When Tyronn Lue took over for the fired David Blatt halfway through the 2015-16 season, he also gave the Cavs a verbal commitment on a three-year, $9.5 million extension. But, he didn’t actually sign on the dotted line. It was a cagey move that was rewarded this summer when he eventually did sign a five-year, $35 million extension after leading the Cavs to their first NBA title in franchise history.
But the rationale to hold off on signing the deal during the season is exactly why he’s got the perfect demeanor for the current defending champions. And it wasn’t a power play, like it might look on the surface.
“I wanted to make sure it was the right fit,” Lue told the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Joe Vardon in a recent phone interview.
Tyronn ended up betting on himself and winning, both literally and figuratively, but it wasn’t an attempt to leverage more money out of the team. No, Lue just didn’t know if he wanted the obligatory spotlight that comes with coaching a team with LeBron James and a cast of other media-dominant personnel.
“I hate being on TV, hate dealing with media on TV,” Lue told Vardon. “All that stuff, I don’t like that. Being with LeBron, who draws all kinds of attention, I knew I was going to see myself on TV. I hate that. I like to fly under radar. I wanted to make sure the fit was right.”
The fit isn’t just right, it’s perfect.
The Cavs are like the 1996-97 Bulls at this point, or the Rolling Stones in the ’70s — minus the heroin and Jack Daniel’s. They need a guy who doesn’t tweet or snap or spend time on Instagram. He might answer some questions about Allen Iverson from one of those doltish, on-the-street TMZ reporters, but his animus towards that buffon was pretty clear, too.
Lue is an OG player who just doesn’t buy into the hot air that floats around professional sports, particularly the defending champion Cavs, who were the living embodiment of a soap opera for much of last season, even after Lue took over.
As Vardon mentions in his lede, the Cavs aren’t rock stars simply because they have the best player on the planet leading their team; although, that certainly helps. No, LeBron’s supporting cast isn’t obscured by history like the Jordanaire’s or even his prior reinforcements in Miami. No, this Cavs group can get some shine all on their own.
Kyrie Irving, he of Uncle Drew, Olympic gold, and Nike signature deal, isn’t very far behind James in the NBA branding hierarchy; Kevin Love models and does annoying milk commercials; Iman Shumpert raps and appears in Kanye music videos smooching his gorgeous wife. J.R. Smith is probably the Mick Jagger of the group, despite LeBron’s presence (can’t you just picture J.R. rooster strutting?), and it was Swish who got a personal mention from President Barack Obama after he spent the first few days after winning the title, flaunting his tattooed torso for pipe-seeking denizens the world over (J.R. also got married and added a daughter to his brood this summer, so hands off).
We’d be remiss if we didn’t also mention how good Richard Jefferson has gotten at Snapchat, and — as Vardon himself points out — Tristan Thompson might be dating a Kardashian spawn.
But with a team as public and variegated as the Cavs, you want a coach who is the opposite. You don’t want a locker-room leader elbowing his team out of the way so he can get some shine. You want an adult, and that’s Lue.
“I’m not the type of guy who wants the credit,” Lue tells Vardon.
“That’s why this summer, I was declining all the talk shows. I won coach of the year at the ESPYs, but I didn’t go to ESPYs. That’s not me. I don’t want the attention. I love the game of basketball, I love coaching. The attention, being on TV, all that stuff, that’s not what it’s about for me.”
Just how down-to-earth is Lue? Well, he had no problem posing for a picture with a fan who was rocking a step-over shirt of the iconic Allen Iverson moment where Lue was the unfortunate co-star. And AI doesn’t really like that moment, either, such is the power of Lue’s friendship with the former Sixers star.
The Cavs are lucky. They needed a practical, no-nonsense coach who had the temerity to call LeBron on his bullsh*t, and the wiles to hang with the great tactical coaches of the Association. They’ve found it in Lue.
Just don’t expect to hear much about it.
