The Cleveland Cavaliers are just a few short months away from officially beginning their defense of their first NBA championship. While camps won’t officially open until sometime in late September, superstar LeBron James has plans to do what he has done the last two seasons — host a team workout in Los Angeles. Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com has more:
LeBron James will host his annual pre-training camp workouts for his Cavaliers teammates in Los Angeles in September, multiple sources told cleveland.com.
Since James returned to Cleveland in 2014, he’s gathered the Cavs to prepare for the upcoming season with a series of informal workouts that typically start around Labor Day. Last year the workouts were in Miami, where James filmed a documentary chronicling his personal preparations for what ended up being a championship season.
In 2014, the workouts were in Independence, where the Cavs practice near James’ home in Bath Township. Hosting the sessions in Los Angeles this summer makes sense – that’s where James has spent most of his break, living in his new, $21 million Brentwood mansion.
Many Cavs players and coaches – including Kevin Love and coach Tyronn Lue – has spent the summer in southern California. Most if not all Cleveland players are expected to attend James’ workouts, including Kyrie Irving, who will likely attend despite playing this summer for Team USA in the Rio Olympics,
according to a source.
Cavs support staff can also attend the workouts and are making plans to be in Los Angeles in September, another source said. Lue is bringing back all but one of his assistants from last year’s team. Many, if not all, could be hanging around in L.A. next month.
The Cavs’ first practice of actual training camp is Sept. 27.
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The pre-camp workouts James hosts are not uncommon in NBA circles, but Cavs players have nevertheless pointed to them as tone setters for the season to come – both of which ended in the Finals.
The question now is whether J.R. Smith will be there. Smith, like James and Cavs center Tristan Thompson, is represented by agent Rich Paul. James, in fact, just signed a three-year, $100 million deal to return to the Cavs last week (though his return was guaranteed). Unlike his last two contracts with the Cavs, this one has a no-trade clause, a source said.
Like Thompson last summer, Smith is a free agent and remains unsigned.
