LBJ Free Agent Destinations

[Mavaliersfan]

Anything short of a competitive finals series likely results in another Bron exit this summer.

LBJ has gone on the record saying that winning is the most important thing to him and has stated he’s chasing the ghost of MJ.

Which team(s) is plausibly positioned to obtain his services while also offering him the best chance to elevate his legacy to MJ?

Make your case…

I’ll admit mine is biased, but here it goes…LBJ to the Mavs.

Logistically, the Mavs can create approx. $53M in cap space this summer. That said - it would require reworking a long-term deal with Wes Matthews who has a player option for $18M – I’ll get to that later.

Signing Bron outright, still leaves them with $18M. The next step is to move Barnes (who plays the same position) for a wing-scorer. The way things are playing out, several teams could be looking to add some size & athleticism and could emerge as trade partners in this scenario – CJ McCollum, Bradley Beal, Eric Gordon, Andrew Wiggins.

Next, with the remaining $18M, the Mavs can be a bidder on a RFA player like JaBari Parker, Aaron Gordon, Clint Capela, or Julius Randle.

Then you add a top 3 draftee, preferably a Big – like Ayton, Jaren Jackson, or Bamba.

Lastly, they bring back Seth Curry with the MLE and Dirk at the veteran’s minimum.

Obviously, all of this depends on overcoming the hurdle that is Wes Matthews’ player option.

As it is well known, the Mavs massively overpaid Wes in a sign of loyalty after they lost out on the DAJ sweepstakes. In other words, Wes has gotten his. Being the competitor he is and with the chance to contend, perhaps he’s willing to take a hometown discount in signing an extension - say 4yr/$8M. This would require creating the additional $8M in cap-space. How do they get there?

Well they also have two 2nd rd picks heading into the draft – one being their own which is essentially a late first rounder. They could package their 2nd (or both) along with Powell to the Lakers as a replacement for Julius Randle. There you have an additional $10M in space to accommodate the new deal for Matthews.

I know these are a lot of moving parts, but keep in mind how drastically different the Cavs roster looked prior to Bron’s return. There will be a massive roster shakeup with wherever he goes.

Potential 2019 Roster to sell to LBJ:

• Ric Carlisle

• Dennis Smith Jr – JJ Barea – Yogi Ferrell
• Beal/McCollum – Seth Curry
• LBJ – Wes Matthews
• Jaren Jackson Jr – Dirk Nowitzki
• Clint Capela – Salah Mejri

Why does he choose the Mavs? First-off, a hall of fame coach in Ric Carlisle, one of which he’s never had the luxury of playing for. He gets to remain the lead-dog, likely until he retires. He gets a chance to play with Dirk who he’s publicly stated he is very fond of. He gets another point guard he can mentor who he has long been an admirer of. He gets to play with a young, versatile and athletic front-court. He gets a chance to add to his legacy as the only player to lead 3 franchises to a championship. Honestly, the list goes on….the Cowboys, no state income taxes, a veteran front-office, etc.

In summary, how is this possible?

· Trade Barnes for the best wing-scorer that becomes available

· Re-work Wes Matthew’s deal

· Sign a promising RFA

· Draft a stud big-man

I think these are all plausible steps they could take to acquire him.

Bron’s Comments on DSJ:

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/lebron-james-phil-jackson-knicks-dennis-smith-jr-frank-ntilikina-shoot-around-clarified/

“I just think that [Smith's] athleticism, his playmaking ability. I've been knowing the kid since he was 14 years old. I know what he's capable of.”

Bron's Comments on Dirk:

https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/da...court-dirk-nowitzki-one-favorite-players-time
https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/da...court-dirk-nowitzki-one-favorite-players-time
"Dirk is the s***," James said. "One of my favorites of all time. Both on and off the court, he just seems so damn cool. I never got the opportunity to be around but he just seems like of the greatest [expletive] guys ever." …”He's always been one of my favorites, even--s***, took one of my rings away from me."

Thoughts?

 

[Lee]

Horrible, horrible, awful, disrespectful, shameful, timing of this thread.

lets shut this down until after the playoffs.

I usually say this is a message board, we should be open for discussions, but come on, this is fucking pitiful.

 

[CTownSportsFan]

Anything short of a competitive finals series likely results in another Bron exit this summer.

LBJ has gone on the record saying that winning is the most important thing to him and has stated he’s chasing the ghost of MJ.

Which team(s) is plausibly positioned to obtain his services while also offering him the best chance to elevate his legacy to MJ?

Make your case…

I’ll admit mine is biased, but here it goes…LBJ to the Mavs.

Logistically, the Mavs can create approx. $53M in cap space this summer. That said - it would require reworking a long-term deal with Wes Matthews who has a player option for $18M – I’ll get to that later.

Signing Bron outright, still leaves them with $18M. The next step is to move Barnes (who plays the same position) for a wing-scorer. The way things are playing out, several teams could be looking to add some size & athleticism and could emerge as trade partners in this scenario – CJ McCollum, Bradley Beal, Eric Gordon, Andrew Wiggins.

Next, with the remaining $18M, the Mavs can be a bidder on a RFA player like JaBari Parker, Aaron Gordon, Clint Capela, or Julius Randle.

Then you add a top 3 draftee, preferably a Big – like Ayton, Jaren Jackson, or Bamba.

Lastly, they bring back Seth Curry with the MLE and Dirk at the veteran’s minimum.

Obviously, all of this depends on overcoming the hurdle that is Wes Matthews’ player option.

As it is well known, the Mavs massively overpaid Wes in a sign of loyalty after they lost out on the DAJ sweepstakes. In other words, Wes has gotten his. Being the competitor he is and with the chance to contend, perhaps he’s willing to take a hometown discount in signing an extension - say 4yr/$8M. This would require creating the additional $8M in cap-space. How do they get there?

Well they also have two 2nd rd picks heading into the draft – one being their own which is essentially a late first rounder. They could package their 2nd (or both) along with Powell to the Lakers as a replacement for Julius Randle. There you have an additional $10M in space to accommodate the new deal for Matthews.

I know these are a lot of moving parts, but keep in mind how drastically different the Cavs roster looked prior to Bron’s return. There will be a massive roster shakeup with wherever he goes.

Potential 2019 Roster to sell to LBJ:

• Ric Carlisle

• Dennis Smith Jr – JJ Barea – Yogi Ferrell
• Beal/McCollum – Seth Curry
• LBJ – Wes Matthews
• Jaren Jackson Jr – Dirk Nowitzki
• Clint Capela – Salah Mejri

Why does he choose the Mavs? First-off, a hall of fame coach in Ric Carlisle, one of which he’s never had the luxury of playing for. He gets to remain the lead-dog, likely until he retires. He gets a chance to play with Dirk who he’s publicly stated he is very fond of. He gets another point guard he can mentor who he has long been an admirer of. He gets to play with a young, versatile and athletic front-court. He gets a chance to add to his legacy as the only player to lead 3 franchises to a championship. Honestly, the list goes on….the Cowboys, no state income taxes, a veteran front-office, etc.

In summary, how is this possible?

· Trade Barnes for the best wing-scorer that becomes available

· Re-work Wes Matthew’s deal

· Sign a promising RFA

· Draft a stud big-man

I think these are all plausible steps they could take to acquire him.

Bron’s Comments on DSJ:

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...th-jr-frank-ntilikina-shoot-around-clarified/
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...th-jr-frank-ntilikina-shoot-around-clarified/
“I just think that [Smith's] athleticism, his playmaking ability. I've been knowing the kid since he was 14 years old. I know what he's capable of.”

Bron's Comments on Dirk:

https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/da...court-dirk-nowitzki-one-favorite-players-time
"Dirk is the s***," James said. "One of my favorites of all time. Both on and off the court, he just seems so damn cool. I never got the opportunity to be around but he just seems like of the greatest [expletive] guys ever." …”He's always been one of my favorites, even--s***, took one of my rings away from me."

Thoughts?

Btw China for marketing reasons .

 

[Mavaliersfan]

Horrible, horrible, awful, disrespectful, shameful, timing of this thread.

lets shut this down until after the playoffs.

I usually say this is a message board, we should be open for discussions, but come on, this is fucking pitiful.

Agreed - I get what you mean, if possible go ahead and shut it down for now.

 

[Otsego Mar]

I like this thread. Gets the creative juices flowing.

With that said, absolute ZER0 % chance LeBron ends up in Dallas.

 

[MirORich]

The Premise that LeBron will consider options and leaving again might occur is solid.

The Premise that anything short of a competitive Finals Series makes him for sure leave is simply opinion.

We do not know. Everyone(both board members and NBA pundit) thinks they know LeBrons list of factors he will weight and which factors will be given the most to the least weight, but it's all just opinion.

We simply don't know if LeBron's full mindset and approach to FA at 34 will be the same as at 30 and 26.

For example, I don't believe the Cavs were the best talent option in 2014. Perhaps better than staying with the Heat but there were other situations that could have been better from a pure talent standpoint that could have been acheived by either a S&T or by some other teams doing some quick, creative cap purging to sign him outright. But even that is just my opinion.

As in 2010 and 2014, up until the very last minute, only LeBron will know what LeBron is going to do and why he's going to do it.

 

[billmac91]

Anything short of a competitive finals series likely results in another Bron exit this summer.

LBJ has gone on the record saying that winning is the most important thing to him and has stated he’s chasing the ghost of MJ.

Which team(s) is plausibly positioned to obtain his services while also offering him the best chance to elevate his legacy to MJ?

Make your case…

I’ll admit mine is biased, but here it goes…LBJ to the Mavs.

Logistically, the Mavs can create approx. $53M in cap space this summer. That said - it would require reworking a long-term deal with Wes Matthews who has a player option for $18M – I’ll get to that later.

Signing Bron outright, still leaves them with $18M. The next step is to move Barnes (who plays the same position) for a wing-scorer. The way things are playing out, several teams could be looking to add some size & athleticism and could emerge as trade partners in this scenario – CJ McCollum, Bradley Beal, Eric Gordon, Andrew Wiggins.

Next, with the remaining $18M, the Mavs can be a bidder on a RFA player like JaBari Parker, Aaron Gordon, Clint Capela, or Julius Randle.

Then you add a top 3 draftee, preferably a Big – like Ayton, Jaren Jackson, or Bamba.

Lastly, they bring back Seth Curry with the MLE and Dirk at the veteran’s minimum.

Obviously, all of this depends on overcoming the hurdle that is Wes Matthews’ player option.

As it is well known, the Mavs massively overpaid Wes in a sign of loyalty after they lost out on the DAJ sweepstakes. In other words, Wes has gotten his. Being the competitor he is and with the chance to contend, perhaps he’s willing to take a hometown discount in signing an extension - say 4yr/$8M. This would require creating the additional $8M in cap-space. How do they get there?

Well they also have two 2nd rd picks heading into the draft – one being their own which is essentially a late first rounder. They could package their 2nd (or both) along with Powell to the Lakers as a replacement for Julius Randle. There you have an additional $10M in space to accommodate the new deal for Matthews.

I know these are a lot of moving parts, but keep in mind how drastically different the Cavs roster looked prior to Bron’s return. There will be a massive roster shakeup with wherever he goes.

Potential 2019 Roster to sell to LBJ:

• Ric Carlisle

• Dennis Smith Jr – JJ Barea – Yogi Ferrell
• Beal/McCollum – Seth Curry
• LBJ – Wes Matthews
• Jaren Jackson Jr – Dirk Nowitzki
• Clint Capela – Salah Mejri

Why does he choose the Mavs? First-off, a hall of fame coach in Ric Carlisle, one of which he’s never had the luxury of playing for. He gets to remain the lead-dog, likely until he retires. He gets a chance to play with Dirk who he’s publicly stated he is very fond of. He gets another point guard he can mentor who he has long been an admirer of. He gets to play with a young, versatile and athletic front-court. He gets a chance to add to his legacy as the only player to lead 3 franchises to a championship. Honestly, the list goes on….the Cowboys, no state income taxes, a veteran front-office, etc.

In summary, how is this possible?

· Trade Barnes for the best wing-scorer that becomes available

· Re-work Wes Matthew’s deal

· Sign a promising RFA

· Draft a stud big-man

I think these are all plausible steps they could take to acquire him.

Bron’s Comments on DSJ:

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...th-jr-frank-ntilikina-shoot-around-clarified/
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...th-jr-frank-ntilikina-shoot-around-clarified/
“I just think that [Smith's] athleticism, his playmaking ability. I've been knowing the kid since he was 14 years old. I know what he's capable of.”

Bron's Comments on Dirk:

https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/da...court-dirk-nowitzki-one-favorite-players-time
"Dirk is the s***," James said. "One of my favorites of all time. Both on and off the court, he just seems so damn cool. I never got the opportunity to be around but he just seems like of the greatest [expletive] guys ever." …”He's always been one of my favorites, even--s***, took one of my rings away from me."

Thoughts?

I'll bite...

Everything we've heard is ownership and "social cause" is as important as everything else. The last month hasn't been kind to the Mavericks in terms of "social issues". Cuban has been accused of sexual assault, the front office had guys harassing women, etc. I don't see it.

Lastly, I see no incentive for a team like Washington or Portland to trade for Harrison Barnes, who has proven he is nowhere near worth the max.

I think it will end up being Lakers, Houston, or remains a Cav. I don't see a secret team on the horizon. Lakers have two max spots available and some additional perks that will appeal to LeBron. Houston can squeeze him into the fold, but will have to most likely let Capela and Ariza walk which is tough....Houston owner is huge Trump supporter as well.

 

[Certo17]

I'll bite...

Everything we've heard is ownership and "social cause" is as important as everything else. The last month hasn't been kind to the Mavericks in terms of "social issues". Cuban has been accused of sexual assault, the front office had guys harassing women, etc. I don't see it.

Lastly, I see no incentive for a team like Washington or Portland to trade for Harrison Barnes, who has proven he is nowhere near worth the max.

I think it will end up being Lakers, Houston, or remains a Cav. I don't see a secret team on the horizon. Lakers have two max spots available and some additional perks that will appeal to LeBron. Houston can squeeze him into the fold, but will have to most likely let Capela and Ariza walk which is tough....Houston owner is huge Trump supporter as well.

I agree with everything you said.. I’ll just add the Sixers to that 3 team list.. maybe a slight chance for the spurs too if they somehow patch things up with Kawhi.. which I don’t think they will. Lebron loves Pop and he’s never had a coach anywhere near as good as him.. he’s gotta be curious to see how it would be. That’s why I’m giving them a slight chance to get him..

But back to the Sixers.. they are not only a great coached team by a guy who worked closely with pop but they have some serious young talent.. obviously we all see that. Embiid and Simmons are future superstars in the making and Dario Saric Robert Covington and Fultz are pretty solid too. Lebron can come in and for the first 2-3 years he can dominate and lead like he usually does while mentoring all the younger players (which he’s already doing for Simmons so he will also be playing with a player he’s pretty fond of and close too) and then he can take a step back so that he can pass on the leadership role to embiid and Simmons extending his career once he loses a step or two athletically and offensively.. lol if he ever does? If he joined them I see him having another great 5-7 years in him and possibly could play even longer.. no joke.

On top of all that though the Sixers can literally sign lebron and trade or sign for another superstar.. which would be absolutely ridiculous! Just imagine a starting line up with Simmons lebron embiid and then another superstar that everyone here thinks we possibly could get for that pick in it with them.. Kawhi PG13 CJ Beal etc.. that shit would be crazy!

 

[billmac91]

I agree with everything you said.. I’ll just add the Sixers to that 3 team list.. maybe a slight chance for the spurs too if they somehow patch things up with Kawhi.. which I don’t think they will. Lebron loves Pop and he’s never had a coach anywhere near as good as him.. he’s gotta be curious to see how it would be. That’s why I’m giving them a slight chance to get him..

But back to the Sixers.. they are not only a great coached team by a guy who worked closely with pop but they have some serious young talent.. obviously we all see that. Embiid and Simmons are future superstars in the making and Dario Saric Robert Covington and Fultz are pretty solid too. Lebron can come in and for the first 2-3 years he can dominate and lead like he usually does while mentoring all the younger players (which he’s already doing for Simmons so he will also be playing with a player he’s pretty fond of and close too) and then he can take a step back so that he can pass on the leadership role to embiid and Simmons extending his career once he loses a step or two athletically and offensively.. lol if he ever does? If he joined them I see him having another great 5-7 years in him and possibly could play even longer.. no joke.

On top of all that though the Sixers can literally sign lebron and trade or sign for another superstar.. which would be absolutely ridiculous! Just imagine a starting line up with Simmons lebron embiid and then another superstar that everyone here thinks we possibly could get for that pick in it with them.. Kawhi PG13 CJ Beal etc.. that shit would be crazy!

I see no connection to Philly honestly. It makes sense logically with their young core, I just don't see it as realistic at all. Embiid's injury history would also have to give him pause.

I also wonder about how wide the GSW window actually is? People forget Curry is on the wrong side of 30 and seems to be struggling physically, and Klay may not be financially viable once he hits FA after next year. Nobody takes care of their body like LeBron so he may see the West more open than others do. JMO.....

 

[Certo17]

I see no connection to Philly honestly. It makes sense logically with their young core, I just don't see it as realistic at all. Embiid's injury history would also have to give him pause.

I also wonder about how wide the GSW window actually is. People forget Curry is on the wrong side of 30 and seems to be struggling physically. Nobody takes care of their body like LeBron so he may see the West more open than others do. JMO.....

Oh I agree.. I don’t see much of a connection to Philly besides the Simmons mentoring thing.. which isn’t much.. it’s just the best choice in my opinion I guess for him cuz they have a lot of young talent and are on the way up even without him and it would extend his career very well.. besides GS which I would never forgive him for if he did join them along with most of the world.. lol but he would never do that.. he isn’t KD.. lmao!

 

[wremy]

 

[Mr. MacPhisto]

I tend to see him going back to Miami via S&T or orchestrating a S&T to Houston of some kind. I think it would be a three way trade that would send Gordon somewhere else and send the Cavs some younger players and picks if it's Houston. I'm not sure he'd be sold on going to Philly and I think the Lakers are a huge rebuild.

 

[col63onel]

I tend to see him going back to Miami via S&T or orchestrating a S&T to Houston of some kind. I think it would be a three way trade that would send Gordon somewhere else and send the Cavs some younger players and picks if it's Houston. I'm not sure he'd be sold on going to Philly and I think the Lakers are a huge rebuild.

Houston is going to be too far over the cap to do a S&T. Only way Houston gets him is if LeBron opts in and forces a trade, ala Chris Paul.

Thing is, only thing I could possibly want from Houston is Capela, but he'd also be a sign and trade, and it'd be tough for the Cavs to be be far enough under the apron to pull it off.

I think LeBron is leaving, but I don't think Houston is viable.

 

[godfather]

LeBron would have to take a significant cut to go there. But the thing is, would he, just to play with Paul?

I think if he were ever to do it, he might be willing to just to play with Paul. Boy, that would piss a lot of people off here though. Take pay cut elsewhere, but refused to ever do it here to help us add more talent.

I don't know. Not going to pretend he wouldn't do it, I still doubt it

it'd be such a dick thing to do, if he did. If he leaves okay, but something like that wouldn't sit right with a lot of us, I think. And a lot of people around the league as well.

I think he'd face too much blow back from doing such a thing.

 

[Mr. MacPhisto]

Houston is going to be too far over the cap to do a S&T. Only way Houston gets him is if LeBron opts in and forces a trade, ala Chris Paul.

Thing is, only thing I could possibly want from Houston is Capela, but he'd also be a sign and trade, and it'd be tough for the Cavs to be be far enough under the apron to pull it off.

I think LeBron is leaving, but I don't think Houston is viable.

I think that's possible, if Houston is who he wants to play for. I'm not sure he'd be sold on Philly. I think there's a comfort level with Spoelstra that he may be interested in returning to Miami. LeBron also has limited options if he wants to pursue winning.