INDEPENDENCE — If the Cavaliers fail in their quest to win a championship in 2007-08, it won’t be because they lack a state-of-the-art practice facility.
Fresh off its first NBA Finals appearance, Dan Gilbert’s franchise will hold a grand opening for the Cleveland Clinic Courts today at 2:30 p.m.
The $25 million, 50,000-square-foot facility has anything and everything a professional basketball player like LeBron James could want, including a massive workout area and locker room, two full-length courts, underground parking and around-the-clock availability.
“Dan Gilbert talks about inches all the time,” assistant general manager Chris Grant said. “This is a foot. Heck, it’s a yard.”
Grant, who traveled the country looking at various corporate headquarters and college and professional facilities for all sports, played a huge role in designing the complex, which took more than a year to build.
The Cavs, who previously worked out on a cramped practice court on the fourth floor of Quicken Loans Arena, will house all their basketball operations in the new building in Independence, a quick and easy drive from downtown Cleveland on Interstate 77.
“We’re very proud of it,” Grant said. “I don’t think we’ve reinvented the wheel, but we really like the layout.”
Spacious and open with a lot of windows and high ceilings, the entire building and all its rooms are designed around the two full-length courts.
All offices have a view of the practice area, including those of coach Mike Brown and general manager Danny Ferry. The media room and public relations offices also offer a view of the court, though the former will be able to be blocked off when practices are closed, as they are the majority of the time.
The workout room is 3,000 square feet, and that’s not counting a large training room, a laundry room and a doctor’s office that has a direct link to the Cleveland Clinic.
“It turned out great,” Ferry said. “We’re very happy with it.”
The facility also contains a visiting locker room that can be used by opposing teams that are in town a day before a game, while the Cavs’ massive locker room area almost defies description.
Each stall is approximately five feet wide and contains built-in drawers, shoe racks, mirrors and a swivel chair. On the other side of a large shower area are a sauna, two whirlpools and a HydroWorx tank, which comes complete with underwater cameras and a built-in treadmill to aid in rehabilitation.
The facility also contains heated sidewalks, a private media entrance, numerous conference rooms, a state-of-the-art video editing area and a theater where the Cavs can watch film.
“It’s very nice and very functional,” Grant said. “Those two things combined make us feel very lucky.”
Contact Rick Noland (330) 721-4061 or rickn@ohio.net. 

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