Where the Heck is LeBron gonna go?

LeBron James has been in the spotlight since he was dubbed “the chosen one” on a sports illustrated cover when he was merely 17 years old. LeBron has been the most scrutinized athlete for the last 15+ years. LeBron’s free agency decision will be the most anticipated and talked about sports event this summer. This will be right in the middle of what I expect to be an exciting baseball season. This exceeds that. What other player can have an off-season move televised? LeBron could do that every year and guess what? We would all watch. LeBron is still the best basketball player in the world and probably the most popular athlete in the world.

I will talk about the six possible landing spots that I think are realistic for LeBron to land. There are a few factors that determine whether a team has a shot at #23. The first is their money situation. LeBron has been taking two year deals ever since he made “his return” to Cleveland. He does this so he has the options and leverage to force the front office to make the moves he wants and spend the money to compete for a championship. I am not sure he will be willing to take a shorter deal this summer. LeBron is 33. It is realistic to think in the next two years he will no longer be the best player in the league. Father time is undefeated. This isn’t like Tom Brady where the rules are tailored around him not getting hurt. LeBron has amassed over 50,000 minutes in his NBA career. That is already more than Michael Jordan played his entire career. He may want to take a longer deal because of it. The second is their ability to win a championship. LeBron can go anywhere and they will be conference finals contenders. LeBron at this point will want to go to a team that gives him the best to win. The last will be the city he wants to live in. It is rumored that LeBron is interested in an acting career when his basketball activities are done. I don’t put too much stock in this aspect, but it is still worth mentioning. I will rank the destinations from least likely to most likely to where I believe he will go.

Golden State Warriors

I am not kidding this could actually happen. LeBron has said he will listen to the Warriors if they are able to clear enough space. The reasons for him going are obvious. This is a team that won 73 games then added Kevin Durant. They are most likely going to win the title again this year then have a chance to add LeBron. If that happened it would be the greatest sports team ever assembled. That is in any sport. The Warriors would not let any team they played take them to a sixth game. LeBron would be able to surpass Jordan in championships. Most people seem to have forgiven Durant and some are actually stupid enough to think about passing the torch of best player to him. Well who’s to say that won’t happen to Lebron? Durant would never be able to pass him on championships and he wouldn’t have to do as much and he would be able to prolong his career. Now this is obviously least likely. LeBron is an established champion. I don’t think he would do this. He doesn't need it. His legacy is already established and some already consider him the best basketball player to ever live.

San Antonio Spurs

Before the Warriors, the standard in the NBA had been the San Antonio Spurs. They are the closest model we have to the New England Patriots in the NBA. Gregg Popovich is the most respected coach in the league. This is a franchise that has won five championships under Popovich. LeBron has pretty much been the head coach everywhere he has been. This would not be the case here. LeBron would finally be able to give up some of his GM and coaching responsibilities to a franchise that knows what they are doing. He would also be playing with Kawhi Leonard who is very quietly a top five player in the NBA although Leonard is still recovering from a leg injury that may cause LeBron hesitation.

Los Angeles Lakers

This is the fun one. I think in the back of our minds this is the one we kinda of all want to happen. The deadline was extremely interesting for the Lakers and Cavaliers. The Lakers sent Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr to the Cavs for Isiah Thomas Channing Frye and a first round pick. This trade is really interesting because it actually simultaneously helped both the Lakers and Cavaliers have a better chance of signing the king in a few months. I will explain how it helped the Cavs when I get to them. Basically all this did for the Lakers was clear cap space. Not only for LeBron, but for another free agent. The Lakers will have a little over 70 million in cap space. Another potential star is Paul George. Paul George is an LA kid that has given subtle clues for his desire to play in Los Angeles. He is currently playing with fellow all stars Carmelo Anthony and Russell Westbrook. They got off to a slow start, but have recently gone on a 10 game win streak. While their ceiling is most likely the third best team in the west I think if they are able to make the conference finals that George stays. Westbrook is an MVP and another year of playing together could take them to the next step. The “X” factor here is Magic Johnson. Magic will give the best pitch to any team that is mentioned. I just think it is going to be too good to be true. I also don’t think LeBron will be on any team associated with Lonzo Ball’s dad.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The only reason Cleveland is on this list is because LeBron was born in Akron. LeBron is comfortable here obviously. However, this year has seemed like it has really tested LeBron. The Isiah Thomas experiment failed miserably. The Cavaliers defense has been horrendous. This is the first time in my life that I am doubting a team that features LeBron James on it. Cleveland needed to make moves at the deadline or they might as well have shoved LeBron out of the door. They did that. Along with the Lakers trade they also added young talents George Hill and Rodney Hood. They got younger and better. I think they needed to trade their Brooklyn pick and they were unable to do so. This would have given them the opportunity to land another star player. The players I just mentioned are what I like to call jags. (just a guys). The Cavaliers got better, but not enough to think they have a realistic chance against the warriors or rockets in the finals. Speaking of which...

Houston Rockets

Ultimately I believe this is where LeBron will choose to sign. James Harden is most likely going to win MVP this year. LeBron and CP3 are well known friends. The Rockets actually have a realistic shot against the warriors as their roster stands now. Mike D’Antoni finally has his perfect roster that could win a championship. Remember how far he took those Suns teams with Steve Nash? Harden is better and it is finally showing when Harden had an argument for MVP last year if it weren’t for Westbrook having an historic season. The Rockets would surpass the warriors with LeBron James. They would be the favorites. This move would give him the best chance at winning a championship without it being perceived as a “weak move”. This wouldn’t be KD going to GST. The Rockets haven’t won 73 games. They haven’t won a championship (yet). This all changes if the Rockets somehow win the chip this year. If he does LeBron does not go here.

The wild card: New York Knicks

The Knicks money situation is a mess. James Dolan is one of the worst owners in all of American sports. Now that the negatives are out of the way let me just use this platform to please entice LeBron James to come to my favorite team. You are in the east. LeBron could go to any team in the east and realistically will only have to worry about Boston. Don’t face the warriors, thunder, rockets, spurs until you have to. Kristaps Porzingis and Frank Ntilikina are young really exciting players. The Knicks have actually hit in the draft the last few years. With Porzingis going down for the year, New York has a chance for another lottery pick and if we now assume the Knicks can draft that is another young player to get behind. Lastly, this is New York. The Yankees have 27 championships. The Giants are one of the most iconic franchises in football. Joe Namath is one of the most beloved New York athlete of all time. But this is a basketball town. New Yorkers LOVE their basketball. Madison Square Garden is still the greatest basketball arena in the world. If LeBron brought a championship to New York he would be a hero. He would be the only person to bring a championship to Cleveland and New York. Two of the biggest laughing stocks in basketball. He will have transcended the game at that point and surpass Michael Jordan unequivocally. Please LeBron. Please come to the Knicks.

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