Cleveland Cavaliers' Koby Altman explains how the team recovered after LeBron James' departure
Superstar LeBron James' exit from the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2018 was a huge blow to the franchise. They were not prepared for his departure, according to the Cavs' top brass Koby Altman.
Speaking to Adrian Wojnarowski on The Woj Pod, the Cavaliers' president of basketball operations spoke about how the organization had no plans moving forward after James' exit. Altman said:
"To be quite honesty with you, after that four-year run, we didn't have a foundation of really anything. We had immense talent during that four-year run. When LeBron left, we fell flat on our face as a franchise. We weren’t rooted in anything in terms of a culture, a foundation."
King James and the Cavaliers were incredibly successful in that four-year spell. They reached the NBA Finals in all four seasons, and won the championship in 2016 against the Golden State Warriors after being 3-1 down in the series.
The Cavaliers struggled to pick up the pieces after James departed for the LA Lakers. However, they have done an incredible job constructing their roster to the extent that King James has a better shot at winning the championship this season with the Cavs than his current Lakers roster.
“When LeBron left, we fell flat on our face as a franchise. We weren’t rooted in anything in terms of a culture, a foundation.” Full audio of Koby Altman on The Woj Pod: spoti.fi/3BunPYe https://t.co/11TbcGguT9
How LeBron James fared in his second stint with Cleveland Cavaliers
LeBron James' return to Cleveland from South Beach was a big call, after the disappointment of losing the 2014 NBA Finals. However, considering the talent of Kyrie Irving, James' decision to return to the Cavs after unceremoniously leaving in 2010 was the right call.
James had an incredible four-year run with the Cavs in his second stint with the team. He put up absurd stat lines, and took his team (almost single-handedly at times) to four NBA Finals as the Eastern Conference was completely dominated by King James and co.
Notable stat lines from LeBron James’ 2018 playoff run
51 PTS - 8 REB - 8 AST
46 PTS - 11 REB - 9 AST
46 PTS - 12 REB - 5 AST
45 PTS - 8 REB - 7 AST
44 PTS - 10 REB - 8 AST
44 PTS - 5 REB - 3 AST
43 PTS - 8 REB - 14 AST
42 PTS - 10 REB - 12 AST
38 PTS - 6 REB - 7 AST https://t.co/pbOrqa9tIO
The biggest highlight of his return to the Cavs was obviously the triumph over the Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals, after being 3-1 down in the series.
In the process, he brought the first championship to the city of Cleveland in over half a century. King James averaged 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds and 8.9 assists in that series while shooting the ball at nearly 50% from the field and over 37% from the perimeter.
With the departure of Kyrie Irving in 2017, the onus was even more on James and Kevin Love to propel the Cavs to another championship. Irving's departure significantly weakened the roster, but the Cavaliers made it to another Finals, where they were swept 4-0 by the Warriors.
Nevertheless, LeBron James' four-year spell with the Cleveland-based side is looked at with fondness, as he finally brought home a championship.