LeBron James calls Tristan Thompson’s holdout a distraction, urges both sides to get deal done

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio _ LeBron James insisted his late-night social media message wasn’t directed solely at the Cavs, labeled Tristan Thompson’s holdout as a distraction and urged both sides to find common ground in a candid interview following practice Sunday.tmpplchld “The last thing you need is a distraction when you try to make a championship run. And we have that right now,” James said Sunday. “It’s unfortunate for both sides that we’re going through it right now as a team.”tmpplchld James attended a wedding Saturday night on Miami Beach with Thompson. James posted a picture of the two stars shortly after midnight with the message “Get it done!!!! Straight up. #MissMyBrother” James said last week he was done talking about Thompson’s contract, but changed his mind Saturday after seeing his teammate. But James twice denied the message was directed solely at the Cavs organization despite the fact he shares an agent with Thompson in Rich Paul.tmpplchld “I’m not going to go to them and tell them what they should do,” James said regarding the Cavs. “That’s their job, they know how to do it very well and they’ve done that to this point. They’ve brought in and did what they had to do for us to be a contending team. Obviously Tristan is a big part of that run we want to make. I believe that something will happen.”tmpplchld Holdouts in the NBA are rare. The only other one James has been part of was Anderson Varejao’s holdout in 2007, which dragged into December. That stalemate finally ended when Varejao signed a contract with the Charlotte Bobcats, which the Cavs quickly matched.tmpplchld James said he read recently that only the Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers have the cap space to offer Thompson the type of contract he’s seeking.tmpplchld “I like our chances,” he joked.tmpplchld ___tmpplchld (c)2015 Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio)tmpplchld Visit the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) at www.ohio.comtmpplchld Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.tmpplchld