Report: Lue had expletive-laden reaction to Blatt's firing

A second consecutive trip to the NBA Finals for the Cleveland Cavaliers has seemingly validated general manager David Griffin's decision to relieve former head coach David Blatt of his duties earlier in the year.

When the initial firing was made, though, assistant Tyronn Lue - who has acted as Cleveland's head coach since then - was completely caught off guard by the organization's decision to move in a new direction.

"This is f----- up, Griff," Lue reportedly said to Griffin during a phone call in which he was informed he was taking over Blatt's position, according to Cleveland.com's Chris Haynes.

Lue then pleaded with Griffin to reconsider his decision before acting on it, although Griffin acknowledged that it had already been carried out. The Cavaliers were 30-11 at the time and sitting atop the Eastern Conference, which made Lue question why Blatt was losing his job during such a prosperous start.

"What's done is done. I'm asking you if you can lead this team?" Griffin said.

"Yeah, I can f---ing lead this team," Lue replied.

It was a lot to absorb so suddenly for Lue, whose goal was to one day take over the reins of the team, but not at the expense of a friend who he believed was being wronged.

"I was like, 'What the f---.' That was my initial thought," Lue told Haynes. "I didn't see it coming. I couldn't believe it. But, you're prepared because you've done the coaching interviews and you have your philosophies. But to fire the head coach and you take over the next day with no practice or anything and you have the Chicago Bulls coming in. It was overwhelming."

Owner Dan Gilbert commented on the coaching change following Cleveland's Game 6 victory in the Eastern Conference finals on Friday night, reaffirming his confidence in Lue and how moving him into a more prominent role was the right thing to do.

"I just think it was a great decision that was made," Gilbert said to Haynes. "You never know what would happen any other way, but I think (Lue is) fantastic. It's rare that a guy knows the game and has people skills. You get both with him, like offense and defense almost. He's a special guy."

The Cavaliers finished the regular season with a 27-14 record (.659) under Lue. They've also gone 12-2 during their postseason run with sweeps against the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks, tying the league record for the fewest losses prior to the Finals in the best-of-seven era.