The Cleveland Cavaliers have reached a curious impasse with their coaching staff this offseason. After doing the unthinkable and overcoming a seemingly insurmountable 3-1 deficit to win the NBA Finals in June, most of their assistants still have not signed extensions on their contracts, despite hard lobbying on the part of head coach Tyronn Lue.
Former Cavs beat reporter Chris Haynes detailed the stalling out of negotiations between the two sides in the above video posted to his Facebook page. In it, he reports that Damon Jones, James Posey, Jim Boylan, and Phil Handy are all stuck in limbo going into next season.
“Frustration is mounting. It’s at an unbelievable point. That’s how it’s been described to me,” Haynes said. “This thing has to get done…It’s reach a point of hostility. It shouldn’t be like this right now. The Cavaliers have to get things in order right now.”
Haynes goes on to say that, while Larry Drew’s option has in fact been picked up for the coming season, those numbers were based on his original contract under David Blatt that reflected his position as a third chair. Lue has reportedly been pushing hard to make Drew his number one assistant, but has been met with some resistance.
Even without pen to paper, Haynes still expects the coaching staff to be on hand for the informal team workouts LeBron James is organizing later this month in Southern California.
(h/t Pro Basketball Talk)
