No one dominates the offseason headlines quite like LeBron James, even at 41-years old. James could be an unrestricted free agent in a week, and the possibility of returning to the Los Angeles Lakers is seemingly becoming less likely by the day. That opens the door for a possible reunion with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Lakers have made it clear that LeBron isn’t a priority at this time. On Friday morning, ESPN’s Shams Charania said that there “hasn’t been much communication” between the two sides and that James hasn’t received an offer yet.
Later in the day, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst backed up this reporting, saying that the lack of communication is “unusual” and that finding a center is the top priority of the Lakers’ offseason, while James is second.
Then, NBA Insider Jake Fischer said that, “It might be more likely than not that he leaves Los Angeles than stays with the Lakers.”
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As it stands, LeBron and the Lakers don’t seem to be on great terms, as was the case in the previous summer. James opted into his player option then, but there wasn’t talks of an extension. This led to a summer of James being passive-aggressive toward the Lakers and having cryptic social media posts about the Cavs when he was back in Akron last June. The difference now is that James can leave Los Angeles.
If LeBron does so, he’ll have more options than just returning to Cleveland. The Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat both make compelling arguments for his services.
The Warriors are “legitimately interested” in adding LeBron. They have the full mid-level exception of $15.1 million that they could offer him.
It’s easy to see the appeal in Golden State for James. He’d be able to link up with Steph Curry and Draymond Green, two players with whom he’s been rivals with throughout his career for one last run at a title. There’s also the fact that he’d be able to stay in California while doing so.
Then there’s the Heat. LeBron could return to the franchise he won back-to-back titles for and is very familiar with. The addition of Giannis Antetokounmpo only makes that proposition more appealing.
LeBron’s agent, Rich Paul, added fuel to that speculation. On the Game Over with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul podcast, he said that the Heat need to keep building a roster, but alluded to them needing a $30 or $40 million per year player that they could get for $18 million. Those comments seem pretty direct when $18 million is in the ballpark of what James could be earning next season.
Then there’s the possibility of James coming back to Cleveland for a third tour of duty.
The official reporting on a possible LeBron has cooled off drastically since the winter when all signs pointed to him returning. There have, however, been some interesting nuggets in the past few days.
Cavs chairman Dan Gilbert hasn’t been making public comments too often in the last few years. He did make an appearance on the Smart Girl Dumb Questions podcast. One of the things he discussed was regret over the letter he released after The Decision in 2010, calling it “stupid.” He was then asked about the possibility of LeBron returning and replied with “maybe.” Talking about his regret for the letter is one of the things that came up in 2014 when James made his most recent return.
And just like James’s last return, we do have some non-NBA sources claiming that LeBron is returning again. Reports like this proved to be right last time around, for what it’s worth.
This also coincides with LeBron being back in Akron. He’s posted on social media that he’s working out at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School and is rumored to have joined a prominent local golf club (or two). It’s normal for him to return home during the summer, but the timing of doing so just before the start of free agency is more noteworthy than normal.
Channing Frye has, however, poured some cold water on the possible return. He spent last week with LeBron during their 10-year celebration of the 2016 championship. Frye said on the Road Trippin’ Show that the Cavs have “soul issues,” which is why James wouldn’t want to return. It’s worth mentioning that other members of that trip mentioned that James didn’t tell them what his plans were for next season.
Additionally, the Cavs don’t have an easy way to pay LeBron. Right now, they can only offer him a minimum contract, which presumably won’t be enough to lure him back. They can find creative ways to move off current salaries and execute a sign-and-trade. If there’s interest on both sides it’s possible, but it wouldn’t necessarily be straightforward.
We’ll see where this all goes.
What we do know is that LeBron is quite fond of being in Los Angeles. There’s a reason he’s put up with poor roster management the last several years and is considering doing so again. It’s also clear that James wants to be paid, or at least get the respect from the Lakers that comes with a high-paying contract.
The smoke that is out there now — and there presumably will be more of in the coming days — could all just be leverage for LeBron to get the contract he wants from the Lakers. We’ve seen him do that before to varying degrees.
At the same time, this feels like the closest James has come to leaving Los Angeles since 2018. And if he does so, Cleveland makes a compelling case.
No team can offer him the farewell tour his hometown can. We see this every time he plays in Cleveland, most notably last time when James was moved to tears by the reception.
There’s also a strong on-court argument as well. The Cavs showed this past season that they’re near a championship level — you don’t luck your way to the conference finals — but they still have a ways to go before they catch a team like the New York Knicks. They also happen to have a perfect LeBron-sized hole at small forward, and from a leadership perspective.
It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out over what could be the next several weeks. All we can say now is that there’s a possibility LeBron comes back home for the storybook ending.
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