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The Lebron destination thread

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PilotsError

PilotsError 2287

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, chikin23 said:

He's gone. If he goes to the Western Conference the NBA should immediately change the playoff format to a 1-16 seed.

Should have been done years ago.  I'm not a Lebron hater, but he doesn't make near as many finals in that format.

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TommyGufano

TommyGufano 6021

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I'm starting to feel more and more strongly that it's Lakers. They have all the money and just enough resources (Lonzo, Ingram, Kuzma) to put together a team that's quite good in a hurry. Personally, I'd hold onto Ingram and ship Lonzo's ass out of town ASAP.

And he fucking has 2 houses in Brentwood worth $20M each. 

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satyanash

satyanash 14516

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New York Times: LeBron James Reveals an Injury, but His Destination Is Far From Clear

Quote

The prominent ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith reported recently that James planned to speak to six teams in addition to the Cavaliers. Philadelphia, Houston, Miami and the Lakers were all mentioned — as were the juggernaut responsible for James’s 1-8 record in his last nine finals games (Golden State) and his longtime Eastern Conference nemesis (Boston). I’ve also been advised that the ever-persuasive San Antonio Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich is bound to try to force his way into the conversation to sell James on the merits of South Texas.

My best forecast at this juncture? Fixate on Chris Paul. If Paul stays with the Rockets, Houston becomes a dangerous player, no matter how complicated it would be for the 65-win Rockets and their general manager, Daryl Morey, to orchestrate the requisite salary-cap gymnastics to bring James in. But don’t discount the idea that James could try to bring Paul with him to a team that can afford two superstars, such as the Lakers, because he and Paul really are that close.

James will have three full weeks now to dig into the various options, study the landscape for the most fertile locales for title contention and, perhaps most crucially, make clandestine connections with the starry likes of Paul George, Kawhi Leonard and, yes, Paul and James Harden to explore the prospects of teaming up somewhere with stars of that ilk. But this is as far as I’ll go with guarantees before the LeBron Sweepstakes officially begin: James will not feel as though he owes Cleveland anything after these last four seasons.

 

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Dutchrudder

Dutchrudder 11139

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Posted
3 hours ago, Orca of Peace said:

could the Lakers do Lebron, PG13, CP3 and Cousins - dump Lonzo and keep Kuzma? All that? maybe Rick Fox?

If they can find a way to dump Deng's 2 year 36m contract, they could have about 85m to play with before using their exceptions. If three go the KD route and take ~25m a year, then yeah, they could get 3 of them. 

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Patrick Bateman

Patrick Bateman 3916

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Here's some speculation about Lebron captured over the last week about Houston.

https://sports.yahoo.com/report-chris-paul-believes-lebron-james-doesnt-want-houston-prefers-l-020512487.html

Quote

LeBron James reportedly does not want to play in Houston next season.

The Rockets still haven't had an opportunity to make their pitch to James, but according to Steven A. Smith, Chris Paul has begun telling people that he doesn't anticipate James landing in Houston and that he'd prefer to play in Los Angeles.

 

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d2o

d2o 1602

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I've never seen him going to HOU.    He isn't going anywhere to join others.     Maybe they can all meet somewhere so I'm a little more open to him going to LA than I was a few weeks ago though I still think it would be stupid.    

 

My money is still on him staying in CLE and them getting either Kawhi or PG to come there.

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Patrick Bateman

Patrick Bateman 3916

Posted
Posted (edited)
2 minutes ago, d2o said:

I've never seen him going to HOU.    He isn't going anywhere to join others.     Maybe they can all meet somewhere so I'm a little more open to him going to LA than I was a few weeks ago though I still think it would be stupid.    

 

My money is still on him staying in CLE and them getting either Kawhi or PG to come there.

Gonna be hard for Cleveland to get Kawhi unless they get a 3rd team involved.  They don't really have the assets necessary.  PG a little more realistic b/c he can be a FA this summer.... But again, Cavs could have had him last year but Lebron wouldn't commit to a future in Cleveland so it didn't come to fruition.  I could see him staying in Cleveland and them adding like a Kemba Walker and/or maybe another embattled B type player...

 

Edited by Patrick Bateman
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aggie08

aggie08 21504

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To be fair, Steven A. did break LeBron and Bosh to Miami about two weeks before anyone else did (and was mocked at the time for such an outlandish rumor). But he wasn't with ESPN at the time and wasn't on a show loudly challenging NBA players to fights. I'd have to think that all of his legitimate contacts dried up when he took the money to shit on everyone in the league 24/7.

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Dutchrudder

Dutchrudder 11139

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LeBron and his agent are barred from talking directly to teams other than the Cavs, until July 1. He can't make a decision at this time, and if he did announce he was going somewhere else, it would be tampering if he's a free agent.

It's the stupid NBA rules that make the draft occur before the new league year starts, and before options must be picked up. The draft should happen about a week after free agency starts so teams have some clue as to who they can get and who is staying. It sucks, but that's the way it is.
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Patrick Bateman

Patrick Bateman 3916

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Posted (edited)
2 minutes ago, Dutchrudder said:

LeBron and his agent are barred from talking directly to teams other than the Cavs, until July 1. He can't make a decision at this time, and if he did announce he was going somewhere else, it would be tampering if he's a free agent.

It's the stupid NBA rules that make the draft occur before the new league year starts, and before options must be picked up. The draft should happen about a week after free agency starts so teams have some clue as to who they can get and who is staying. It sucks, but that's the way it is.

He could certainly tell Cleveland if he would like to stay or not....... That's really the only information they need to proceed.  Declare his intentions.  By not declaring, I think you have to go forward like he won't be coming back.

KD is in the same boat and has said his intentions..... publicly.  Lebron doesn't need to do so publicly but he could privately.

Edited by Patrick Bateman
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Dutchrudder

Dutchrudder 11139

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Posted
He could certainly tell Cleveland if he would like to stay or not....... That's really the only information they need to proceed.  Declare his intentions.  By not declaring, I think you have to go forward like he won't be coming back.
KD is in the same boat and has said his intentions..... publicly.  Lebron doesn't need to do so publicly but he could privately.
No, he needs to see a plan from other teams to weigh his options, but he can't legally, so he's stuck in limbo until July 1. If he says he wants to stay, then the Cavs make some trades, and he decides to leave for a better opportunity, he will be the bad guy. He has no idea what the Cavs can do until free agency starts, and he has even less knowledge of what other teams will do.
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Ricky Butler

Ricky Butler 2723

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2 minutes ago, Dutchrudder said:
48 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:
He could certainly tell Cleveland if he would like to stay or not....... That's really the only information they need to proceed.  Declare his intentions.  By not declaring, I think you have to go forward like he won't be coming back.
KD is in the same boat and has said his intentions..... publicly.  Lebron doesn't need to do so publicly but he could privately.

No, he needs to see a plan from other teams to weigh his options, but he can't legally, so he's stuck in limbo until July 1. If he says he wants to stay, then the Cavs make some trades, and he decides to leave for a better opportunity, he will be the bad guy. He has no idea what the Cavs can do until free agency starts, and he has even less knowledge of what other teams will do.

That's actually a good point. This is the NBA's fault for scheduling the draft before free agency.

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Patrick Bateman

Patrick Bateman 3916

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21 minutes ago, Dutchrudder said:
1 hour ago, Patrick Bateman said:
He could certainly tell Cleveland if he would like to stay or not....... That's really the only information they need to proceed.  Declare his intentions.  By not declaring, I think you have to go forward like he won't be coming back.
KD is in the same boat and has said his intentions..... publicly.  Lebron doesn't need to do so publicly but he could privately.

No, he needs to see a plan from other teams to weigh his options, but he can't legally, so he's stuck in limbo until July 1. If he says he wants to stay, then the Cavs make some trades, and he decides to leave for a better opportunity, he will be the bad guy. He has no idea what the Cavs can do until free agency starts, and he has even less knowledge of what other teams will do.

C'mon..... you don't really think Lebron doesn't know or at least have narrowed down to a couple of spots where he's going, do you?  IMO, he knows exactly where he wants to land and is having Klutch work behind the scenes (and frankly illegally) to put things together so it's an easy decision.  Both times Lebron made a move, the wheels were already spinning to get the core intact by the beginning of FA.  

 

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Chad

Chad 1728

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Posted
On 6/10/2018 at 2:33 AM, Spider2YBanana said:

I actually like LeBron. That said, I can see him ending up in Philly or San Antonio. He loves Pops, and Philly has two young upcoming superstars that he was saying he needs to win. Just my two cents 

Spurs fan here. It'll never happen in a million years.

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Dutchrudder

Dutchrudder 11139

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C'mon..... you don't really think Lebron doesn't know or at least have narrowed down to a couple of spots where he's going, do you?  IMO, he knows exactly where he wants to land and is having Klutch work behind the scenes (and frankly illegally) to put things together so it's an easy decision.  Both times Lebron made a move, the wheels were already spinning to get the core intact by the beginning of FA.  
 
He likely has a few options and Cleveland is still one of them. He won't commit though, as it ties his hands. Has to keep it on the down low for now. If Cleveland wants to keep him, they need to make some trades and drop dead weight. They can make their team attractive if they make some moves, but no guarantee.
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d2o

d2o 1602

Posted
Posted (edited)
7 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:
14 hours ago, Patrick Bateman said:
C'mon..... you don't really think Lebron doesn't know or at least have narrowed down to a couple of spots where he's going, do you?  IMO, he knows exactly where he wants to land and is having Klutch work behind the scenes (and frankly illegally) to put things together so it's an easy decision.  Both times Lebron made a move, the wheels were already spinning to get the core intact by the beginning of FA.  
 

He likely has a few options and Cleveland is still one of them. He won't commit though, as it ties his hands. Has to keep it on the down low for now. If Cleveland wants to keep him, they need to make some trades and drop dead weight. They can make their team attractive if they make some moves, but no guarantee.

Right.   He has a a few options and most of them are contingent on what happens over the next few weeks.   Should he publicly state his list?   What does that resolve?   Just our curiosity

Edited by d2o
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d2o

d2o 1602

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Posted
4 hours ago, Vic Mackey said:
15 hours ago, Chad said:
Spurs fan here. It'll never happen in a million years.

Lebron respects Pop but no way is he playing for him for the duration of seasons. He prefers a nobody coach still learning the ropes to where he runs everything. That's not happening in SA.

Yeah I dont really agree with that.   He pretty openly asked for Pat Riley to come back when he went to MIA.

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Patrick Bateman

Patrick Bateman 3916

Posted
Posted (edited)
14 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:
21 hours ago, Patrick Bateman said:
C'mon..... you don't really think Lebron doesn't know or at least have narrowed down to a couple of spots where he's going, do you?  IMO, he knows exactly where he wants to land and is having Klutch work behind the scenes (and frankly illegally) to put things together so it's an easy decision.  Both times Lebron made a move, the wheels were already spinning to get the core intact by the beginning of FA.  
 

He likely has a few options and Cleveland is still one of them. He won't commit though, as it ties his hands. Has to keep it on the down low for now. If Cleveland wants to keep him, they need to make some trades and drop dead weight. They can make their team attractive if they make some moves, but no guarantee.

He publicly said he was coming back well before free agency in 2016, last time he could have become a FA.  No one expects him to put out a list, but he could certainly share if he wants to continue on with Cleveland if he so desired.  I'm not criticizing him for not doing so, I'm simply saying he has done this before and his resistance to do so this year speaks volumes, IMO.  And personally, I think it's naive to think Lebron (and his group) isn't actively doing everything he can to assemble the team he wants in a destination he wants.  Lebron hasn't been reactive in the past, he's been proactive and I believe this is the case this offseason as well.  I'm sure he has a plan B if things don't work out with his primary goal and he'll probably entertain some other organizations to kick the tires and perhaps get a better idea of what may be happening around the league, but Lebron has traditionally been paramount in creating his new circumstance.

 

Edited by Patrick Bateman
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immortal13

immortal13 4059

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Posted (edited)
45 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

He publicly said he was coming back well before free agency in 2016, last time he could have become a FA.  No one expects him to put out a list, but he could certainly share if he wanst to continue on with Cleveland if he so desired.  I'm not criticizing him for not doing so, I'm simply saying he has done this before and his resistance to do so this year speaks volumes, IMO.  And personally, I think it's naive to think Lebron (and his group) isn't actively doing everything he can to assemble the team he wants in a destination he wants.  Lebron hasn't been reactive in the past, he's been proactive and I believe this is the case this offseason as well.  I'm sure he has a plan B if things don't work out with his primary goal and he'll probably entertain some other organizations to kick the tires and perhaps get a better idea of what may be happening around the league, but Lebron has traditionally been paramount in creating his new circumstance.

 

I think he probably is in a more "reactive" situation this time around. At this point in his career, his window of opportunity is getting smaller and smaller and if he wants to win another ring or two, he is going to need to go to a team with the right pieces. Lebron understands that team chemistry is very important and right now I don't think he really knows 100% what he is going to do. I think he has his ideas on a few potential teams, but he needs to see how the draft goes and where some of these key free agents end up. He may WANT to be a Laker, but I don't think he is willing to go there unless he feels like there is championship potential. I just think he is too competitive and too concerned with his legacy to just go to LA for the sake of being a Laker and being in Los Angeles.

Edited by immortal13
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Vic Mackey

Vic Mackey 47058

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2 hours ago, d2o said:

Yeah I dont really agree with that.   He pretty openly asked for Pat Riley to come back when he went to MIA.

Riley would have been a figure head at that point. And Lebron has 3 rings now. That was before he had any and was wanting to do whatever he could to try and get some. I can't see him playing for a hard ass coach any longer. He wants to run the team as the coach and GM. He isn't doing that in SA even if he's who he is.

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aggie08

aggie08 21504

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Posted (edited)
8 minutes ago, dingleberryswitzer said:

Does LeBron really want that?  Or has he just never had a coach he respects as much as pop?  

I'm on this boat. It's been pretty widely reported through the years that he's tried to lure Coach K and Izzo to his teams at various points in his career. Say what you will about LeBron, he's nothing if not a basketball historian. He knows the coaching legends attached to the all-time greats and understands their importance. Now, maybe he's narcissistic enough to want to be the only Top 10 player never to have an elite coach (though Spoelstra is still criminally underrated), but I doubt it. I think he'd welcome a top flight coach.

Edited by aggie08
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dingleberryswitzer

dingleberryswitzer 2724

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Posted (edited)

Maybe that's his problem.   Maybe he has more rings if he let's the front office do its thing.  Did Jordan  mettle with the management?   Jordan famously was an asshole to his teammates but it was all for the purpose of winning.  LeBron wanted to be buddies with his teammates and that got him Jr smith's weed baked brain and Tristan Kardashian.  Oh and Tyrone lue. 

Edited by dingleberryswitzer
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immortal13

immortal13 4059

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9 minutes ago, aggie08 said:

I'm on this boat. It's been pretty widely reported through the years that he's tried to lure Coach K and Izzo to his teams at various points in his career. Say what you will about LeBron, he's nothing if not a basketball historian. He knows the coaching legends attached to the all-time greats and understands their importance. Now, maybe he's narcissistic enough to want to be the only Top 10 player never to have an elite coach (though Spoelstra is still criminally underrated), but I doubt it. I think he'd welcome a top flight coach.

That's the thing, he wants to pick the coach himself. That's just not the way it works

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kopp0e

kopp0e 1135

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On 6/9/2018 at 9:42 AM, chikin23 said:

He's gone. If he goes to the Western Conference the NBA should immediately change the playoff format to a 1-16 seed.

Might as well just do as the CFP, and only hold the top 4 teams for a shot at the NBA title...

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Patrick Bateman

Patrick Bateman 3916

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11 minutes ago, dingleberryswitzer said:

Maybe because Miami has no cap space to sign him?   Do they  have anything  Cleveland would want or take back in a trade?  

Justice Winslow?  Dragic?  Whiteside?  The issue is I don't think Lebron wants to go back to Miami and clearing the decks (monetarily) to get another star or two required by Lebron would be difficult with the contract on hand.  The Heat have a lot of questionable ones.

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longhrnfan

longhrnfan 61

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44 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

Justice Winslow?  Dragic?  Whiteside?  The issue is I don't think Lebron wants to go back to Miami and clearing the decks (monetarily) to get another star or two required by Lebron would be difficult with the contract on hand.  The Heat have a lot of questionable ones.

Pat Riley has orchestrated some fantastic moves in the past. We'll see if he can make a play, or rather, tries. 

I'd bet on LA. 

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kopp0e

kopp0e 1135

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44 minutes ago, ChickenSandwich said:

This would be great, Lebron (Bama) could get a pass on the pesky regular season and just given a playoff spot pre-season regardless of regular season results

That's damn near what happens now with 'Bron in the east (until Boston has all of it's stars healthy anyway)...

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