imagump1313 wrote:Call me crazy but we have all heard the rumors and I am really starting to think that the situation in Cleveland is going to result in Lebron James playing for the Spurs next year.
Think about it:
I honestly cant see him going to the Lakers if LA continues to go the direction of stupid Lonzo Ball. Ball and James cannot function on the same floor together. At this point in his career, James would rather be a facilitator at the 1 or even 2 than he would banging around with guys at the 3 or 4. Ball is completely useless off the ball so that situation would never work and I don't see the Lakers giving up on Ball after one year.
James has always taken flak because he is perceived to be the guy making all the decisions including coaching the team. James has always seemed way to concerned about what people think about him. I could honestly see him next year saying "I really want to concentrate on just playing basketball and let others take care of the everything else".
For a situation like that, he would have to trust a coach and origination and the only obvious choice that he respects is Popovich and the Spurs organization. James loves Popovich and has said more than once he would love to play for him.
With Pop being the coach of USA Basketball, he will have plenty of opportunity to convince James to play for him, besides San Antonio's nucleus is James best chance of winning another title IMO. (unless he wants to go to to Houston, but would he rather play for Pop or D'antoni?)
I'll be the first to tell you I have never been a big James fan but the more this plays out, the more it looks like there is actually a chance he winds up here.
He can play for Pop at the 2020 Olympics, but that's where I draw the line.
To be honest, I'd much rather James play elsewhere and beat him again. And again. Arrogance is the single most distasteful quality, and despite his respect for Pop, I'm not convinced that he'd humble himself enough to take instruction or the occasional tough love. He's bumped two coaches, changed coach calls, and all that dancing and celebrating is just so off-putting. That and the orchestration of the Miami team and the proclamation of however many rings, then leaving when he got a couple but couldn't control the larger scheme, makes him a ring-chasing mercenary, not a family, team-oriented player.
I get the lure of having someone of his talent, but question the character that comes with it and the fit with the character that the Spurs are known for. I can't help but picture Pop's dig at the 'Not 1, not 2... not 7, not 8...' proclamation, sarcastically counting the rings in the 2014 championship celebration and would rather put distance between the Spurs number of rings than help LeJB add to his. He's chasing something that the Spurs organization has never been about - individuals using the team to vault their own greatness.