LeBron to Phoenix

[johnson]

I was surprised to see Wade opt out of his contract and pretty surprised to see Bosh to do it too. No way is anyone going to pay Wade a max deal right now. Bosh is more debatable, I guess. It all leads you to believe they are both willing to take pay cuts to get some other guys in there and keep the Big 3 together.

I still have no hope this happens for PHX, but it was good to hear this morning at least LBJ's agent is now going to meet with the Suns (and Rockets and Mavs). This could just be to keep pressure on Miami, but if the Suns get to be heard...and get to make a pitch...that's all you can ask for right now.

 

[Goldy]

I doubt anyone is holding their breath about LeBron signing in Phoenix, but given the success of the team last season, I think it would be smart for him to strongly consider it. I hardly know anything about basketball, but from what I've seen you guys say, Melo and LeBron together sounds like a recipe for trouble.

 

[Davis_Mike]

The Suns are set to meet with Lebron's agent.

 

[trojanfan12]

With Bledsoe and Dragic, Phoenix does not need a conventional "2 guard." Moreover, Gerald Green can always slot into that spot.

Also, the Suns have only advanced past the first round of the playoffs once in the last seven seasons; reaching the conference semifinals would actually constitute a huge step forward for this franchise.

I'm talking total history. The Suns have made several WCF's and 2 NBA finals. With a lineup of Dragic, Bledsoe, 'Melo, Lebron and Plumlee, you are looking at maybe getting to the WCF and an outside shot at the finals.

Also, if you sign Lebron OR 'Melo (let alone both), you should be looking for more than making the 2nd round and calling that a huge step forward. You don't sign max FA's to get to the 2nd round. You sign max FA's to win titles.

 

[trojanfan12]

I don't think LeBron wants to live in Phoenix..

Quality input.

OD has a point. It's hot in Phoenix. We all saw what happens to Lebron when it's hot.

 

[Davis_Mike]

OD has a point. It's hot in Phoenix. We all saw what happens to Lebron when it's hot.

It's perfect whether during the NBA season. It only gets hot around the Finals.

 

[Arizona_Sting]

OD has a point. It's hot in Phoenix. We all saw what happens to Lebron when it's hot.

Our AC works

 

[The Derski]

Plus Phoenix has the best training staff in the league. Lebron won't even remember what a cramp feels like.

 

[GMATCa]

I'm talking total history. The Suns have made several WCF's and 2 NBA finals. With a lineup of Dragic, Bledsoe, 'Melo, Lebron and Plumlee, you are looking at maybe getting to the WCF and an outside shot at the finals.

Also, if you sign Lebron OR 'Melo (let alone both), you should be looking for more than making the 2nd round and calling that a huge step forward. You don't sign max FA's to get to the 2nd round. You sign max FA's to win titles.

There is really no way of knowing for sure; the Spurs are going to decline at some point, and beyond that, the West is very open (if deep). The bottom line is that an upside of reaching the NBA Finals should be sufficient to make the move. Right now, the Suns are nowhere near the NBA Finals.

And the winner of the West stands to win the Finals ...

 

[GMATCa]

And I mean that reaching the second round would be a minimum and, at worst, a first step. I definitely think that the potential for greater achievement would easily exist ... easily. I would be more than willing to take my chances with that lineup against the Thunder or the Clippers, especially with some experience under its belt. And if Anthony just does not fit, Phoenix could eventually trade him for a high return.

 

[tlance]

No, I totally understand the value of Miami's shooting and floor spacing, similar to what Mike D'Antoni and Alvin Gentry provided for Steve Nash. But the difference is that LeBron James has been posting the best statistics in the NBA for about nine seasons now, and he has not always enjoyed near-wall-to-wall three-point shooting around him. In 2012, for instance, James was the MVP of the league with Joel Anthony starting at center for most of the season. As I noted earlier in the thread, Miami ultimately defeated Boston and Oklahoma City late in the season by shifting to a small lineup with Bosh (or even Udonis Haslem) at center and an extra shooter (Battier) on the floor. But if the Suns need to consider a lineup change deep in the playoffs in order to win a championship with James, they could cross that bridge at that juncture. For now, just consider that if Dragic enjoyed a great season in the same lineup as Bledsoe and Plumlee, what would stop James?

As for this year's NBA Finals, James still averaged 28.2 points (even with the cramping episode at the end of Game One) on an incredible .571 field goal percentage. I concur that he did not seem to attack the basket as explosively, but that result may have partly stemmed from the way that his three-point shot was falling during the series. He shot .519 on threes in 5.4 attempts per game, finishing the Finals with an absurdly high .679 True Shooting Percentage. And while I would need to go back and study the games to state something more conclusive, part of the reason why there was less floor spacing may have had to do with the presence of Boris Diaw. As Popovich noted, Diaw allowed the Spurs to play "big and small" simultaneously. Thus the Spurs enjoyed the versatility of a fourth player with perimeter skills around Duncan (or Splitter), while also forcing Miami into more lineups where Chris Andersen (instead of Battier) needed to join Bosh. And with Andersen's presence came less floor spacing.

Overall, I feel that what hurt the Heat most was that its ball movement and energy just could not match San Antonio's and thus better allowed the Spurs to close driving gaps. Ironically, I felt that Dwyane Wade, although no longer "Flash" or anywhere near as explosive as he used to be, got to the paint and to the rim quite a bit. He just could not finish late in the series.

Back to James, though, remember that in '05-'06, he averaged 31.4 points and 6.6 assists when his starting guards were basically non-shooters: Eric Snow at point guard and Larry Hughes or Ronald "Flip" Murray at shooting guard.

2005-06 Cleveland Cavaliers Roster and Stats | Basketball-Reference.com

I know that James is not twenty-one any longer, but he is still extremely explosive and he does not exactly need to be surrounded by four guys who are above-average shooters from twenty-three to twenty-five feet in order to dominate the game.

James and Bledsoe, like James and Wade, may not complement each other perfectly. That doesn't mean, however, that they could not complement each other effectively enough. Indeed, one could also argue that what happened to Miami this past season is that the Heat became so enamored with the notion of surrounding James (and Wade) with catch-and-shoot three-point shooters that the team lost sight of the need for more versatile and creative offensive players who could also attack the basket and reduce James' burden. You want to find a happy medium, and this proposed Phoenix lineup could provide it.

This is not about LeBron's productivity. You could surround LeBron with posters from this thread and he is going to put up numbers.

My entire point is that in order to get LeBron to leave Miami, you need to provide him with the ideal fit and a significantly better chance to win titles the next two years.

Would the Suns be much better with LeBron + another elite player? Obviously yes, but he ain't moving unless the fit is perfect, and I just don't see it here. Sorry.

 

[GMATCa]

This is not about LeBron's productivity. You could surround LeBron with posters from this thread and he is going to put up numbers.

My entire point is that in order to get LeBron to leave Miami, you need to provide him with the ideal fit and a significantly better chance to win titles the next two years.

Would the Suns be much better with LeBron + another elite player? Obviously yes, but he ain't moving unless the fit is perfect, and I just don't see it here. Sorry.

As I wrote earlier, I never believed that James would leave Miami, and some other situations, such as Houston and Chicago, may well prove more attractive to him than Phoenix. But what constitutes a "perfect" or "ideal" fit represents a subjective question. Indeed, I doubt that James would perceive Phoenix as problematic just because Eric Bledsoe is not a great three-point shooter. The bottom line is that the proposed lineup would feature speed, shooting, and a multitude of threats, a combination that could be compelling if James is seriously contemplating a change of address.

 

[Arizona_Sting]

If Bosh leaves Miami then you can count on LeBron leaving as well.

 

[Arizona_Sting]

The Suns are still in the running along with Cleveland, Dallas, Houston and Los Angeles. Given the cap space and talent... if he leave Miami we are the best fit. All bias aside.

 

[Shanemansj13]

If they get Melo and Bron I'm pretty sure they would have to drop Bledsoe or Dragic. Probably Dragic.

 

[Arizona_Sting]

If they get Melo and Bron I'm pretty sure they would have to drop Bledsoe or Dragic. Probably Dragic.

Not this year. They could make it work for at least until next offseason when Dragic has a player option that he'll likely decline. So essentially they'd have to pick between giving it a go with those 4 for a year or trading Dragic now before he wants to get the big bucks next offseason. Kind of like what OKC did with Harden.

The good news is they have Tyler Ennis as in in-house replacement already there if they do deicide to deal Goran, though I'd prefer to hang on to him and figure it out during the offseason IF it were to happen.

 

[GMATCa]

Inking LeBron James could add so much revenue that the Suns' economic equation would really change moving forward.

Of course, the possibility still seems like a long shot.