The Cleveland Cavaliers were interested in hiring Chauncey Billups as their new president of basketball operations, but judging by their low-ball offer, the interest may not have been that high.
Cavs lost Chauncey Billups with low-ball offer for front office job
Cleveland hasn’t replaced David Griffin since he stepped down as GM. The clock is ticking.
Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
The Cavaliers offered Billups a $2 million annual salary, according to ESPN’s Chris Haynes and Marc Spears, a number considered below market for a team president. The offer was initially $1.5 million, per ESPN, whereas $4 million is the usual starting point for team president contract negotiations.
For example, newly hired Los Angeles Lakers president Rob Pelinka signed a five-year deal worth more than $20 million this summer, per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. Phil Jackson, who stepped down as New York Knicks’ president, signed a five-year deal worth $60 million (though James Dolan is known to overpay).
Cleveland, according to ESPN, is known for its reluctance to invest in front-office leadership positions.
Billups is a former NBA champion and a five-time All-Star. He has no front office experience but is considered “a future front office star,” according to ESPN. Salary wasn’t the only factor that played into Billups’ decision to turn the offer down, according to ESPN, but it played a part.
The 40-year-old ex-Piston was expected to replace David Griffin, who stepped down as Cavs GM in June after citing an issue with the fit in Cleveland that he could not overlook. Griffin wanted a pay raise and more power within the organization after steering Cleveland — albeit with the help of LeBron James — to three consecutive NBA Finals appearances and its first-ever championship in 2016.
Time is of the essence in Cleveland.
The Cavaliers are rebounding from a 4-1 Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors, who outmatched and outclassed Cleveland in every way to claim their second title in three years. Cleveland’s roster as-is is not good enough to compete with the stacked, reigning champions, and with Gordon Hayward headed to Boston, their status as top dog in the East could be in jeopardy.
Cleveland needs to upgrade its roster to continue LeBron’s stretch of seven consecutive trips to the NBA Finals. It is unclear if they can do so effectively without a general manager.
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