LeBron James confirmed he hoped the Cleveland Cavaliers would sign Dwyane Wade but that the team didn't have the means to sign him.

"We couldn't afford him," James said. "It's that simple."

James and Wade were teammates for four seasons with the Miami Heat and remain close friends.

Wade agreed upon a two-year, $47 million deal with the Chicago Bulls in the offseason. Cleveland could offer only the taxpayer midlevel exception, worth about $3.5 million.

"Who wouldn't be interested in a Hall of Famer?" Tyronn Lue said. "That don't even make sense. Yeah, we wanted him."