Another day, another tale of drama surrounding the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavs own the best record in the NBA’s Eastern Conference as of Thursday but have had a controversy-filled season that’s included their head coach getting fired after 41 games and their best player posting cryptic messages on Twitter.
Now, it appears there’s some disconnect between the Cavs players and their front office regarding Cleveland’s handling of Kendrick Perkins, who the team failed to re-sign this offseason.
“They were highly pissed. I knew this for a fact,” Cleveland.com’s Chris Haynes said Thursday during an appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show.” “They were highly ticked off, this team, when the team didn’t re-sign Kendrick Perkins and they ended up picking up over the summer Sasha Kaun — a 30-year-old rookie who has not really played at all and I don’t really think is ready for the NBA. So, he’s collecting about $2 million right now a season and not even playing. Kendrick Perkins would’ve been brought back for the veteran’s minimum.”
Perkins signed with the Cavs after the 2015 NBA trade deadline, and while he didn’t make much of an impact on the court, he apparently was a locker room favorite on a Cleveland team that took the Golden State Warriors to Game 6 of the NBA Finals.
The former Boston Celtic was scooped up by the New Orleans Pelicans this summer, while Kaun, who signed with the Cavs in February, has appeared in just 14 games for the club.
“Players — I know for a fact, I talked to them — they were highly ticked off about that, not bringing (Perkins) back,” Haynes added. “Because it wasn’t about his numbers. It was about the intangibles, the emotional leadership and … the enforcement role he brought to the team.”
Thumbnail photo via Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports Images
