Report: Cavs consulted with LeBron before trading Wade

Cleveland Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman spoke to LeBron James before dealing Dwyane Wade to the Miami Heat, team sources told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

The intention, according to Shelburne, was to explain to James what was behind the move. With younger backcourt players like Rodney Hood and Jordan Clarkson - as well as veteran George Hill - incoming in the Isaiah Thomas trade, the 36-year-old Wade would have seen a decrease in minutes.

Wade returns to Miami where he played the first 13 seasons of his career.

The optics of moving Wade without consulting LeBron could have been bad news for the Cavs, who still risk watching James leave as an unrestricted free agent this summer. LeBron and Wade are very close, but the Cavs chose to remake half their roster with their season slipping away.