It doesn’t really serve as much more than a cute anecdote about a front office meeting in the NBA, but given the historic nature of what came before, it does seem notable that the Cleveland Cavaliers thought about going after Kevin Durant in the summer of 2016.
According to Zach Lowe of ESPN, then general manager David Griffin wanted a brainstorming session with his front office on ‘how to get Kevin Durant.’
Griffin in Lowe’s column
“I don’t believe you can dream big enough in the NBA,” Griffin says now in recalling that meeting. “You have to go through the exercise.”
Obviously, even getting a meeting was a near impossibility for the Cavs. They never got one, but apparently they thought about trying to get themselves in the mix.
While it’s tempting to wonder what might have been, it’s hard to imagine a world in which Kevin Durant goes to team up with LeBron James after LeBron got his ultimate legacy ring by leading his hometown to a title.
Durant, while fond of James and friendly with him, has long taken umbrage with the fact that he’s always been someone’s No. 2. Also, some additional reporting from earlier this season revealed that Durant was apparently upset with not being considered the best in the world after beating LeBron in 2017.
While you’ve got to give the Cavaliers front office of that time credit for thinking about the move, envisioning a union between Durant and James in 2016 is basically impossible.
