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The summer of 2018 will remind us of 2010 and 2014; the summers when LeBron James hit free agency. Just like the previous two times, almost every team in the NBA will inquire to see if they have even a snowballs' chance of landing The King. In 2010, LeBron James left a Cavaliers team that did not have much to offer, both in terms of players and personnel.
In 2014, LeBron James left a Miami Heat team that had just made the NBA Finals but looked to be on an aging decline. This time around, James is leaving a team that could be on the decline, but will still likely represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals.
Here are the top five most likely destinations for James.
#5 Los Angeles Lakers
This one is going to be rumored until the very last second. James has been heavily tied to the Los Angeles Lakers, but it is mostly speculative. From a basketball point-of-view, the Lakers have a nice core of young players with Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Kyle Kuzma. However, nobody on the team looks like a shoe-in to be a star, like Kyrie Irving showed in Cleveland back when James signed in 2014.
The Lakers have had the #2 pick in the last three NBA Drafts, and do not have as nearly as good of an outlook as the 76ers currently possess.
The allure of being in Los Angeles cannot be ignored, but it is unlikely to be the deciding factor for James. Many stars in the past such as Carmelo Anthony, Demar DeRozan, and Russell Westbrook were linked to the Lakers in free agency, but the franchise have not had a legitimate free agent All-Star signing since the 1990's.
#4 San Antonio Spurs
No matter who they have, the Spurs are still the Spurs. Every single year, the San Antonio Spurs managed to win over 50 games; even in two shortened seasons. Even though Tim Duncan retired two seasons ago, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are on their last legs, and Kawhi Leonard has missed most of the 2017-2018 thus far, the Spurs are still sitting third in the Western Conference.
If James goes to San Antonio, he knows that he will not only will he be able to compete for an NBA Championship every year, but he will also have an all-time great Head Coach, as well as an all-time great General Manager. The Spurs are notoriously known for their great conditioning and resting players throughout the season, and this would be attractive to James as his body eventually wears down.
It has to wear down eventually, right?
#3 Philadelphia 76ers
Long-term, James knows that his best chance to win is still in the Eastern Conference. While the 76ers are showing some signs of immaturity this year, their talent is undeniable. James would join Joel Embiid, Dario Saric, Markelle Fultz, Robert Covington, and his protege, Ben Simmons. Because the 76ers used a loophole for Convington's extension, he has an extremely affordable contract for the next four years, after this current season.
Simmons has potential to be a bonafide superstar, also he and James share the same agent - Rich Paul. Not only would James still be able to compete in a weaker conference for years to come, but there would legitimately be other options to take the load off of him.
Keeping the salary cap in mind, if James wanted to stay in the Eastern Conference, his best chance to win multiple rings in the next five years would be in Philadelphia.
#2 Houston Rockets
Somehow, someway, the Rockets always find a way. If James wants to be competing for year-after-year, and know that his ownership will do whatever it takes to win, then the Houston Rockets certainly fit that bill. The Rockets built up the assets to initially snag James Harden away from the Oklahoma City Thunder. From there, they signed Dwight Howard, who was an in-demand superstar at the time. Chris Bosh was on the verge of signing with Houston until Miami gave him a maximum extension that Houston was unable to match.
It would be difficult to make it work under the salary cap, but imagine if LeBron James was paired up with James Harden, and James's good friend, Chris Paul? If Houston were to unload Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon, then they would have the funds to pursue James, and then re-sign Chris Paul. It is certainly a possible scenario, and it would make the Western Conference even that much wilder.
#1 Cleveland Cavaliers
This is a boring #1 choice, but it would still make the most sense. James really does care a lot about his image, and going to another one of these new teams would look like a "mercenary move" of sorts. James already bolted for Miami at one point earlier in his career, and faced major backlash for it.
A big reason James came back to Cleveland in 2014 is because of the fact that the Cavaliers had a strong core, while Miami was on the decline. Kyrie Irving was a budding superstar, and Cleveland had already worked out a trade to acquire Kevin Love. Miami got throttled by San Antonio in the NBA Finals, and Dwyane Wade's age was catching up with him.
However, James was primarily able to portray the "coming home" image as the main reason for coming back to Cleveland. On top of this, James's family and friends are all back in Ohio for the majority of the year, and it would be hard to give that up. It would not be surprising to see James own a piece of the Cavaliers in the future.
Overall, Cleveland remains the most logical option because there is no other shoe-in scenario.
Guess the Lakers players!
