LeBron uses ‘we’ when referring to Cavs
James goes out of his way to praise his former team.
LeBron James is currently a member of the Los Angeles Lakers and has said that he wants to retire as one. However, he will always be tied to the Cleveland Cavaliers, even when he’s actively playing on another team.
Those ties came through during his recent visit on Travis and Jason Kelce’s podcast New Heights. James went out of his way to talk about how good this 34-5 Cavaliers team is.
“The Cavs look amazing right now,” James said on New Heights. “I hope they keep it going. They got an opportunity to do something special. I’m glad I was able to put on first and set the trend and hopefully we keep it going.”
LeBron:
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) January 15, 2025
“The Cavs look amazing right now… I hope they keep it going, they got an opportunity to do something special. I’m glad I was able to put on first and set the trend and hopefully we keep it going.”
(via @newheightshow)pic.twitter.com/msFchaYIe7
You don’t want to make too much of this. LeBron is talking about this within the context of being a Cleveland sports fan. It’s safe to say he keeps tabs on his former team. He’s using “we” here the same way any of us do when we all talk about our favorite teams.
What does stand out more is that there is a general outside consensus that the Cavaliers are a great team and are finally being recognized for it. This isn’t a cute story or a group that could win a round or two in the playoffs if things break their way. They’re a serious title contender and are rightly being treated as such.
This is seen in how they’re currently being talked about in the national media and in reportedly how they’re viewed by players around the league. According to ESPN’s Brian Widhorst, this is a place players “want to play.”
This is all a credit to the talented roster that Koby Altman assembled, the coaching staff he put in place, and the buy-in from the players. The Cavs have set themselves up with an extended runway of success with all three of these parts working in unison.
LeBron doesn’t easily fit into that now and into the future. The Cavs aren’t in a position to absorb a contract that big and James doesn’t have a precedent of accepting considerably less money than his market value at any point in his career. That likely won’t change now. And as was pointed out at the top, he’s on record saying he wants to continue playing for the Lakers. We should just take him at his word until proven otherwise.
Still, there’s something nice about knowing that the connection between LeBron and his hometown team is still strong. We’ll see if he shows up to any Cavs’ playoff games again this spring with a bottle of wine under his seat.