Stephen A. Smith says LeBron and Bosh to join Wade in Miami

[cold5]

I think it would make them a really really good team, lke a top 3-4 NBA team, and probably make the finals/ecf, but I don't think it makes them invincible or unstoppable. We'd have to see how the chemistry works. It could work, but it couldn't either. I think both the extreme reactions of "they will suck too much talent and ego" and "they will be unstoppable for 5 years" are a bit too much. It's somewhere in the middle.

If Riley took over and coached, he could probably manage their egos pretty well. With Spoelstra though, it might or might not be an issue.

[lakegz1]

As a Laker fan, I am not afraid. I say bring it on. Basketball is a team game and no matter how many glamorous stars you pack onto a team, you still need valuable role players and guys willing to play defense and get dirty when it matters. I thought we had a guaranteed championship when we brought in Karl Malone and Gary Payton to team up with Shaq and we saw what happened. Play the games!

True, but this isn't comparable. This is like if the Lakers had had prime Payton, Malone, Shaq, and Kobe together for 6 years.

For team makeup-playing valuable roles, I would not put Bosh too ahead of yes, even 40 year old Malone. He played superb post D that year, passed from the post better than anyone I've seen, and consistently hit the 15 foot jumper, something which fit that Laker team that season like a glove. Go ahead and argue numbers, I know them too, but Karl Malone had legit impact on the team that year. Gary Payton was definitely on the tail end of his career but I think he still managed 14ppg that year and gave us good point guard play, something we haven't had since.... I can't even remember that far back.
Those were tail end of career all stars, but they played their roles perfectly throughout the whole season. Can these prime all stars compromise and do the same? I will believe it when I see it.

[ChiCitySPORTS#1]

Pat Riley does scare me, not gonna lie.

[Banks2Pierce]

Boo hoo, everybody whines about players putting image and money over winning and then when some great players actually put try to win at all costs people complain that its not fair. Sour grapes, that's what it is.

So you're saying an extra $30 million means nothing to these guys?

It's probably only going to be like 12 million when it's all said and done because the main guys like Wade and Lebron will get another major contract after this one. And with Lebron, it will probably be negligble if he goes to a major market. And I wouldn't be surprised if a sign and trade was agreed to even after the major players made their verbal commitment. It generally makes sense for the player and the team involved. Compensation is usually way less than what the fan base for the Original team is expecting to get.

And Orlando should be going after Chris Paul either way. This free agency should have nothing to do with acquiring Chris Paul. Too bad that they have no chance at all of getting him.

[BballFanAddict]

If this happens it would not be good for the league but it would be entertaining as hell to see these 3 on the same team. Its not good for the league because if you have all of these guys on one team that is just that many fewer teams people will want to see in person and on tv, as the superstars will be on 1 team instead of 3.

As far as winning a ring? Kobe, Shaq, Payton and Malone say hello.

There is just no guarantees. However, I wouldn't mind seeing them try it!

[jond1960]

let's get real guys. Bulls Nation and Knick York City have dibs on these guys!!!!! they will have tons of pressure on them if they go there, but who cares. big city! freezing weather. high crime rate and people robbing athlete homes. lbut they will love it.

[Teddy Bruckshut]

I just cant see LeBron being Dwyane Wade's robin..

you gone whistle that sweet pea? (avatar joke)

[desertlakerfan]

Lakers don't have anyone that can cover Lebron or Wade when they are the only guys they have to worry about. What are they gonna do if they are playing together? If you double them both then you got Bosh to worry about. Hell even if there are nothing but scrubs. 3 scrubs vs 1 good role player is still advantage scrubs.

If this really happens, I'd bet more than not that Riley has a few role players to bring in. Haslem would certainly re-sign, Raja Bell, Ray, Nate Robinson, Raymond Felton, Brad Miller, resigning JO, Ben Wallace, Eddie House, Frye, Roger Mason, Foye, and Mike Miller are all players Riley would most likely go hard after.

With what money?

Ray, Felton, B. Miller, JO, Frye, Foye, M. Miller will all get at least the MLE from other contenders, more from teams out of contention. Take those players off your list and your left with alot of junk to fill a roster out with.

Riley's best move would be to get Bosh and then use the remaining money to get a PG, SF, C and a 6th man. I'm sure he knows this and is gunning hard for it with Amare as a backup plan if Bosh follows Bron elsewhere.

[BallAboveAll]

It would be crazy to see. I'm sure they could get a couple of decent guys to come for cheap. Basically a few spot up shooters becuase the other three will garner so much attention. And a couple of bigs who can get dirty and use their fouls. This can work trust me. And if they all three committ to playing sound defense they'd be a very tough team to beat.

How many regular season wins? Could they crack 70?

[Heat3]

Any fan.....whether from Chicago, MIami, New York or anywhere.....is stupid if they believe any report about these free agents, especially Lebron. It's already been noted how WWW is spewing crap 6 different ways to the media. And look - one day it's a "done deal" Lebron/Bosh are going to Chicago, the next day it's a "done deal" they're going to Miami, and we still see stupid articles about how New York/New Jersey/wherever is a "front runner" as well. Face it, no fan (or NBA executive for that matter) will know **** for a while. I really DO believe that people have "sources" that tell them certain things, but the whole point is WWW and that gang is spewing out all sorts of conflicting rumors to generate more and more buzz around this free agent circus. And guess what, it's working!!

Hey let us Heat fans enjoy this one! It's been mostly LBJ/Bosh to Chicago. We need some love too

[HootieRules]

As far as winning a ring? Kobe, Shaq, Payton and Malone say hello.

These comparisons really need to stop. Bosh, Wade and LBJ actually like each other. Chemistry does matter.

[TribeZulu]

SAS is full of crap. In fact, basically all of the reporters with "sources" on NBA free agency are full of crap. They are just struggling to stay relevant, like the horse and buggy after the car was invented.

[Banks2Pierce]

And who will be willing to take on Beasley? I haven't seen any suitors yet.

[JoeDog10]

Stephen A. Smith was on ESPN 1000 here in Chicago not too long ago, and to me, it doesn't sound like he's making this claim just to get some attention. He was definitely very confident that what he was reporting is correct and that his sources are very reliable.

My only problem with this (and everything else that we're reading) is that everyone and their mother has reliable "sources", many of which are saying completely different things. While I don't doubt that he has trusted sources, I do doubt the validity of what anyone is reporting because there's just so much BS being thrown out there.

I'm looking forward to the calendar turning to July 1st just so that we start to get a lot more reliable information.

[IGotTheFunk]

And who will be willing to take on Beasley? I haven't seen any suitors yet.

I love how people act like Beasley is Adam Morrison with Rashard Lewis´s contract. The guy is 21, averaged 15/6 as a third or fourth option (I have Heat season tickets, and you can tell me as much as you want that he was our second option but he was a complete afterthought on our team), and actually is very gifted athletically...not to mention he´s still on a rookie contract.

I know this has been beaten to death on both sides but I just felt like pointing that out. Either way, it´s obvious that if this was to happen (not saying that it will) it wouldn´t be at all about the money, so I don´t really see this as much of an issue.

[Hallstar]

And who will be willing to take on Beasley? I haven't seen any suitors yet.

Minnie was willing and got turned down, I'm sure that window is still open if necessary

Might be saving him for a S&T. The cap isn't even set yet anyway.

[Chosen01]

And who will be willing to take on Beasley? I haven't seen any suitors yet.

Beasley's trade value isn't as low as people think on realgm.

Timberwolves general manager David Kahn told The Minneapolis Star Tribune that he spoke to the Heat about a deal that would have sent Beasley to Minnesota for Ryan Gomes, but the Heat was not interested because it did not want Gomes' buyout number on its cap (nearly $3 million over the next three years). Gomes was traded to Portland on draft night.

So If Riley wanted to dump him for cap space he could have.

[BballFanAddict]

As far as winning a ring? Kobe, Shaq, Payton and Malone say hello.

These comparisons really need to stop. Bosh, Wade and LBJ actually like each other. Chemistry does matter.

LMAO - I don't care if they toss each other's salads in the locker room as a pre-game ritual, it has no bearing on whether they are a good fit on the court and whether or not they will win the ring. Sure its great they like each other off and on the court, it still guarantees NOTHING as it relates to winning a ring.

Its why they play the games.

[tundraknight]

I think Chris Bosh should stay with the Raptors because he actually looks like a Raptor.

Just like Larry Bird really does look like a damn Bird.

[Legendary 33]

this isn't going to happen. Sig me or quote me or whatever but LeBron James isn't going to play for the Miami Heat next season.