The mortgage industry is suffering an unprecedented crisis with a credit crunch and skyrocketing foreclosure rates, directly affecting the bottom line of giants like Quicken Loans, the primary company of Cavs owner Dan Gilbert.

These two statements are facts, but they are not related. That's something that comes from Gilbert himself.

''There is zero connection between any current events in the mortgage markets with the strategy, tactics and payroll of the Cleveland Cavaliers,'' Gilbert said in an e-mail message Monday.

The Cavs have been very conservative in the free-agent market, even with its own restricted free agents Anderson Varejao and Sasha Pavlovic, and some fans have begun to wonder if it has anything to do with the Livonia, Mich.-based business.