KG suggests that Lebron should leave Cleveland

[ssspence]

I think Cleveland have done right by LeBron. They've built two title contenders and had two other outside threats for the title.

I think they've shown that they are committed to and able to build a championship caliber basketball team. If I were LeBron, I would have no qualms staying with the Cavs (this isn't KG's Wolves or Bosh's Raptors).

That said, the Cavs are nowhere near the best offer on the market. He would be better off if he took one of the other offers (I would -- I would go to Miami which I think is LeBron's first choice at the moment).

Take LeBron off the Cavs, and they're terrible. They could have had Amare Stoudemire for Hickson, but they choose Jamison?

I'd argue they're far from a championship contender at this point.

[wdleehi]

I wonder why they held so tightly to Hickson now? 


If he isn't going to play, why didn't they move him to get Amare (as rumored)?


It seems they are always a little afraid to make the big trade.  Only make a deal if they can get back the good players they give up. 



I think the team is run terribly.  They are good in the regular season for one reason, they won the lottery in the right year.

[ssspence]

I wonder why they held so tightly to Hickson now? 


If he isn't going to play, why didn't they move him to get Amare (as rumored)?


It seems they are always a little afraid to make the big trade.  Only make a deal if they can get back the good players they give up. 



I think the team is run terribly.  They are good in the regular season for one reason, they won the lottery in the right year.

I agree with you. Too many desparate moves, not enough smart ones. The result was an ugly hodge podge of poorly fitted pieces.

[Edgar]

I wonder why they held so tightly to Hickson now? 


If he isn't going to play, why didn't they move him to get Amare (as rumored)?


It seems they are always a little afraid to make the big trade.  Only make a deal if they can get back the good players they give up. 



I think the team is run terribly.  They are good in the regular season for one reason, they won the lottery in the right year.

I agree with you. Too many desparate moves, not enough smart ones. The result was an ugly hodge podge of poorly fitted pieces.

Amare without a pg is like Marion without a pg.

[wdleehi]

I wonder why they held so tightly to Hickson now? 


If he isn't going to play, why didn't they move him to get Amare (as rumored)?


It seems they are always a little afraid to make the big trade.  Only make a deal if they can get back the good players they give up. 



I think the team is run terribly.  They are good in the regular season for one reason, they won the lottery in the right year.

I agree with you. Too many desparate moves, not enough smart ones. The result was an ugly hodge podge of poorly fitted pieces.

Amare without a pg is like Marion without a pg.

Lebron is the PG.  And unlike many of his current teammates, Amare finishes.

[Fafnir]

I wonder why they held so tightly to Hickson now? 


If he isn't going to play, why didn't they move him to get Amare (as rumored)?


It seems they are always a little afraid to make the big trade.  Only make a deal if they can get back the good players they give up. 



I think the team is run terribly.  They are good in the regular season for one reason, they won the lottery in the right year.

I don't believe in the end that Amar'e was on the table just for JJ Hickson and a first round pick.

[Moranis]

I wonder why they held so tightly to Hickson now? 


If he isn't going to play, why didn't they move him to get Amare (as rumored)?


It seems they are always a little afraid to make the big trade.  Only make a deal if they can get back the good players they give up. 



I think the team is run terribly.  They are good in the regular season for one reason, they won the lottery in the right year.

I don't believe in the end that Amar'e was on the table just for JJ Hickson and a first round pick.

My understanding was the Cavs did have Hickson on the table, but the Suns elected to play out the year and go for the title (which seems to have been a good choice at this point).

[FatjohnReturns]

I agree with KG. Lebron should leave Cleveland. Go far far away preferably the western conference. How about the Clippers lbj?
You and Kobe could make some more puppet commercials.

[ssspence]

I wonder why they held so tightly to Hickson now? 


If he isn't going to play, why didn't they move him to get Amare (as rumored)?


It seems they are always a little afraid to make the big trade.  Only make a deal if they can get back the good players they give up. 



I think the team is run terribly.  They are good in the regular season for one reason, they won the lottery in the right year.

I agree with you. Too many desparate moves, not enough smart ones. The result was an ugly hodge podge of poorly fitted pieces.

Amare without a pg is like Marion without a pg.

Lebron is the PG.  And unlike many of his current teammates, Amare finishes.

Precisely. Amare is exactly what Lebron lacked / needed in Cleveland. And with creativity (not Ferry's strong suit), Cleveland could have landed him.

[RJ87]

If I'm Lebron, forget all this NY/Chicago stuff - I'm taking a hard look at NJ and the LA Clippers.

NJ has a nice core - you've got Harris, Lee, and Lopez. Lopez could've been an all-star last season if NJ had a better record. He's the type of young frontcout piece franchises drool over and shed capspace for - if Miami could do the 2008 draft again, they'd take him #2 no question. And he's still developing? C'mon. Not to mention, they could come away with the #1 overall pick and get John Wall - then ship out Harris to get another good piece and keep their capspace. And of course, their new owner has DEEP pockets and wants to make a splash. Seems like a great fit.

Then you have LA - you've got Baron Davis, Eric Gordon, Blake Griffin, and Chris Kaman. Add LBJ to that and you've got a ridiculous starting 5. Plus they've got Travis Outlaw and Steve Blake rights, so you re-sign them and you've got a little bench depth. Their issue is ownership - who wants to trust Sterling with their future?

I see Lebron in NJ - esp with Jay-Z being a part owner and their impending move to Brooklyn, NY. Chicago could be interesting, but Derrick Rose should have the ball in his hands during games - you get LBJ, that's not happening as much as it should. And I doubt he'd want to go there because all of the Michael Jordan lure. I do think he wants to win and carve out his own dynasty.

[Hoops]

I think Cleveland have done right by LeBron. They've built two title contenders and had two other outside threats for the title.

I think they've shown that they are committed to and able to build a championship caliber basketball team. If I were LeBron, I would have no qualms staying with the Cavs (this isn't KG's Wolves or Bosh's Raptors).

That said, the Cavs are nowhere near the best offer on the market. He would be better off if he took one of the other offers (I would -- I would go to Miami which I think is LeBron's first choice at the moment).

I think Dan Gilbert and Co. had good intentions. They tried real hard to help LeBron (i.e., opened up the pocket book). But that doesn't mean that they did right by LeBron. I think quite the opposite. Good intentions and lots of effort don't make up for poor decisions and execution. Blame Gilbert, blame Ferry, blame Mike Brown, blame whomever you want. They were already so desperate to avoid this very situation 2-3 years ago that they started trying to plug the holes and hope that the tub would fill up quickly enough to satisfy LeBron. What they should have done was scrap the old tub and put in a new one. If they would have started from scratch 3 years ago (with a top quality GM, not Ferry), they probably could have fared better in this year's playoffs AND had a much brighter future to lure LeBron into re-signing. Fool LeBron once, shame on them. Fool him twice, shame on LeBron. LeBron won't be fooled twice - he's outta there. It's sad for Cleveland, but it's the right move for LeBron.

[Andy Jick]

Danny Ferry = Panic...

I sensed an utter disconnect from Mike Brown versus that of the front office...

Hang onto Hickson, but he doesn't play.  Bring in Jamison, yet was it done to benefit the team or prevent another team (ie. the Celtics) from picking him up?  Bring back Big Zzzzzz, but then watch him ride the pine...

I don't want to overstate it, but that's called disarray.  The accountability that will be spoken of in that organization is going to be a fun thing to watch over the course of the next few weeks...

[ssspence]

If I'm Lebron, forget all this NY/Chicago stuff - I'm taking a hard look at NJ and the LA Clippers.

NJ has a nice core - you've got Harris, Lee, and Lopez. Lopez could've been an all-star last season if NJ had a better record. He's the type of young frontcout piece franchises drool over and shed capspace for - if Miami could do the 2008 draft again, they'd take him #2 no question. And he's still developing? C'mon. Not to mention, they could come away with the #1 overall pick and get John Wall - then ship out Harris to get another good piece and keep their capspace. And of course, their new owner has DEEP pockets and wants to make a splash. Seems like a great fit.

Then you have LA - you've got Baron Davis, Eric Gordon, Blake Griffin, and Chris Kaman. Add LBJ to that and you've got a ridiculous starting 5. Plus they've got Travis Outlaw and Steve Blake rights, so you re-sign them and you've got a little bench depth. Their issue is ownership - who wants to trust Sterling with their future?

I see Lebron in NJ - esp with Jay-Z being a part owner and their impending move to Brooklyn, NY. Chicago could be interesting, but Derrick Rose should have the ball in his hands during games - you get LBJ, that's not happening as much as it should. And I doubt he'd want to go there because all of the Michael Jordan lure. I do think he wants to win and carve out his own dynasty.

The Clippers are owned by a guy who couldn't care less about winning. Chicago has a superior core to NJ, and they don't play in Newerk.

[Fan from VT]

I think Cleveland have done right by LeBron. They've built two title contenders and had two other outside threats for the title.

I think they've shown that they are committed to and able to build a championship caliber basketball team. If I were LeBron, I would have no qualms staying with the Cavs (this isn't KG's Wolves or Bosh's Raptors).

That said, the Cavs are nowhere near the best offer on the market. He would be better off if he took one of the other offers (I would -- I would go to Miami which I think is LeBron's first choice at the moment).

I think Dan Gilbert and Co. had good intentions. They tried real hard to help LeBron (i.e., opened up the pocket book). But that doesn't mean that they did right by LeBron. I think quite the opposite. Good intentions and lots of effort don't make up for poor decisions and execution. Blame Gilbert, blame Ferry, blame Mike Brown, blame whomever you want. They were already so desperate to avoid this very situation 2-3 years ago that they started trying to plug the holes and hope that the tub would fill up quickly enough to satisfy LeBron. What they should have done was scrap the old tub and put in a new one. If they would have started from scratch 3 years ago (with a top quality GM, not Ferry), they probably could have fared better in this year's playoffs AND had a much brighter future to lure LeBron into re-signing. Fool LeBron once, shame on them. Fool him twice, shame on LeBron. LeBron won't be fooled twice - he's outta there. It's sad for Cleveland, but it's the right move for LeBron.

I don't think there's one party/individual to blame, but Lebron deserves his share of the blame too.

Look at the different approaches of Durant and Lebron. Lebron entered the league and from day one made it clear that he's always keeping his exit door open. Durant has already said he loves his team and city and would like a max extension. When given the chance, Lebron signed a short extension, just to motivate management to build a winner, or he'd go.

He could easily have said "Hey, I'm winning in Cleveland. Let's build a team, even if we miss the playoffs for the first four years. Let's build for years 5-12 (when i'm 24-31 or so). Let's think about what a championship team needs, and get there smartly.

Instead he's done the opposite. hedged his bets, not committed, and basically made cleveland management guess what the best way to keep him is.

[Hoops]

I think Cleveland have done right by LeBron. They've built two title contenders and had two other outside threats for the title.

I think they've shown that they are committed to and able to build a championship caliber basketball team. If I were LeBron, I would have no qualms staying with the Cavs (this isn't KG's Wolves or Bosh's Raptors).

That said, the Cavs are nowhere near the best offer on the market. He would be better off if he took one of the other offers (I would -- I would go to Miami which I think is LeBron's first choice at the moment).

I think Dan Gilbert and Co. had good intentions. They tried real hard to help LeBron (i.e., opened up the pocket book). But that doesn't mean that they did right by LeBron. I think quite the opposite. Good intentions and lots of effort don't make up for poor decisions and execution. Blame Gilbert, blame Ferry, blame Mike Brown, blame whomever you want. They were already so desperate to avoid this very situation 2-3 years ago that they started trying to plug the holes and hope that the tub would fill up quickly enough to satisfy LeBron. What they should have done was scrap the old tub and put in a new one. If they would have started from scratch 3 years ago (with a top quality GM, not Ferry), they probably could have fared better in this year's playoffs AND had a much brighter future to lure LeBron into re-signing. Fool LeBron once, shame on them. Fool him twice, shame on LeBron. LeBron won't be fooled twice - he's outta there. It's sad for Cleveland, but it's the right move for LeBron.

I don't think there's one party/individual to blame, but Lebron deserves his share of the blame too.

Look at the different approaches of Durant and Lebron. Lebron entered the league and from day one made it clear that he's always keeping his exit door open. Durant has already said he loves his team and city and would like a max extension. When given the chance, Lebron signed a short extension, just to motivate management to build a winner, or he'd go.

He could easily have said "Hey, I'm winning in Cleveland. Let's build a team, even if we miss the playoffs for the first four years. Let's build for years 5-12 (when i'm 24-31 or so). Let's think about what a championship team needs, and get there smartly.

Instead he's done the opposite. hedged his bets, not committed, and basically made cleveland management guess what the best way to keep him is.

You know, that's a REALLY good point. If LeBron had been more committed all along, maybe management wouldn't have felt the need to keep applying all the short-term, short-sighted band-aids to the roster. I'm with you on that.

I guess this just underscores the notion that LeBron is gone this time around. He probably felt like he "owed it" to Cleveland to re-sign last time, but in his heart of hearts he wanted to move on. This time, he probably will.