Cleveland Cavaliers, general manager David Griffin parting ways

The Cleveland Cavaliers and GM David Griffin are parting ways, the team announced Monday evening. 

Griffin was instrumental in ending Cleveland's 50-plus year championship drought last season.

Griffin, who became GM in February of 2014 when the Cavs fired Chris Grant, helped Cleveland to three consecutive NBA Finals appearances, including last year's first-ever franchise title.

The move leaves the Cavs' front office in disarray ahead of this week's draft, though the Cavs don't have a pick. It also raises questions about how the Cavs plan to proceed heading into free agency, which begins on July 1. 

"The Cleveland Cavaliers and its General Manager, David Griffin, have mutually decided not to extend David's current contract, which ends June 30, 2017," a statement from Cavs owner Dan Gilbert said. 

"On behalf of the entire organization, I would like to thank Griff for his leadership and many contributions during his time here, including, most recently, his role in the franchise's first NBA championship.

"We have no announcement at this time related to new leadership of the Cavaliers basketball operations group, but we are confident our current front office will continue to aggressively explore and pursue opportunities to improve our team in the weeks ahead." 

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.