Vaccaro: LeBron will not resign with Cle, Knicks are fav

[mjhp911]

Vaccaro: LeBron will not resign with Cle, Knicks are fav

Still a pipe dream, methinks.

I am all for getting under the cap. But I don't buy into these Lebron to NY stories. Lebron is not going to sign a NY team that is rebuilding. You have to have enough talent to be legit once Lebron comes in. Either you have to be enough under the cap to sign two max players, say Lebron and Wade or Lebron and Bosh or you need a great supporting cast before Lebron comes in.

And this assumes that Cavs don't win it all by 2010. If Lebron gets a ring there, or even gets close enough, he will stay there for a dynasty.

LeBron wants to win. Mike D'Antoni is a nice coach but the guy's system will not win a title in the NBA. We all saw him fail in Phoenix with the perfect team. STAT at center, Joe Johnson, Marion, Diaw, Barbosa, Nash, etc. How is he going to do it with LeBron and a bunch of other average to below average players?

Correct. LBJ will make his money WHEREVER he goes. Cleveland, NY, Paris, Timbuktu... He will write his own ticket. What he really wants, is a chance at a ring. THAT will make him even bigger. So forget gutting the team and expecting him to come. He'll want a ready-made team, that has a great shot to win. It's why Cleveland NEEDS to start assembling his championship team NOW, not in 2 years. It might be too late for them in 2 years. Meanwhile, LBJ can dictate wherever he goes. And wherever that may be, needs to be able to WIN as soon as he gets there. He is at his peak NOW. In 2 years, he might be desperate. Sure, we have a shot. But so will many other teams out there. Just because NY is the center of the universe, doesn't mean he'll automatically sign here. We MUST have a team in place that's ready to win.

Speaking of which, don't rule out Chicago either. Remember, his favorite player is Mike. And he's a bandwagon Bulls/Yankees/Cowgirls fan. Being able to win in Chicago might also be VERY attractive to him.

Now all of that may go out the window if he wins a ring in Cleveland before '10. At that point, NY might be the stage he'll be looking for, to rule as his kingdom. Then again, he might want to stay in Cleveland to win as many rings as he can...

[MJ-23]

This is coming from a shoe executive.

Which is like saying the towel boy is a reliable source.

[deNIEd]

It's stupid to say that Lebron will go to NY just because it's NY.

1) Suppose NY doesn't do anything with their current contracts and therefore will require a sign and trade to get Lebron. Now, looking at the Knicks roster, there probably isn't any player Cav's will want. It'd be better for Cleveland to simply let Lebron walk for nothing, than comply with a sign and trade for Randolph/Curry/Crawford/etc. Other big market teams (Chi, LA) will be able to offer value to Cleveland that will be better than simply having cap space.

2) Regardless of where Lebron goes, he will have to compete with
Bayless/Roy/Batum/Aldridge/Oden
Conley/Mayo/Gay/Gasol/('09 top 5 pick)/('10 lotto pick)
Westbrook/Green/Durant/('09 top 5 pick)/('10 top 10 pick)
Law/Johnson/Smith/Horford
Foye/Brewer/Love/Jefferson/('09 top 5 pick)/('10 lotto pick)
Harris/Yi/Lopez/('09 top 10 pick)/('10 lotto pick)

Teams that suck currently, will still suck for a few more years, adding unbelievable amounts of talent to their teams via the draft. Lebron has to beat these combination's, and he will be going in which he has an opportunity to do so. He could be by far the greatest player ever, yet, if he isn't able to win a title, he'll go down throughout history as one of the biggest wastes of talent.

[HighRyzer83]

It's stupid to say that Lebron will go to NY just because it's NY.

1) Suppose NY doesn't do anything with their current contracts and therefore will require a sign and trade to get Lebron. Now, looking at the Knicks roster, there probably isn't any player Cav's will want. It'd be better for Cleveland to simply let Lebron walk for nothing, than comply with a sign and trade for Randolph/Curry/Crawford/etc. Other big market teams (Chi, LA) will be able to offer value to Cleveland that will be better than simply having cap space.

2) Regardless of where Lebron goes, he will have to compete with
Bayless/Roy/Batum/Aldridge/Oden
Conley/Mayo/Gay/Gasol/('09 top 5 pick)/('10 lotto pick)
Westbrook/Green/Durant/('09 top 5 pick)/('10 top 10 pick)
Law/Johnson/Smith/Horford
Foye/Brewer/Love/Jefferson/('09 top 5 pick)/('10 lotto pick)
Harris/Yi/Lopez/('09 top 10 pick)/('10 lotto pick)

Teams that suck currently, will still suck for a few more years, adding unbelievable amounts of talent to their teams via the draft. Lebron has to beat these combination's, and he will be going in which he has an opportunity to do so. He could be by far the greatest player ever, yet, if he isn't able to win a title, he'll go down throughout history as one of the biggest wastes of talent.

It is stupid to assume the #1 player in the world would want the #1 market in the world?
It is stupid to assume he may want the 100s of millions in endorsements IN ADDITION to his contract?
It is stupid to assume he may want the status of a legend similar to MJ?
It is stupid to assume it may happen considering powerful people including David Stern and Leon Rose will be pushing for it.
No but it is stupid to assume someone like James will spend the entire prime of his life in Ohio.
Go deal corn or whatever it is you do in cleveland.

[deNIEd]

It is stupid to assume the #1 player in the world would want the #1 market in the world?

No, but it is stupid to assume that Lebron will simply go to NY simply because it's NY, regardless of the basketball situation around him. There are other big market's out there, and Lebron will be an international figure, so the difference between a Chicago and a New York isn't as great as you make it out to be.

It is stupid to assume he may want the 100s of millions in endorsements IN ADDITION to his contract?

He will be getting those same endorsements in other cities as well, (Chi/LA, possibly Hous/Philly)

It is stupid to assume he may want the status of a legend similar to MJ?

MJ was in Chicago
Bird in Boston
Kobe, Magic, Kareem, Shaq in LA

No but it is stupid to assume someone like James will spend the entire prime of his life in Ohio.

Whoever said anything about Lebron spending his entire career in Cleveland? I doubt it will happen, I would like for it to happen, showing that players actually have loyalty to their teams and aren't that money hungry, but chances are Lebron will be leaving unless Cleveland builds something amazing around him.

However, it is stupid to assume that Lebron will be going to NY simply because its NY. If this was a 100m race, NY is starting from the 20m line, but it doesn't mean they will automatically win the race.