Police told Cavs’ Altman he nearly caused wreck

CLEVELAND — Body camera footage of Cavaliers executive Koby Altman undergoing field sobriety tests shows him being told by officers that he nearly caused an accident last week before he was arrested and charged with driving while impaired.

On Wednesday, the Cavaliers issued a new statement about their president of basketball operations, who was arrested Friday night near downtown Cleveland. Altman was first stopped by Ohio State Highway Patrol officers for a traffic violation before refusing a breath test and being taken into custody.

The team released a brief initial statement a day after Altman’s arrest. It followed up with more comment a day after the bodycam video emerged and Altman pleaded not guilty through his attorney in court.

“We hold our team members to a high standard of conduct and expect leaders at every level of our organization to represent the Cavaliers with integrity, professionalism and accountability,” the team said. “We will continue to closely monitor the facts and circumstances of this matter and await resolution of the legal process.”

It’s not known if Altman has been disciplined by the team.

Although Altman refused to take a breath test on the scene, the officers noted in their report that he was “respectful and cooperative.”

In the bodycam footage, an officer tells Altman he nearly caused an accident and asks him if he knows how fast he was driving. Altman responds by saying he had driven the route before and wasn’t breaking the speed limit.

At one point, Altman tells one of the officers he is “the president of the Cavaliers” and that he was exhausted after just returning from a trip overseas and going to dinner.

Altman, 41, has not publicly commented on the situation.

A New York native, Altman has been with the Cavaliers since 2012 when he began as a pro personnel manager. He worked his way up in the front office and was promoted to general manager in 2017, a year after Cleveland won the NBA title.

Altman has rebuilt the Cavs in recent years, signing several young stars to long-term contracts and pulling off the trade that landed All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell in Cleveland.

The Cavs won 51 games last season and returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2018. They were eliminated in five games by the New York Knicks.

In January, the team changed Altman’s title and signed him to an extension through the 2027-28 season.