From Joe Vardon on the Athletic--
General manager Koby Altman even asked Smith if, given the situation, he wanted to just head home and be away from the team. Now, why would Altman do that?
“There’s a lot of things that’s going on around here that I don’t know the answer to and I don’t know why it’s going on, but it is and I can’t control that,” Smith said Thursday morning.
So, in a sense, JR is right. A GM doesn’t ask you if you just want to stay home if he isn’t worried about how your presence around a team that isn’t winning while you’re not playing might rub off on everybody else.
It’s also not a fair representation of how Smith has conducted himself for much of the season — as he’s willfully mentored younger players and served as a strong voice in the locker room and on the sidelines despite questions of how much he might get to play.
If the Cavs could feasibly trade Smith, they would have already. But at age 33 and coming off two of the worst seasons of his career, and with a guaranteed salary of $14.7 million this season, the market for a Smith trade just hasn’t materialized.
Also, sources close to Smith have said he will not ask for or accept a buyout. So this is how it’s going to be for Smith and the Cavs this season — they’ll stay married with their eyes elsewhere, in the meantime trying to get along.
It’s another symbol of the tumult and dysfunction that have quickly risen to the surface for this team after it lost its first six games since losing LeBron James to free agency. Don’t forget, the team’s interim coach, Larry Drew, won’t accept the title because he’s trying to get a new contract from the team to do the job.
Smith said he refused Altman’s offer because “can’t do that to these fans, I can’t do it to the city.”
On Tuesday, ESPN reported Smith considered taking a leave because he was informed he’d no longer be playing in the wake of Lue’s firing Sunday. Both Smith and several members of the Cavs’ organization denied that report, insisting instead that it was Altman who made the offer to leave to Smith.
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“It’s hard to be somewhere where you know they don’t want you there,” Smith said. “You gotta go in there (the locker room) and put on this front and act like you’re so happy. Regardless, we all make a ton of money. That’s not what this is about. I can’t even be competitive anymore. For somebody in my shoes, that’s the hardest part.”
