Kyrie Irving has a great relationship with Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, but that’s all he’s going to say.
Retaining the star point guard has become an obsession for Cleveland. That, and the media has helped bolster its important, even though it’s already incredibly important. Irving won’t become a free agent anytime soon, but he is eligible for an extension next summer. Failure to iron one out means he would hit restricted free agency in 2015.
Naturally, you can understand any and all trepidation coming out of Cleveland. It lost a certain someone via free agency in 2010. A certain “home-grown” superstar who played his first seven years with the Cavs before deciding the Miami Heat and Dwyane Wade were better suited for his talents.
Fear of losing Irving like they did LeBron James is there for the Cavs. It has to be. Kind of. Maybe. Okay, not really.
LeBron himself didn’t spurn the Cavaliers after his rookie deal. He stayed. For players of Irving’s caliber, extensions are usually a formality. It’s the first huge contract of a player’s career, they usually cannot wait to sign. Plus, the team has all the buying power if it so chooses.
Say the Cavs somehow let Irving enter restricted free agency in 2015 (they won’t). They have the right to match any offer that comes his way. If they don’t want to lose him, they won’t lose him. And assuming he doesn’t request a trade, they’re not going to lose him. Not right now.
Helping the case is Irving’s standing. There will be no need for grueling negotiations. Fringe players like Eric Bledsoe, Gordon Hayward and Avery Bradley, who missed out on extensions, have to worry about the structure of their deals. Irving is going to land a max contract. Guaranteed.
Gilbert’s personal optimism extends far beyond a new contract, though. According to The Plain Dealer‘s Jodie Valade, Gilbert said the Cavs “feel good about Kyrie being here for his entire career.”
Pretty bold prediction, considering Irving is only in his third season. And especially considering how Gilbert and the Cavs know firsthand that players leave.
For Irving’s part, he wouldn’t commit to the Cavaliers long term, though he did admit that he and Gilbert have a great relationship.
“It’s still too early to be talking about that stuff, especially a contract extension, and all that,” Irving said. “But we have a great relationship, me and Dan.”
Handled like a practiced politician. I mean, what else is he supposed to say? Young players can’t make those type of commitments. Sometimes, things happen. The Orlando Magic probably thought Dwight Howard would retire alongside Mickey Mouse. The Denver Nuggets had to assume that Carmelo Anthony would want to hang up his kicks in the Mile High city.
The Cavs themselves had to believe that LeBron wasn’t going anywhere.
But LeBron, like many others, left. Irving could leave too. Not anytime, but it could happen.
Expect him and the Cavs to strike a deal when he’s eligible for an extension. Expect him to remain with the Cavaliers for another three, four or five years. And expect his ties to Gilbert to help the organization in the long run.
Don’t expect him to make a promise that he has no idea if he’ll keep.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com. Follow @danfavale on Twitter for his latest posts and all things NBA.
