Lebron's most likely destination in 2018-2019

[Wamu]

I give Luke Walton until the A.S. break before he's replace by Lavar Ball.

 

[tlance]

OMG. 2 different words, I would have thought you would have learned that by now.

But, since you're stuck on that, they do COMPLEMENT each other.....James has had to be the de facto PG on almost very team he has been on because they didn't have a legiit PG. So, getting older with Ball running the offense James wouldn't have to do as much. Ball could run the offense and James coud focus on scoring....when Ball leaves the game they could have James run the offense.

James is great but he's getting older and needs to have his workload lightened. Plus, Ball has great vision and will put James in position to succeed (not like he needs a whole lot of that).

Ball greatest strength is not that he needs the ball in his hands. He is the ultimate ball mover. LeBron needs the ball, but he isn't as ball dominant as many stars around the league and he is a great facilitator. They would be an absolutely lethal duo if you can get 2 more scorers on the court with them. For that to happen, Ingram needs to develop into a top 40 player and they need to land someone like George.

I don't think any of that is far fetched, and there really are not many other places that would give him a better shot at Golden State (including Cleveland).

I have said all along that Kyrie doesn't fit with leBron because of his ball dominance. They got a title, but it looks like I have been proven right by the fact that Kyrie wants out of town.

 

[Shaqdaddy11]

Wiggy is so scared James may bolt from Leave-Land. Like Irving very well may,

Players, and fans tend to bold from cleveland quite quickly

 

[Black Adam]

@WiggyRuss can shut the fuck up

Lmao , he WON'T, but agreed that he CAN...

boy does love making a fool of himself...

 

[Black Adam]

Wiggy is so scared James may bolt from Leave-Land. Like Irving very well may,

lol, Irving wants out, SAYS he wants out, and is using just about every trick in the book to GET out...

mediocrity coming the Cavs way soon...

 

[Shaqdaddy11]

mediocrity coming the Cavs way soon...

If they're lucky

 

[Black Adam]

Players, and fans tend to bold from cleveland quite quickly

but-but-but...

we were promised YEARS of the Cavs serving us haters "soggy shit sandwiches" by some clown on these boards...

 

[trojanfan12]

Two things here. One, as you've said many times correctly, it only takes one player to change a team's status. And secondly, a team can trade young assets and dump contracts and draft picks to win now by getting LeBron. So somewhere is probably a team that can take him and still compete. He can always take less than the max like Durant too.

I'm not saying this is guaranteed, but if his priority is rings, and it probably is, he can surely go to a team on the cusp like the Lakers (potentially, if they get PG too) or the Sixers, or heck could OKC keep PG and RW and find a way to bring him in? Houston? Spurs? Where there's a will...

True. I mean, no one saw KD to the Warriors. I think the only team that Lebron could go to and put that team on at least equal footing with the Warriors, would be the Spurs. I don't know their cap situation, but if they could add with him losing Aldridge, Gasol, Kawhi or Parker, that team could take down the Warriors.

Outside of that, I think his best option would be to team up with another top FA, go to a young, talented, developing team like the Sixers or Lakers and hope they can grow up and compete within a season or 2.

 

[trojanfan12]

yah the thing that is different is that he even has LESS time.

A 34 year old LeBron is not going to baby sit 20 year old kids. That makes zero zense.

No, the thing that is different is KD is on the Warriors. Where is Lebron going to go and be able to compete? Who could be added to the Lakers or Sixers for some of their young assets that can compete with the Warriors?

The only team that I see that could add Lebron and be an immediate and real threat to the Warriors, is the Spurs.

Because of KD being on the Warriors, Lebron going with another FA to a young developing team like the Sixers or Lakers, spending a season or 2 developing the young guys so they can make a title run or 2 with him not having to do as much makes sense.

What doesn't make sense is to expect teams to trade away their future to put together a "win now" roster that is unlikely to win a title anyway.

 

[WiggyRuss]

No, the thing that is different is KD is on the Warriors. Where is Lebron going to go and be able to compete? Who could be added to the Lakers or Sixers for some of their young assets that can compete with the Warriors?

The only team that I see that could add Lebron and be an immediate and real threat to the Warriors, is the Spurs.

Because of KD being on the Warriors, Lebron going with another FA to a young developing team like the Sixers or Lakers, spending a season or 2 developing the young guys so they can make a title run or 2 with him not having to do as much makes sense.

What doesn't make sense is to expect teams to trade away their future to put together a "win now" roster that is unlikely to win a title anyway.

so your argument is that you think LeBron is just going to say "I have no chance so Ill go play with some 20 year olds in LA instead of going to the Finals and competing for a title?"

-hey i was the first to say- if LeBron doesnt stay in Cleveland I think LA is the only other place that makes any kind of sense if he is not going to hurt his legacy since he has some hurts there and they have the assets and cap space to put together an instant contender if things break right.

But- and maybe this is just me because I have watched LeBron so closely his whole career--- but under no circumstances could i possibly believe LeBron would concede that he has cant win and go to a situation where he doesnt think he can win.

Now- if they signed George and dealt Ball or Ingram, Randle and cap flotsam for RW.......uhhhh yah. I could see that.

Its all up in the air anyway until we see what happens with Kyrie.

 

[Shaqdaddy11]

so your argument is that you think LeBron is just going to say "I have no chance so Ill go play with some 20 year olds in LA instead of going to the Finals and competing for a title?"

-hey i was the first to say- if LeBron doesnt stay in Cleveland I think LA is the only other place that makes any kind of sense if he is not going to hurt his legacy since he has some hurts there and they have the assets and cap space to put together an instant contender if things break right.

But- and maybe this is just me because I have watched LeBron so closely his whole career--- but under no circumstances could i possibly believe LeBron would concede that he has cant win and go to a situation where he doesnt think he can win.

Now- if they signed George and dealt Ball or Ingram, Randle and cap flotsam for RW.......uhhhh yah. I could see that.

Its all up in the air anyway until we see what happens with Kyrie.

shut the fuck up

 

[trojanfan12]

so your argument is that you think LeBron is just going to say "I have no chance so Ill go play with some 20 year olds in LA instead of going to the Finals and competing for a title?"

-hey i was the first to say- if LeBron doesnt stay in Cleveland I think LA is the only other place that makes any kind of sense if he is not going to hurt his legacy since he has some hurts there and they have the assets and cap space to put together an instant contender if things break right.

But- and maybe this is just me because I have watched LeBron so closely his whole career--- but under no circumstances could i possibly believe LeBron would concede that he has cant win and go to a situation where he doesnt think he can win.

Didn't think I'd ever see Kobe concede that a team he was on couldn't win a title and play with some 20 year olds. but that's exactly what he did his last 2 seasons.

When guys get older, their perspectives tend to change.

Also, that part you seem to be missing is the part about help developing those guys for a season or 2, so that he could try to grab a couple of rings just before he retires.

As important as his legacy is to him, you don't think he'd like the idea of helping a bunch of young guys return a storied franchise to championship form and then retire a champion?

Now- if they signed George and dealt Ball or Ingram, Randle and cap flotsam for RW.......uhhhh yah. I could see that.

I don't see them trading Ingram and Ball for Westbrook. Also, isn't Westbrook also going to be an FA after the season anyway?

 

[gordontrue]

I think that there are very few, if any, teams that will sacrifice their future to remake their rosters for him and win now.

Its an interesting question.

Ask every franchise: "Would you take LeBron and 3 years of being a top contender right now, knowing that after those 3 years you would be a basement team for several years?"

I think the Warriors, Spurs, Lakers, Celtics, & Heat say no.

I think everyone else says yes. I think that only those 5 teams have enough championship pedigree (recent and/or historic) to scoff at the value of contending for a few years.

 

[Black Adam]

Its an interesting question.

Ask every franchise: "Would you take LeBron and 3 years of being a top contender right now, knowing that after those 3 years you would be a basement team for several years?"

I think the Warriors, Spurs, Lakers, Celtics, & Heat say no.

I think everyone else says yes. I think that only those 5 teams have enough championship pedigree (recent and/or historic) to scoff at the value of contending for a few years.

only problem honestly i see with that logic is are those "3 years" of LeBron playing at his current level guaranteed? i'd think any GM worth a damn has to take THAT into consideration...

 

[WiggyRuss]

Didn't think I'd ever see Kobe concede that a team he was on couldn't win a title and play with some 20 year olds. but that's exactly what he did his last 2 seasons.

When guys get older, their perspectives tend to change.

Also, that part you seem to be missing is the part about help developing those guys for a season or 2, so that he could try to grab a couple of rings just before he retires.

As important as his legacy is to him, you don't think he'd like the idea of helping a bunch of young guys return a storied franchise to championship form and then retire a champion?



I don't see them trading Ingram and Ball for Westbrook. Also, isn't Westbrook also going to be an FA after the season anyway?

well Kobe was washed up by then- no longer anything like an all star- let alone a top player.

LeBron is still the best in the game. I just cant believe LeBron would sacrifice his last prime years as THE LeBron James.

 

[trojanfan12]

Its an interesting question.

Ask every franchise: "Would you take LeBron and 3 years of being a top contender right now, knowing that after those 3 years you would be a basement team for several years?"

I think the Warriors, Spurs, Lakers, Celtics, & Heat say no.

I think everyone else says yes. I think that only those 5 teams have enough championship pedigree (recent and/or historic) to scoff at the value of contending for a few years.

Good point. I'm just not sure I completely agree. No doubt there's at least a couple of teams that would do it, the Nets for example and probably the Knicks because they have been in the cellar for awhile. I'm sure 1 or 2 others that look to be stuck in Purgatory like the Raptors and Wizards may also do it.

But I also see a lot of teams out there that are trying to get young and rebuild through the draft. So, I'm not sure many of them would sacrifice a potential 5+ years of contention starting in a couple of years for 2-3 years of contention now. It just seems too shortsighted.

But then, it seems like every season we end up surprised at teams that make shortsighted moves.

 

[trojanfan12]

well Kobe was washed up by then- no longer anything like an all star- let alone a top player.

LeBron is still the best in the game. I just cant believe LeBron would sacrifice his last prime years as THE LeBron James.

To be fair to Kobe and also your point, much of the reason Kobe was "washed up" was due to injury. So, it may be that he accepted his fate because he knew he could only be THE Kobe Bryant for a game or 2 here and there. May explain why he spent those last years being "Uncle Kobe" instead of The Black Mamba.

However, Lebron is barely hanging on to being the best in the game. It would seem that it would be more of a waste of the of his remaining time as THE Lebron to try chasing titles that he's unlikely to win anyway. When he could help develop a young team, miss the finals for a season or 2 (getting a little rest) and then make another couple of title runs before he retires.

I'm sure he likes the fact that he has a long streak of finals appearances. But what good is the streak if it just tacks on a couple more finals losses and he retires at 3-7 or 3-8 in finals appearances?

 

[shopson67]

LeBron is still the best in the game. I just cant believe LeBron would sacrifice his last prime years as THE LeBron James.

He left Miami for a team that had just won 33 games. Lakers will be in that range this year and are set up to have a lot of cap space to add more than just Lebron.

If Cleveland had a better owner, I don't think Lebron leaves.

 

[WiggyRuss]

He left Miami for a team that had just won 33 games. Lakers will be in that range this year and are set up to have a lot of cap space to add more than just Lebron.

If Cleveland had a better owner, I don't think Lebron leaves.

you think LeBron comes back to Cleveland if he was playing with 20 year old Kyrie and Kevin Love?

id love to say- yes-- but i cant.

 

[shopson67]

Yes, because he was jumping off the sinking Heat, just like he is now ready to jump off the sinking Cavs.

Don't act like Kyrie being 20 or 22 makes that much of a difference, lol. Other than shots attempted, Kyrie's stats haven't changed much from his rookie year to last year.