Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James ensured one reporter in particular didn’t get the soundbite he was after regarding Dwyane Wade’s free agency situation.
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Wade is in negotiations with the Miami Heat over a new deal, but it has been reported that the two parties have reached an impasse with the player wanting a raise after taking two consecutive pay cuts.
It remains to be seen whether or not he gets it, as if he fails to do so then in an unlikely turn of events he could choose to opt out of his deal and then consider his options elsewhere.
Given the relationship between the organisation and player, it isn’t expected that it will come down to that, but one reporter decided to try his luck in trying to get an answer off James about the situation by suggesting that Wade himself had claimed that he would opt out when it was merely from a report.
Q: “What do you think about Wade down in Miami and how that may change things?”
James: “What happened?”
Q: “Wade is talking about opting out down in Miami because they don’t want to match whatever the contract was?”
James: “He said that?”
Q: “That’s what people are saying.”
James: “Did he say that?”
Q: “That’s what the reports are saying?”
James: “I’m not commenting on it. If Dwyane Wade didn’t say, ‘I’m opting out,’ then I’m not commenting on that.”
That transcript was provided by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, and James has been through this situation himself enough to know when to ensure that there is some legitimacy to the claim.
The reporter’s efforts have been criticised and used as an example as to why players are guarded with the media, and it doesn’t really look that great in terms of trying to trick a player into saying something about a situation that hasn’t even arisen yet.
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