Cleveland hopes moves are enough to keep LeBron

CLEVELAND (AP) — When the Cavaliers shipped off Zydrunas Ilgauskas this week and welcomed Antawn Jamison and Sebastian Telfair, it severed one of the last remaining ties to Cleveland’s NBA finals appearance in 2007.

The Cavaliers have three remaining players — LeBron James, Anderson Varejao and Daniel Gibson — from the team that won the Eastern Conference just three years ago.

As the Summer of LeBron draws near, general manager Danny Ferry’s creative moves and owner Dan Gilbert’s wallet have turned over the Cavaliers’ roster in an attempt to give James plenty of reasons to remain in Cleveland.

“[Ferry] has done a good job of bringing in players and trying to build something,” James said. “I think we all know how important it is to win around here and we have high expectations every year. The front office has done a great job of bringing in guys that want to win and want to do what’s right for the team.”

Cleveland’s payroll for this season is near $83 million, ranking among the top five in the league. But it was the final two years on Jamison’s contract, worth a total of $28 million, that allowed Ferry to acquire him at the trading deadline.

It’s a move he has mastered. While teams around the league continue to shed payroll either for economic reasons or to make room for this summer’s strong free agent class, the Cavaliers continue to welcome the rich and famous.

Ferry overhauled the roster in 2008, trading six players one minute before the trading deadline for Joe Smith, Ben Wallace, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West. It remains perhaps the most vital of all his moves, since it laid the groundwork for what was to come.

Smith was traded to Milwaukee for Mo Williams when the Bucks didn’t want to pay him through 2012. Ferry turned Wallace into Shaquille O’Neal when the Suns were trying to get out from under $20 million.

Now Gilbert has allowed Ferry to turn Ilgauskas into Jamison, while leaving hope the Cavs could get ’Z’ back if Washington, as expected, buys out his contract.

“This is Dan Gilbert’s commitment to winning,” Ferry said. “He supported us to make any move we think makes this organization a championship-caliber team.”

Now Gilbert must hope it’s enough to keep James, who can become a free agent in July.

It doesn’t take business acumen to understand the numbers of the NBA. On a maximum contract this summer, the Cavaliers can offer James an extra year and about $30 million more than any other team. James has maintained his decision will be based not on money, but on what gives him the best chance to win.

Cleveland appears to be that team, given Gilbert’s history of spending.

“You have to understand, Dan Gilbert spent a lot of money,” Williams said. “It shows the commitment they have to us. It’s not about how much a guy makes. If the player fits the team, they’ve never shied away from the contracts, even though other teams are trying to shed money. They’re taking on more money. The goal is clear what we want to do.”

Short of winning a championship, Gilbert has done all he can to keep James happy. He called acquiring Jamison Cleveland’s big free agent signing, since the team won’t have any cap space to take part in the summer frenzy — other than retaining James.

“I don’t lose any sleep over it,” Gilbert said. “I feel very good about where the franchise is, all the moves we’ve made.

“Whether it’s LeBron or anybody, we believe this franchise would be attractive for anyone who wants to come play basketball.”