First of all, I apologize for the brutal pun in the title, just couldn’t help myself. Second of all, welcome to Part 1 of LeBron Week here with NbaNflNobody! I know the timing of this seems to not make any sense due to the fact that it is just after the all star break, but honestly, news haas been very slow. I almost tried to blog about Zaza and Russ, but I knew that getting a good blog out of that non story was going to be nearly impossible for me. In addition, I knew that the result was going to be absolutely brutal for you guys to read. So without further ado, let’s get right into it. As anyone reading this knows unless you’ve been living under a rock bigger than my great great great grandmother, our buddy LeBron has a little bit of a decision to make this summer. He is going to be an unrestricted free agent, and for the 3rd time in his career, LeBron is going to be the belle of the ball. Teams are going to roll out the red carpet for LeBron to say the least in an attempt to lure him away from his hometown team. Unfortunately for all you Cavs fans out there however, getting LeBron to leave Cleveland is going to be much easier than it looked like it was going to be just a few short years ago. It is easy to forget that less than 2 years ago, LeBron had accomplished his dream. He was able to raise a championship banner in his hometown, something that he had promised the city of Cleveland and his fans when he returned home from Miami. Everything was truly looking up for LeBron and it seemed like an absolute lock that he would finish his career right where it started.
Unfortunately for the Cavs however, their GM David Griffin agreed to some brutal contracts both the summer before with LeBron’s buddy Tristian Thompson, and that summer with guys like Shumpert and JR Smith. GM LeBron definitely had a thing or two to do with this, as he was putting tons of pressure on management to keep the Cavs in a position to beat the Warriors. So to recap, going into the 2016 season, the Cavs pretty much stood pat and the Warriors added in my opinion the second best player in the league in Kevin Durant. The offseason for both teams went incredibly differently, and it showed when they clashed in the finals for the 3rd straight season. The Cavs looked absolutely overmatched, as LeBron, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love struggled to carry their under talented, overpaid teammates to a series win against maybe the best team in NBA History. So the Cavs entered the 2017 offseason after a very disappointing finals loss, and the murmurs about LeBron leaving Cleveland in 2018 turned into actual conversation. LeBron again was putting pressure on management to make moves to improve the team, but their hands were pretty much tied due to the fact that their roster consisted of their 3 stars and then players with bloated contracts. There was also the fact that they didn’t have any draft picks to deal with, so they really had no way to bring in talent.
Just when Cleveland was trying to bring in the likes of Paul George to help LeBron, things went from bad to worse when their Superstar Point Guard Kyrie Irving requested a trade. Kyrie was apparently fed up with living everyday in LeBron’s shadow and wanted to be the alpha on a team. Even though the situation got ugly and it was a media circus to say the least, Kyrie still had 2 years left on his deal, and didn’t really have any sort of leverage. This was truly a brutal first test for new GM Koby Altman after taking over for the recently fired David Griffin. What he ended up doing in my opinion however was fail the test when he dealt Kyrie to the Boston Celtics for Isaiah Thomas, Jay Crowder, and an unprotected Nets Pick. Even if Altman was going to get back the Thomas and Crowder that played so well for the Celtics in 2016, which he wouldn’t, but more on that later, this was an absolutely HORRIBLE MOVE. The reason I am so confident about that is because I am a Celtics Fan, and was absolutely jumping for joy when it happened. I will always love Isaiah and what he did for Boston, but building around him as even a 3rd piece for a title team is a death sentence. No matter how good he is offensively, it is impossible to win against a team like the Warriors with him, due to the fact that he is probably the worst defensive player in league history! Crowder on the other hand was a guy I’ve always thought was incredibly overrated and only looked good because of the brilliance of Brad Stevens.
In terms of the Brooklyn Pick, I was actually getting kind of nervous about it due to the smart moves the Nets were making in the offseason. They had their most talented team in years, and had no incentive to tank like the rest of the bottom dwellers in the NBA. Due to these two factors, I thought that this pick would fall around the 5 to 10 range instead of 1 to 3, and 1 to 3 was the value that the Cavs gave for it. So if I hated this trade so much, what would I have done if I was the Cavs GM? First of all, I would have never traded Kyrie for such a terrible haul. Honestly, I would have never traded Kyrie at all. The guy had absolutely no leverage due to the fact that he had 2 years left on his deal, and the Cavs’ goal for the 2017 season was simple, convince LeBron not to bolt in the summer of 2018. The team would be better with Kyrie in the fold, which meant more winning and a better chance at keeping LeBron in town. Having Kyrie also made for one hell of a contingency plan if LeBron did decide to leave. All Kyrie wanted was to be the star player, and he’d have that in Cleveland if LeBron left. In other words, keeping Kyrie would have resulted in either the situation resolving itself due to a great season, or LeBron leaving and building around a 25 year old superstar. Due to that trade however, the Cavs had an inferior roster, and no contingency plan for the departure of LeBron.
So the 2017 season kicked off for LeBron and company and it was ugly to say the least. The team was underperforming, there were brutal chemistry issues, and LeBron seemed disinterested and just fed up with the lack of talent around him. Things went from bad to worse when Isaiah Thomas came back from his injury and started running his mouth, even going as far as calling out Kevin Love, a guy that LeBron won a title with, in a team meeting. Isaiah Thomas was acting like it was his team even though he wasn’t good enough to hold LeBron or Kevin Love’s jock, and he made the already bad locker room absolutely toxic. Altman responded at the NBA’s trade deadline by jettisoning most of the disgruntled veterans and bringing in younger, more athletic players. The initial results of this were great as the Cavs blew out the Celtics in their first game with the new team. After the all star break however, things have seemed to come back down to earth as it seems like once NBA Coaches got film on this new Cavs team, they aren’t that much better than the one the Cavs had before the deadline. I personally think that the move definitely helped their roster this season, as they now have more speed and athleticism as well as a non toxic locker room, but things get very concerning if you look beyond this season. The are locked into 2 years of Clarkson at 13 million a year and Hill at a ridiculous 18 and a half million a year. That combined with their other brutal contracts on the roster like Thompson and Smith gives them limited flexibility to say the least going forward. That and the fact that Love can opt out after next season means that the Cavs will be absolutely screwed if LeBron decides to split this summer.
So all that being said, the future doesn’t look very bright in Cleveland as we sit here right before the all star break. In my opinion, the only way that it can truly change is if the Cavs win the Finals this year. Getting to the Finals won’t be enough as LeBron proved when he left Miami after a Finals loss all those years ago. This is unfortunate for Cleveland to say the least because I think that there is no way they are going to be able to take down Golden State. They are just completely overmatched at every position besides LeBron vs Durant, and that conversation isn’t as much of a landslide as it used to be. There is also the fact that there is honestly no guarantee that they are going to get out of the Eastern Conference. While the Cavs are definitely the favorites until proven otherwise no matter what their seed is, it feels like there are a few teams in the east that can actually make them sweat in a 7 game series. In my opinion, I would be nervous as a Cavs fan about seeing the Bucks, Raptors, and Celtics in the playoffs. To reiterate however, I would choose Cleveland to win any of these series. The thing to take away however is that getting to the finals again isn’t a lock like it has been in previous years, and they will most likely lose in horrific fashion even if they do make it there. So we are going to assume that the Cavs don’t win a title in 2018, and we are going to put ourselves in the position of LeBron. To stay in Cleveland or not to stay in Cleveland, that is the question, and that is why we are going to take out our Yellow Legal Pad, and break down the pros and cons of leaving Cleveland this summer from LeBron’s point of view.
Pro: More Likely to Win a Championship
As I’ve discussed in the intro, the Cavs roster is brutal as it currently stands, and they have very little way to fix it. They are committed to some pretty brutal contracts for the next 2 seasons so they aren’t going to be able to carve out space for a max deal guy. In terms of acquiring a star with a trade, that seems all but impossible due to the fact that their only future asset of note is what stands today at the 7th pick in the draft. Cleveland is an absolute mess to say the least, and it seems like they aren’t going to be in a position to win a 7 game series against the Warriors with Durant in the fold. It was close before they added the second best player in the game, but now the Cavs aren’t even in the same stratosphere as the bay area juggernaut. By leaving Cleveland however, LeBron could greatly improve his supporting cast. Almost every team shaping up to be a suitor for LeBron would have a better team around him then Cleveland currently has. Joining forces with the NBA’s Dynasty over the last 20 years in San Antonio, teaming up with Harden in Houston, or many other potential destinations would put LeBron on a roster that is absolutely loaded before he even steps into town. LeBron on a team as good as Houston should and I’m sure does put the fear of God into all you Warriors Fans out there, and that should be a sign to LeBron that it is a good move. When discussing LeBron as the greatest player of all time, all the Jordan supporters always point at his lack of rings. Well, playing with guys like Harden and his buddy Chris Paul would sure as hell give him a better chance at getting more rings then playing with George Hill and Jordan Clarkson. The bottom line is that from a perspective of winning championships, leaving Cleveland is absolutely the move.
Con: Less Likely to Make the Finals
Unless you haven’t been watching the NBA for the past 5 years or so, you know that there is a massive talent disparity between the Western and Eastern Conferences. The gap has become so large that the commissioner of the league has discussed the possibility of getting rid of conferences all together when it comes to playoff seeding. In my opinion, the timing of this statement by Silver was very interesting. If LeBron goes to the West, then the Finals representative from the Eastern Conference won’t be interesting to say the least. LeBron not being in the Finals would be an absolute disaster from a ratings standpoint, and I bet that the change will be made within 2 years if LeBron actually makes the move out West. But getting back on topic, LeBron will most likely make it to his 9th consecutive NBA Finals this year, and that streak will definitely be in serious jeopardy if he moves out West. If you think about the teams in the Western Conference, you have the Thunder, Wolves, Pelicans, Rockets, Spurs, and of course the Warriors who are all juggernaut type teams. Over the years in the East, LeBron usually doesn’t even have to break a sweat until the conference finals, and the team he faces is usually completely overmatched like the Celtics were last year. At the end of the day, there is absolutely no debate that LeBron’s road to the Finals would be much more difficult if he were to leave Cleveland for a Western Conference Team. Also, before anyone gets mad about me not considering moving to another Eastern Conference Team, that would make absolutely 0 sense. The only team right now in the East that would improve to the point where they would beat the Warriors by adding LeBron is the Celtics, and adding him is a move they’d never make due to their history of being rivals and that their current star is only on the team in the first place because he wanted to get away from LeBron. So in conclusion, if LeBron leaves, he’s going to the West, and he’ll be less likely to make the Finals because of that.
Pro: Escape Crazy Ownership Situation
Ever since Dan Gilbert wrote his Comic Sans letter all those years ago, it was obvious to the world as well as LeBron James that he was an absolute lunatic. LeBron and Gilbert were able to bury the hatchet enough to the point where he could return to Cleveland, but the relationship still isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. This was demonstrated this offseason when LeBron was blindsided by the firing of general manager David Griffin. Griffin was actually in the process of making a deal for Paul George, a guy that LeBron wanted badly on the team, when he was unexpectedly fired by Gilbert. The tension is definitely high between LeBron and ownership, and I feel like that letter is still in the back of LeBron’s head. Sure, Gilbert likes him now due to the fact that he is winning games and making his team worth way more than it should be, but Gilbert showed his true feelings about LeBron with that letter. At the end of the day, Gilbert is a businessman at his core, and doesn’t give a shit about LeBron the human being. Gilbert only cares about him to the extent that he is on the floor and winning him basketball games, and that is troubling to say the least. LeBron is a very smart guy, and I’m sure he knows this, thus the tension between both camps. LeBron even displayed caution in dealing with Gilbert to the point where he signed only 1 year at a time with the exception of this last contract, and what did Gilbert do to reward LeBron’s faith? He fired a GM LeBron liked, and has made other wacky decisions. News has also broken out that Gilbert is looking to sell the team. I’m sure that’s due to the fact that he thinks LeBron is gone, but even if LeBron stays, this could be a huge issue. Gilbert is a wacky owner to say the least, but whoever buys the team from him could be even worse. At the end of the day, LeBron leaving Cleveland would get him away from this tough ownership situation, and into a stable organization like the Spurs.
Con: Become the Villain Again
When LeBron came back to Cleveland after his time in Miami, he talked about how he hated being the villain when he was in Miami. LeBron is a fun, charismatic guy who wants to be loved. Some guys thrive in the role of the villain, but with LeBron, it is actually a role that he would prefer not to have. Although there are some people who still hate LeBron now, I feel like the consensus is that he is a pretty easy guy to root for. As it stands right now, Golden State are the villains of the NBA, and LeBron is one of the guys who are trying to take them down. If LeBron leaves Cleveland again however, he will be put right into the hated by everyone category once again. The media will have an absolute field day with it, calling him a ring chaser, saying that he couldn’t do it on his own (even though NO ONE EVER HAS!!!), and he will get killed for the foreseeable future. I’m sure what will cut at LeBron the most however would be the hate that he would receive in the state of Ohio. People were brutal when he left the first time, and I assume that they would be just as bad if not worse this time around. LeBron loves Cleveland, and I know that it would bother him greatly to be hated in his hometown once again. No matter how big you get, or how much money you have, what people think of you is hard to ignore, and I’m sure that LeBron would like to avoid having people in Cleveland burning his jersey once again. Being the villain is not an easy role to take on from a mental standpoint, and that is exactly the role he will step into if he abandons his hometown for the second time. It will truly be a circus unlike anything we have ever seen, and it will be very hard on LeBron emotionally.
The Decision: Leaveland
Sitting behind a computer, and looking at it all on paper, this is a no brainer. At this point in his career, the only thing that should matter to LeBron is winning titles. I almost stopped writing out the pros and cons when I wrote that one, because it is honestly the only one that should matter. Making it to the Finals is great, but people kill LeBron for losing in the Finals. I’m sure if you asked him, he would trade his streak of 8 consecutive finals for a couple more rings in a heart beat. So at least on paper, LeBron should absolutely head West, and join a more talented team with a more stable management group. The key part to this statement however is on paper. At the end of the day, no matter how much I say that I am trying to analyze this from LeBron’s point of view, it is impossible for me to do so. Although I know that playing with an inferior roster and not being able to seriously challenge the Warriors must be absolutely infuriating, the thing I can never understand is how important Cleveland is to the guy. LeBron grew up close to Cleveland, and it was his dream growing up to play for the Cavs. When something is planted so deep in your DNA like that to the point that you were thinking about it as a child, it is incredibly difficult to let it go. When you factor in the fact that not only will LeBron not be physically living in Cleveland if he leaves, but will turn into public enemy number 1, it makes this decision absolutely brutal from an emotional standpoint. I remember watching LeBron’s first game back in Cleveland when he was playing for the Heat, and those fans booed him the entire damn game. Once Cleveland’s hometown hero and then being hated I’m sure was horrible for him at the time, and knowing that he will have to do that again is a tough thing to face.
All that being said however, LeBron is now in the legacy stage of his career. Even though he seems to be ageless and is showing absolutely no signs of slowing down, that time is coming. It may not be next year, or the year after, or even in the next 5 years, but that time is absolutely coming. LeBron is approaching the end of his storied career, and he can’t afford to piss away any more years surrounded by inferior talent with no prayer of beating the Warriors. LeBron needs to go somewhere that can seriously compete for a Championship year in and year out, so that he can be in the position to win not one but multiple before he decides to hang it up. At the end of the day, time heals all wounds, and the people of Cleveland will forgive him once everything is said and done. Hell, he’ll probably still retire as a Cav even if he leaves this summer. The thing that people won’t forget about however is how many rings he has, and if LeBron wants to get people out there to agree that he is the best ever, he is going to have to add to that trophy case. The fourth quarter of LeBron’s career is all about winning as many championships as possible, and that is why he can’t afford to stay in Cleveland, no matter how tough leaving may be emotionally. In terms of where I think he’ll go, that’s a discussion for another day (next week to be exact), but for now, just know that I think LeBron leaving Cleveland is all but certain, and I would definitely leave if I were in his shoes.
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