The Cleveland Cavaliers stunned the NBA world when they decided not to renew the contract of championship-winning General Manager David Griffin in 2017. He has gone on to make them look quite foolish for that decision, drawing rave reviews for his work leading the New Orleans Pelicans this offseason while the Cavaliers still have a very uncertain future. But as Griffin revealed to Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated, things weren’t quite that simple. In truth, he was eager to leave Cleveland all along. 

When Griffin was promoted to GM, he was charged with leading a young Cleveland team with no immediate expectations. His moves reflected that. He pursued younger free agents like Gordon Hayward early in the summer of 2014 hoping to develop his team slowly. That option flew out the window the moment LeBron James returned. Though he was excited at the prospect of building a team around him, Griffin revealed that he “collapsed on his office floor in tears” after the decision became official. The anxiety of building a team around the league’s best player was significant. 

For an executive like Griffin, that took a lot of the enjoyment out of his job. “Everything we did was so inorganic and unsustainable and, frankly, not fun. I was miserable,” Griffin said, before admitting that he began to plot his exit as soon as he had the chance. “Literally the moment we won the championship I knew I was gonna leave. There was no way I was gonna stay for any amount of money.”

Griffin’s departure was emblematic of the entire collapse of the Cavaliers. He wanted a chance to build a team his own way, without the accelerated timeline James presented. Kyrie Irving wanted the equivalent of that as a player. He was tired of playing sidekick to James, and sought out a team that he felt was a better fit for his talents. 

Griffin even questioned James’ motivations after the championship. “There wasn’t a lot else for him,” Griffin said. “I don’t think he’s the same animal anymore about winning.” Fischer went on to note that “many in the NBA now suggest James harbors two priorities: enduring to team with his eldest son, Bronny, and one day owning a franchise.”

The concept of the “team” is treasured in sports, but fundamentally, teams are comprised of human beings. Griffin, James and Irving were forced into an arranged marriage. They made the best of it and won a championship, but as noble a goal as winning is, it isn’t the only thing people can want out of their careers. 

Griffin wanted to build a certain kind of team. Irving wanted to play for a certain kind of team. James wanted to be in Los Angeles. The three of them could not achieve those goals together, so they had to separate. That is what causes the breakup of most great teams. Everybody involved had an idea of what else they wanted in basketball, and they all actively sought it out.