I reported this on my NBA 411 segment on "Mike and Mike in the Morning'' today: According to information gathered from multiple league executives, DeJuan Blair was 10 seconds away from joining "King James'' and "The Big Shaquisition'' in Cleveland.On draft night 2009, Cleveland offered Denver $2 million for the 34th pick. Cavs GM Danny Ferry thought it was essentially a done deal and had fingered Blair as the pick.
But with just 10 seconds left to make its selection, Denver was offered $2.25 million, a league record for the sale of a 34th pick, from the Houston Rockets. Because there was such a small amount of time left to make the pick, the Nuggets didn't have a chance to give Cleveland the opportunity to beat Houston's offer.