I agree, the combination of Wayde and Bosh far outweighs anything the Cavs can offer right now. Kyrie isn't as good as either of them right now. McRoberts and Granger are nothing special though. Granger from 5 years ago would be.
Bosh is certainly the best player of the bunch. But if Cavs deal Wiggins for Love, Cavs would probably have number 2 and 3 on the list just considering projecting forward with Wade's ability to play more than 50 games. And if Wade gets benefit of the doubt on injuries, then so should Varejao, who is miles better than McRoberts or Granger. You'd be hard pressed to convince me that current version of Granger is better than Tristan Thompson or maybe even Dion Waiters.
Cavs made a trade to specifically open cap space for a max deal and Woj reporting LeBron has talked to other players about joining him on a new team. I know you guys think Woj gets no Heat info - but this isn't really Heat info.
Again enough with the if on Wade. He had a proceedure that takes more than one season to fully heal. However it was NOT structural and he is NOT falling apart. If anything he will be better than last season, and while not as explosive as his youth he should be much more than last year.
.....or Parsons, which is the back up plan. Has anyone even acknowledged that allllll of these "insider" feeds have been coming from the Cleveland side of the house and that they're trying to influence a decision? It's the most straight up explanation of everything... the media loves it, and the fans are just eating it all up.
What do you guys think about the non-basketball side of this decision for Lebron? That is, how much might it have 'hurt' him to leave Cleveland and how much might it mean to him to head back their and build and be victorious there. Or even more simply, just being at 'home'? Sometimes it's these other factors that can swing a decision and though I'm not a Heat fan or know much about Lebron I have been left with the impression that he's a genuine and sincere guy who might well place a high value on such things. I really don't know, just thinking out loud. Thoughts?
OK. I'm still not sure Wade is better than Kevin Love. And again, Varejao is better than McRoberts or Granger. Tristan Thompson has a better career PER than McRoberts and Dion Waiters' is about tied. And Kyrie is 22 and Love 25.
Wade is better than Kyrie. We have been to 4 straight finals. Breaking News once again..Heat had a good roster around Lebron.
Cavs would have to unload more than just Wiggins to get love, salaries don't match. But that's speculation. Bosh and Wade are still better than anything the Cavs have on the roster. Btw, Wade played almost a season's worth if you count playoffs and he could have played more, they just chose to save him. Makes no sense to be more impressed with the Cavs than the Heat. No sense.
I'm guessing that what is happening right now is just Rich Raul (with LeBron's approval) putting pressure on the Heat to spend the most amount of money possible and put together the best team possible. It's only fair. They put all the pressure on LeBron to take less money and to be the best player in the NBA, so he's putting pressure on them to do their jobs now that it's time to do that. I wonder if he feels like they kind of mailed it in last off season when it comes to the surrounding cast. They added Michael Beasley, Toney Douglas and Greg Oden but got nothing out of them. They lost Mike Miller and didn't replace him.
That trade was reported a week ago, and reaching out to player-friends to see what their plans are doesn't really mean anything. These are the reasons to panic? Leads me to conclude people are just searching for any reason.
I'm not panicked; I can find other things to do that ridiculously long 10-month season, or whatever it is. Won't be spending as much on merch, so that's a win. But it's a damn shame that here we have been comforting ourselves in our insular little world here, that Riley and Lebron; you know, Lebron—the guy this all hinged on from the start—were on the same page, and that bringing in these two odd, third-tier pieces was exactly what LeBriley had planned all along—you know, because they're LIKETHIS—and now, apparently, it wasn't what Lebron wanted at all. You guys who were arguing for loyalty and unity and not abandoning your teammates in opt-out limbo; you guys are gonna wish that Riley HAD blown some **** up and done at least two, more like three Sign-and-Trades and to hell with loyalty—improve the team DRAMATICALLY. Which, as it turns out, was what Lebron wanted all along. And make no mistake about it: if Lebron leaves Miami, it is a failure of a magnitude that we haven't seen since Csonka and Warfield left for the WFL. I don't care who's left and who they add after that—you don't LOSE the best player ever by simply not making the right moves and then try to call it a win. That's for losers. Let's hope it all works out, and the talk is all talk. Because I like rooting for the Heat WITH the best player of all time on its roster.
How do they deal for Love and still have the money to sign LeBron? Didn't they just make that earlier deal so they'd be able to give LeBron the max? Trading for Love would mean LeBron would have to take a pretty decent discount no?
Everything you just speculated on is predicated on the theory that LeBron leaves Miami. Does that mean that if LeBron stays in Miami all of the rationales and machinations you've just created will have been nothing more than the product of an overactive imagination?
I have good information that Pat Riley will try to convince Lebron James to take a 4 year deal with the opt out in year 4, setting up the Heat to have a live in player for the summer of 16', while Lebron wants to join the Circus that is gonna be the Summer of 16'. My guess is that Lebron will take a 3 year $64mil deal from Heat with a player option before year 3, and that summer of 16' is gonna be a free for all. Imagine..the Heat, Lakers, Knicks, etc...all going in on trying to sign Love, Durant, Lebron, etc..
Not sure what I'd think about that. Loved Billups, but doesn't seem like he's got much left in the tank.
I think this is all hilarious, everyone worked up into a frenzy over non existent drama. From day one Lebron said he would evaluate all scenarios before deciding, however we are still BY FAR the best. He can come back and be part of a team going to at least six straight finals, or leave and get bounced in the ECF until the Cavs mature enough to HOPEFULLY beat a team in the west. Hmmmm.
What Nabo described is what a terrible GM or a guy that likes to play Madden/NBA2k14 too much would do. Make 4 straight Finals...BLOW IT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Because barely anyone from that same roster is actually on the roster as og now? From what we have done so far we have improved already. Add Isaiah Thomas and its icing on the cake.
When Lebron and Riley leave this meeting and make no announcements or statements what will the next wave of speculation be? I am so over this
Lebron and Riley don't see eye to eye. Has anyone said yet why Lebron would play for the man who called him a coward? It would be like admitting he is a coward
I'm sorry, this whole notion by Skolnick that Lebron isn't immpressed with the moves thus far is just contradictory in itself. If Lebron is in fact unimpressed, what does he expect Pat Riley to accomplish with limited cap room? Considering Lebron has asked for a max contract, and a return by Bosh and Wade imminent....Did he really expect them to go out and land an all-star while operating with little cap space? Come on..
Yes, Chris. Of all the forces at work in this, if Lebron stays, you can just put the blame for speculating on one possible outcome—which is based on what I've been saying all along, that Lebron wanted MAJOR, not cosmetic improvement like last offseason's (as you yourself mentioned). Also, what I've been saying about Lebron being upset that Riley amnestied friend and contributor Mike Miller for nothing except not dipping into the luxury tax, on a team which is projected to earn close to two billion dollars on Lebron's bankability in the next 3 years. They discarded his friend for nothing except not paying a few more bucks into a fixed system, and they replaced him with BUPKUS, and Lebron resents it t this day, and, oh, guess who he reaches out to as a future teammate if he does move on. THAT's how strongly he felt about that, but most of you kept ****ting on my contention that it was a bigger deal than anyone outside the organization let on. But, yeah, by all means, if it makes everyone feel better and if Lebron stays, feel free to dump on me. Who had SO much to do with everything.
People are going to far with this we need to improve every position thing. Am I the only one who realizes this is standard sports talk you hear from EVERY TEAM that doesn't win the title? Hell even sone that do.
Yes, Lebron is going to a worse team because of Mike Miller. Who had his minutes filled more than admirably by Lewis.
That makes the most sense for all parties. And ideally that would work out fine for the Heat as long as Riley is still on board for that bonanza in 16'. I trust that he'd find a way to put the Heat in good position even if LeBron leaves that summer.
I think that, as in the Mike Miller scenario, Lebron wanted Riley and Arison to say "to hell with the luxury tax" and buy him as many pieces as it took so he woudn't have to count on Wade's iffy health and Rio's bipolar disorder in order to win more championships. The disconnect, if there is one, is that Riley went into this thinking "Toney Douglas" again, while Lebron was thinking "Gasol, Lowry, Boozer/Deng."
Lol the implication that Pat Riley thinks small might be the most ludicrous thing I have heard all year
Yes, Alex, because of everything I've said, that is what you should fixate upon in order to fulfill your requirement to ridicule my overall opinion of the team we both love and cheer. Because, if there's one thing we know, it's that Lebron isn't going to any team which doesn't include Mike Miller.
I'm not trying to ridicule you, I agree with you sometimes as well. I just don't think the Miller thing has anything to do with this and its not like we are avoiding the luxury tax. We will be dipping into it again this year.