The irony is...

Carlos Baerga gets traded to the Mets, fans scream bloody murder.
Manny Ramirez bolts for Boston, fans scream bloody murder.
David Justice gets dealt to the Yankees, fans scream bloody murder.
Roberto Alomar gets traded to the Mets, fans scream bloody murder.
Jim Thome digs in at Philadelphia's money trough, fans scream bloody murder.
Carlos Boozer wriggles out of his contract and into the waiting arms of Utah, fans scream bloody murder.
Omar Vizquel amicably splits for San Francisco, fans scream bloody, torturous, gruesome, unspeakable homicide.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas decides Cleveland is where he wants to be, fans and media members stick their tongues out in disgust.
Judging by the cool reaction Z's re-signing received on Tuesday, you'd think the Cavs just pulled a Golden State Warriors and inked Adonal Foyle for the next half-decade.
The first time in my recent recollection a Cleveland all-star free agent has stayed in Cleveland, and nobody I came into contact with on Tuesday seemed terribly happy about it. The contract was too long, they said. It will prevent them from getting a shooter or bench help, they said. They wanted Tyson Chandler, or Eddy Curry, or Samuel Dalembert.
Or, for some strange reason, Udonis Haslem.
All of the players I mentioned above, sans Haslem, would have commanded as much, or nearly as much, as Z. All would have had strengths and weaknesses, just like Z. None of them are as tall.
I can see hand-wringing over committing five years and up to $60 million to a center who has had the career-threatening foot injuries Z has had. But if the Cavs had worked a sign-and-trade for Curry, they'd be dealing with potential career-threatening heart problems.
Dalembert is intriguing because of the defense and rebounding he brings. But he is a restricted free agent who plays without the ball, and I have a hard time believing the Allen Iverson-saturated Sixers would let him get away. Chandler and Haslem are power forwards, so that's for another discussion.
Maybe this was a case of the grass not being greener on the other side. Z's not that exciting to watch, he's not a "cool" player kids worship, like LeBron James. But at the end of the day, he gives you 17 points and nine rebounds. Stability is one of the keys to winning. Z gives the Cavs that, even if he's never going to power dunk like Shaq.