IF U WERE LEBRON WHAT WOULD U DO

really what the heat's problem is that for as touted as this free agency class is, it has a bunch of the same players

This is a really good point!

sup Delonte?

The Chicago Tribune reported Monday that according to league sources, basketball power broker William Wesley -- a friend of both James and Calipari -- has been quietly contacting NBA teams that have coaching vacancies and salary cap space about the possibility of bringing in James and Calipari together.

terrible idea

calipari is not actually a skilled big man iirc

new espn column says lebron should go to the clippers!

re: the heat & three FA signings, here's a rundown on the scenarios from the miami herald

Say Miami finds a well-under-the-cap team to take Michael Beasley ($4.9 million), Daequan Cook ($2.2 million) and its first-round pick ($1.2 million) in exchange for compensation that wouldn't be on Miami's cap next season, such as a 2011 draft pick. One NBA general manager said Friday, ``I don't think Beasley has much value; his reputation is soiled'' but that he would be interested if Miami offered Beasley in the above deal. Giving up Beasley for so little would not happen unless Miami is sure what it would get with the cap space, and it would need to be very significant.

If Miami renounces all its free agents except Wade, that Beasley/Cook/No. 1 pick trade scenario would leave Miami with only $6.9 million committed beyond Wade's cap hold: James Jones' $1.85 million buyout (finding a team to take his contract before the June 30 buyout deadline is unlikely), Mario Chalmers ($854,000), Joel Anthony ($885,000 if he opts in), plus required cap holds to fill out a 12-man roster ($3.3 million for seven players).

Based on the projected $56.1 million cap, that would leave $49.2 million to spend for next season, of which $16.6 million goes to Wade. If Riley can somehow convince Wade, LeBron James and Bosh to team up here, their first-year max salaries would total $49.8 million. Dealing Chalmers and Anthony -- on top of the other moves -- would create room to accommodate that $49.8 million. But a Wade/James/Stoudemire max trio would cost more ($50.4 million in 2010-11) and tougher to pull off because one would need to take slightly under the max.

By dealing Beasley, Cook and the No. 18 pick for a future pick -- but not Chalmers and Anthony -- Miami, with $49.2 million, could give max deals to Wade, Bosh and Joe Johnson (their 2010-11 salaries would total $49 million); Wade, Bosh and Memphis restricted free agent Rudy Gay if Memphis doesn't match ($46.3 million); or Wade, Johnson and Carlos Boozer ($48.2 million). But the Heat prefers Bosh or Stoudemire over Boozer. Many believe Boozer and Johnson are worth less than their first-year max numbers ($15.8 million each).

Throw in Anthony with the other pieces, and then there's space to sign Wade/Stoudemire/Johnson ($49.6 million). One GM said if James cannot be lured to Miami, this trio would be the next-most appealing.
Sign-and-trades create more wiggle room, but Miami likely doesn't have the pieces to pull off two big ones. ``If you can get some philanthropic free agents who would take a reduction to play here . . . sometimes, these guys can create their own teams if there is any kind of friendship among three or four,'' Riley said.

• In a three-star scenario, the roster would be rounded out with minimum salary players such as Carlos Arroyo, Raja Bell, Jamaal Magloire, plus Chalmers and Anthony if kept.

also lebron supposedly made a postgame call to derrick rose. i supposedly cuz i bet it was at halftime

i say supposedly

theoretically lebron would rule on the clippers -- kaman is a really good big man who would prob get better from having some offensive load taken off his shoulders, eric gordon is a great shooter who could be at the end of drive-and-kicks by lebron & could potentially carry the team when lebron sits & lebron & blake griffin on the fast break just gave me an erection, for obv reasons -- BUT IT'S THE FUCKING CLIPPERS

lebron wd need some witness relocation (move the clips to seattle and call them the sonics lol)

link to that "postgame call to rose" story?

BECAUSE THAT SOUNDS BAD AND IT WORRIES ME

http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=381195

They're often mentioned as James' best chance to win right away, since he could step into a lineup with Rose, Joakim Noah and Luol Deng

In what world is luol deng even a top-20 player at his position?

not a bad third option to have tho

i don't think deng is a bad player but he and lbj play the same position

yeah i feel like mostly everything regarding the bulls says that they would do a sign & trade for lebron w/ deng as the centerpiece going back to the cavs

wd also free up dollars to sign another guy max $$ str8 up iirc

interestingly re: sign and trade, chris broussard said today that if lebron leaves the team will lose $100 million in value and rather than take on a bunch of mediocre or even above-average salary they'd rather clear out space for summer 2011.

I imagine they'd still take on a good player, though.

yeah i was just thinking the same thing -- i don't get why the cavs would take on his luol deng and his $60m contract because he really does you no good (esp if you already have jamison)

xp yeah i agree, the bar is just set well above lol deng

if you were the cavs, wouldn't your rather have john salmons (2010 free agent) at 1/3 of the price of luol deng?

they could sign rudy gay for the money they'd be paying deng, assuming memphis doesn't match

Yeah I don't think Deng's bad at all fwiw! I have seen him play loads (lol GB) and he's a 100% solid NBA starter & an A+ guy - just not someone who'll impact much on LBJ's plans imo.

The whole going-to-Chicago is a weird sidestep on the whole legacy thing - if the kid from Akron goes to Florida or NY it is a flaw in his destiny, even if he wins 4 championships or whatever, but if he wins those same titles under Jordan's roof suddenly it's been a embrace of the pressure rather than a shirk of it? That's the crappy sportswriter narrative anyway - possibly lebron isn't the kind of sociopath who cares about any of that.

(Presumably Salmons will be getting paid this offseason?)

Deng is 100% solid NBA starter on a team that perpetually loses in the 1st round

he's not bad but he's not someone that $13m or $14m to for the next 3 years

Also: does anyone else find it kind of weird that Calipari is seen as this huge draw? He has coached one full NBA season and then gotten fired after starting the next one 3-15?

i think calipari is only a huge draw for lebron because they have a personal relationship

i think it would almost be more beneficial for the cavs to semi-tank 2010 & get a high pick & try and sign a 2011 FA

i love how shameless (and otm) espn is being re this whole thing

The conference finals are under way, but let's be honest: The biggest story in the NBA is LeBron James' upcoming free-agency tour. Nothing less than the future of the league is at stake. OK, that might be a bit extreme, but you can argue that a player of his stature has never been available at such a young age. With that in mind, Insider brings you LeBron Week, a five-part look at every aspect of James' decision.

At least one of the conf finals series is gonna have to be fantastic for the focus to shift back to, y'know, dudes playing basketball.

i mean if you're a casual nba fan not in bos/orl/la/phx you probably find the lebron story more interesting

hollinger's algorithm says that the players most suited for lebron are good shooting 4s i.e. bosh & nowitzki & to a lesser extent david lee, amare & boozer

i find the lebron story way more interesting

I'm surprised how relatively unfucked the cavs are if Lebron walks - I mean paying 46m for a 30-win team is painful and all but I had the idea it was a lot worse, especially with the jamison deal?

http://www.shamsports.com/content/pages/data/salaries/cavaliers.jsp

the vast majority of teams have their books p clean past 2011 (lakers kind of an exception)

well, tbh they would be pretty fucked -- aside what lebron leaving would do to them in terms of economics and morale, they would have a bottom 5 pick in the draft this year, and probably a low lottery pick next year, and they'd have a bunch of cap room but they'd have to convince a free agent to come there and they have no pitch aside from "lebron used to play here!" which isn't really an equation imo for ascending anywhere near the heights of where they have been in the past 3-4 years -- not to mention that if lebron stays in the eastern conference, & bosh and wade team up then they're really gonna be behind the 8 ball

Jordan if u were Lebron what would you do?

Oh wait you have already said bulls! M bison what would u do? Go to SA for min money?

i would join the relief effort in haiti full time

tbrr tho go to chi with bosh and try to pry philjax out of LA

Does anyone have any links that shed light on what Bosh actually is looking for? Like, is he a chip-at-all-costs guy? Would he like being a #2 or #3 option? I feel I have no idea what he wants besides attention.

he just wants 2 b loved

and well-paid, but i don't think he's a gotta be #1 guy tbh

i think he wants to escape canada

i think everyone assumes he's a miami lock? altho i guess a lebron sign & trade with chi would open the door for him going to the bulls? but more realistically the heat

iirc the Cavs don't have any picks in this years draft