The Lebron Safari 2014

[CavsRules]

[I-77 NORTH]

Grabbing dick now? Definitely don't want him back.

Kyrie getz bunz.

[JMcCurry08]

Cavs want to ensure they have max space in 2014 when @kingjames is back on the market.Smart money says Cavs & Lakers only real suitors.

— Probasketballdraft (@Probballdraft) January 9, 2013

[chrisrich91]

Cavs want to ensure they have max space in 2014 when @kingjames is back on the market.Smart money says Cavs & Lakers only real suitors.

— Probasketballdraft (@Probballdraft) January 9, 2013

Speculation speculation speculation.

Everyone just keep in mind how out-of-nowhere Miami came from last time. There's no use predicting what's going to happen a season and a half from now.

[randymoss1881]

Speculation speculation speculation.

Everyone just keep in mind how out-of-nowhere Miami came from last time. There's no use predicting what's going to happen a season and a half from now.

Exactly and why is everyone assuming that he opts out anyway, maybe he has his mind set on brooklyn who have cap space the 2015 in his other opt out year.

[theSTEREO.]

Exactly and why is everyone assuming that he opts out anyway, maybe he has his mind set on brooklyn who have cap space the 2015 in his other opt out year.

Not sure what spreadsheet you're looking at, but the Nets are SEVERELY over the cap until the summer of 2016.

[Triumph36]

Not sure what spreadsheet you're looking at, but the Nets are SEVERELY over the cap until the summer of 2016.

as poorly as i think the front office has handled a lot of situations, it's always nice to see they aren't the token team in the league who tries to buy a contender in a capped system. realizing they have little to no chance of really contending anytime soon musta taken a lot of air out of the excitement of getting a team in brooklyn.

[CavsRules]

A lot can happen between now and the 2014 offseason.

I've hated LeBron James since the minute he uttered those "talent to south beach" words, but I think I'm in the majority in saying I would welcome him back if it meant the team winning a title, or multiple titles. I still would hate the guy for what he did, but I could live with it more if a banner was hanging inside The Q.

With all of that being said, nothing is set in stone by any means. Obviously the Cavs are a possible team because they will have salary and James has roots here. But as mentioned before, nobody knows what's going to happen until then.

[Tlyons]

Cavs want to ensure they have max space in 2014 when @kingjames is back on the market.Smart money says Cavs & Lakers only real suitors.

— Probasketballdraft (@Probballdraft) January 9, 2013

It's only starting. The irresponsible reporting might even be more of a joke than his 2010 free agency.

[Jack Brickman]

A lot can happen between now and the 2014 offseason.

I've hated LeBron James since the minute he uttered those "talent to south beach" words, but I think I'm in the majority in saying I would welcome him back if it meant the team winning a title, or multiple titles. I still would hate the guy for what he did, but I could live with it more if a banner was hanging inside The Q.

With all of that being said, nothing is set in stone by any means. Obviously the Cavs are a possible team because they will have salary and James has roots here. But as mentioned before, nobody knows what's going to happen until then.

That basically sums it up. People will forgive LeBron if he wins a title for Cleveland, and we shouldn't plan our roster around him coming back. As I said earlier, we can always trade guys who don't fit if he does.

[theSTEREO.]

That basically sums it up. People will forgive LeBron if he wins a title for Cleveland, and we shouldn't plan our roster around him coming back. As I said earlier, we can always trade guys who don't fit if he does.

Agreed. Ben's twitter rant the other day about how the Cavs better not be saving all their hopes for a Lebron return is true, but its not just Lebron they could be saving for.

The 2014 and 2015 free agent classes are insanely better than the 2012 and 2013 ones. They could target any of those players, OR target teams looking to move their current talent to make room for the big names.

Lot of possibilities outside of Lebron.

[Jack Brickman]

Agreed. Ben's twitter rant the other day about how the Cavs better not be saving all their hopes for a Lebron return is true, but its not just Lebron they could be saving for.

The 2014 and 2015 free agent classes are insanely better than the 2012 and 2013 ones. They could target any of those players, OR target teams looking to move their current talent to make room for the big names.

Lot of possibilities outside of Lebron.

Agreed. They absolutely should not be pinning all their hopes on LeBron returning, just like they shouldn't draft around his position (be it SF or PF). The way I see it, if LeBron does come back, you see how he fits and you change your roster accordingly. If you have a good player who needs to be traded, you'll get a good value in return. Further, LeBron can basically play and defend every position, so it's not like squeezing him in is at all difficult. So what if we draft Shabazz at SF this year and have Tristan at PF? Move Tristan to center and put LeBron at the four. Easy.

[theSTEREO.]

Agreed. They absolutely should not be pinning all their hopes on LeBron returning, just like they shouldn't draft around his position (be it SF or PF). The way I see it, if LeBron does come back, you see how he fits and you change your roster accordingly. If you have a good player who needs to be traded, you'll get a good value in return. Further, LeBron can basically play and defend every position, so it's not like squeezing him in is at all difficult. So what if we draft Shabazz at SF this year and have Tristan at PF? Move Tristan to center and put LeBron at the four. Easy.

Playing the hypothetical... (Just for a minute, I promise)....

The dream scenario there is if you somehow get Shabazz and Lebron, then you need one more piece. A really good or great center. Take the Andy for Deandre Jordan rumor someone just posted.

Then you can run your traditional big lineup with Kyrie / Shabazz / Lebron / Tristan / Jordan or other Center... OR you can run ultimate small ball with Kyrie / Dion / Shabazz / Lebron / Tristan at Center.

That is a pretty solid rotation.

[Jack Brickman]

Playing the hypothetical... (Just for a minute, I promise)....

The dream scenario there is if you somehow get Shabazz and Lebron, then you need one more piece. A really good or great center. Take the Andy for Deandre Jordan rumor someone just posted.

Then you can run your traditional big lineup with Kyrie / Shabazz / Lebron / Tristan / Jordan or other Center... OR you can run ultimate small ball with Kyrie / Dion / Shabazz / Lebron / Tristan at Center.

That is a pretty solid rotation.

See, if we get Shabazz and LeBron, I don't think we even worry about getting a really good center. I think we move Thompson to center, play LeBron at the four, and let him Thompson keep doing what he's been doing. If he develops a jumper at some point, even better. If the Heat taught us anything last year, it's that a true center is largely overrated in the modern NBA. The better move for the Cavs would be to find a couple of shooters to bring off the bench to bolster the rest of the roster.

[Lee]

See, if we get Shabazz and LeBron, I don't think we even worry about getting a really good center. I think we move Thompson to center, play LeBron at the four, and let him Thompson keep doing what he's been doing. If he develops a jumper at some point, even better. If the Heat taught us anything last year, it's that a true center is largely overrated in the modern NBA. The better move for the Cavs would be to find a couple of shooters to bring off the bench to bolster the rest of the roster.

Stop. If we have Kyrie and Lebron on the same team, it doesnt matter what we have at the 4, 5 or 2. That said, lets wait and see how everything plays out.