Ex-Cavs GM Griffin thinks LeBron isn't 'same animal anymore about winning'

Since leading his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers to their first NBA championship in 2016, has LeBron James prioritized winning the way he used to? If you ask former Cavaliers general manager David Griffin, the answer is no.

Griffin, who's now an executive with the New Orleans Pelicans, believes James - who signed with the Los Angeles Lakers last offseason - lost some of his drive to win and focused his attention elsewhere after claiming the historic title.

"There wasn't a lot else for him," Griffin said of James' time in Cleveland following the championship, according to Sports Illustrated's Jake Fischer. "I don't think he’s the same animal anymore about winning."

Griffin constructed the title-winning Cavs team in 2015-16, as he pieced together a roster around James that beat the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals one year after falling short. However, the well-respected executive says he didn't enjoy the process of building those teams, and that he'd lost his passion for the game by the time he left the Cavaliers organization in 2017.

"Everything we did was so inorganic and unsustainable and, frankly, not fun. I was miserable," Griffin said. "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 has quickly made his presence felt since joining the Pelicans this summer, trading disgruntled star Anthony Davis to the Lakers and receiving a major return. He also lucked out and landed the top overall pick in the draft, which allowed him to select the new face of the franchise in Zion Williamson.