National Basketball Association

Cleveland newspaper apologizes for saying Cavs didn't have enough grit

Published Jun. 17, 2015 4:54 p.m. ET

Jimmy Traina

Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving (after Game 1) were on the bench with injuries for the NBA Finals.

The Golden State Warriors finished an NBA-best 67-15 record in the regular season and were a heavy favorite (-240) to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in the series.

Yet, when LeBron James' one-man show came up short against the Warriors on Tuesday night, ending the NBA Finals in six games, the top headline in Cleveland's main newspaper seemed to attack the team's heart instead of its lack of talent.

In an unusual turn of events, though, a media outlet did a mea culpa.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer's editor, George Rodrigue, penned a column Wednesday afternoon apologizing for the headline and explaining the backstory for it.

Rodrigue went on to explain that the paper was short-staffed Tuesday night because of illness to some employees, although he clearly stated that was not an excuse.

The controversy recalls the Kevin Durant "Mr. Unreliable" headline during the first round of the 2013 NBA playoffs that sparked a similar newspaper apology by the Oklahoman -- and a response from the OKC Thunder star's mother.