LeBron James, Miami Heat Teammates React to Dan Gilbert's Tampering Probe

MIAMI -- On the eve of the Miami Heat's first visit to Cleveland since signing LeBron James this summer, a curiously timed report from Yahoo! Sports stated that Cavs owner Dan Gilbert has invested several hundred thousand dollars investigating whether the Heat tampered with James prior to his officially becoming a free agent.

At AmericanAirlines Arena on Wednesday, as Heat players and staff tried their best not to look ahead of their game at hand against the Detroit Pistons, this fresh volley from the Cavs' organization served as another reminder of the venom still reserved for James in Cleveland, a city starved for a championship.

"I'm over it. I really am. That's the truth," Gilbert had told The Associated Press earlier this week. "I let it all out in about 24 hours. I just think we have such a great core and a great coaching staff. We have a lot of opportunities with the trade exception and the draft. I feel good about this team."

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For his part, James said before the game that he was not aware of the investigation and also denied having any contact with any investigators connected to the case.

"I'm a Miami Heat player representing this franchise, so that's out of my league. ... We followed the process like any other free agent, and this organization did also."

- LeBron James on
Dan Gilbert's investigation

"I'm here," James said. "I'm a Miami Heat player representing this franchise, so that's out of my league. I don't have anything to do with that. We followed the process like any other free agent, and this organization did also."

Teammate James Jones is the secretary/treasurer of the NBA Players Association and the Heat's representative, but the investigation was news to him, even though he understood Gilbert's motives.

"He's a free citizen and its his prerogative to do what he feels he wants to do," Jones told FanHouse. "I really don't have a stance on it. Everyone knows that's a hot topic. There's always something going on, so you just chalk it up to it being just another chapter in that book.

"We understand his position. He feels strongly enough about it to make it an issue so we'll see. Here, we've moved on and we've just focused on what we need to do to continue to grow as a team, and hopefully that's what they're doing on his end as well."

Zydrunas Ilgauskas, former Cavs player and teammate of James for his entire career, almost didn't believe the news when it was brought to his attention after the Pistons game. He wasted no time letting his opinion be known of his former boss.

"That's chasing ghosts right there," he told FanHouse while shaking his head. "Let bygones be bygones. There are more important things in life: people dying from cancer every day, kids dying every day, people having HIV, people fighting wars. There are more important things than the Miami Heat going back to Cleveland.

"Let's put life in perspective, it's just a basketball game."