I understand why Lebron is waiting things out, even more than usual. Despite the fact that he's likely going to get paid around $10mil - i.e. more than most people earn in their entire lives - for a single season, he's 'no longer playing for the money'.
Even more than when he teamed up with D-Wade, now he wants an instant championship, as time is no longer on his side. So instead of chopping some team's financial reserves and forcing them into a position where they can't properly flesh out the roster (i.e. what happened with the Lakers?), sit back, let the braintrusts prove their own worth and then, after the smoke has cleared, choose the team that best looks like it will win with your (aged) presence.
WHAT ABOUT THE KNICKS OR SPURS?
The media, including Rich Paul, makes it sound like the ball is all in King James's court, but idk. And the reason I say that is because, if he wanted to win a championship now-now-now, the best bet would of course be going to one of the two teams that just made the Finals.
That's the beauty of Lebron's game, in theory. (Offensively) he can play any position, 1 through 5, at a superstar, impactual level. But the reason I say in theory is because even though he can still, to this day, dominate the post, he seems reluctant to go down there on a regular basis. So a lot of times, you have LBJ chucking up threes like he's a little guy, despite there being actual little guys on the team (who can't play in the post like he can). Though, in Lebron's defense, he's definitely clutch.
The Knicks just lost Mitchell Robinson, so they actually have space for another big. That's not to say LBJ can defend Wemby or anything like that. But now, out of all NYK's notable bench players, none of them are frontcourt - no disrespect to Drummond, who can average 10rpg in his sleep, but you know what I mean. And that's going to be an interesting alternate look anyway, i.e. the times KAT can't play, and NYK starts Andre instead(?).
The Spurs would make even better sense. When they lost to NYK, even before Lebron made himself available, I was saying that what they needed is another low-post presence besides Wemby (and Kornet).
Champagnie is an amazing shooter but, for a 4, appears as if they can't really do shit in the post. Players like Castle and Harper make more noise downlow than Julian does.
San Antonio went out and got Harris, which is a sound move, i.e. potentially starting him alongside Julian. You know, the two of them together makes sense rather than having one or the other, as Tobias also, given his size, is a shooter who's more or less a nonfactor downlow.
Lebron would be perfect because he shoots just as good as Champagnie(?) or Harris but furthermore can dominate in the post, while Victor is out on the perimeter. His presence would free Wemby up to truly play like a guard sometimes, without having to worry about the consequences of not being in a position to get a rebound (i.e. that last-second play against the Knicks in Game 4),
But the way I see the situation, it reminds me of a saying one of my mentors used to have - "familiarity breeds contempt". From the outside looking in, we all love Lebron. But the people who actually know him, i.e. his colleagues, maybe all of them don't feel the same. In other words, I find it interesting that the Spurs especially never seemed to entertain the idea of bringing the King in.
DETROIT PISTONS
The one team I've been pushing for Lebron to join, even before the offseason began, has been the Pistons. At this point in his career, he's exactly what Detroit needs - "a secondary scorer" as the media puts it, i.e. someone who can put up points at will, but playing defense is a bonus. It sucks that they got rid of Isaiah Stewart, but the Pistons, with Ausar Thompson may still have the defensive weapons to mitigate elder Lebron's deficiencies.
That's also presuming that Duren actually comes back. Of late, the media has been bemoaning the idea that restricted free agents are powerless in negotiations, but I don't know. Any contract where you can get paid tens of millions of dollars whether you're able to take the court or not sounds like a definite win on the part of the employee. That's like being a don't-give-AF CEO of a big corporation.
But this appears to be another case where both sides aren't particularly interested. Lebron didn't put Detroit on his list of preferred destinations, nor have they expressed an interest in having him.
And that's the interesting thing about those teams he did list. Going to the Sixers (now with Brown) or the Heat (now with Giannis) may result in an instant championship, but neither is really guaranteed. Philly may have depth issues (in light of the less-than-ideal health of Embiid), and Miami lacks shooting.
The teams that could more visibly slot LBJ in and instantly win - the Spurs, Knicks and Pistons, interestingly aren't even on his list (and vice versa). Dude is feening but apparently ain't feening like that. And the reason I didn't mention the Cavs, to reiterate, is because even though having the King buttressing Allen + Mobley would be ideal, I'm still having a hard time envisioning him and the Beard(?) playing together.
TORONTO RAPTORS
Toronto is a team which, even though they lost in the First Round, it was apparent that Cleveland wasn't necessarily the better, and the Raptors were only one player away from being contenders. Ideally that player would be a big, someone who could potentially play the 5 instead of Barnes, now that the NBA is embracing tallness again.
Quality, traditional-like bigs, as I foresaw years ago, are now in high demand but short supply. So the next best thing, if you want a 4 who can play elite defense (keeping Scottie at the 5), would be to bring in Kawhi. We were almost there, and shoutout to Steve Ballmer, who's always one step ahead in the game. Like you see how he tried to get Leonard out of there quick.
And after Kawhi, the next best available option may be Lebron. He may not be an elite defender anymore. But the thing about the King, besides being a giant, is that he also has a presence.
There's not many players, including some superstars, you can say that about. LBJ may fall asleep, like a grandpa on his rocking chair, sometimes. But when he's really vested, he always makes an impact. James just getting a steal or dunking these days makes the crowd go crazy, even if he's away. And all of that said, imagine if the Raptors somehow managed to get him and Kawhi(?). Yet another reason for the King to sit back and wait.
HONORABLE MENTION: GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
I haven't really been pushing the idea of James going to Golden State, but I'm not hating either. If that's where he really wants to go, to finally compete in the NBA besides Curry, then the implication would be that even when they lose, you know, he won't really be vexed, since that's something they both want to do (and both have already won numerous championships). And the only reason I remembered the Dubs is because just yesterday, Steph made some comment about wanting Lebron to come over.
The King would really have to want to be there also because, even though their roster doesn't suck, like dudes are old AF. And this isn't even about the league trending young or anything like that. It's about, oh shit, Butler and Porzingis? The way Golden State's roster is designed, if they lose Jimmy again, that would be more or less akin to the Sixers losing Embiid.
It's really sad when you think about, how with some players, you can't even really enjoy watching them for fear injury. Players like Draymond, Butler and even Porzingis would help mitigate Lebron's defensive deficiencies. But besides Green, long-term injury is more or less inevitable.
So on nights when, say, neither Jimmy or Kristaps can play, or the latter is playing but a nonfactor due to his plethora of ailments, how would this team look? Imagine Lebron + Steph + Draymond, sans Jimmy (not to mention they recently lost Looney and Post), against a team like OKC or SA? Like I don't even wanna see no shit like that, and they better re-sign Payton Jr.
The best way for a superstar to age is like Kareem, surrounded by younger stars, on a team that can win without always demanding too much out of him. Lebron has been an allstar forever and probably will be this coming season also. But still, at this point you don't want to force the onus on him.
CONCLUSION
King James is one of the few players in the NBA who could literally help any team on the court, due to his variety of styles. And what he now lacks in defense, he makes up for in offense and ticket sales.
But that doesn't mean every team actually wants him. It ain't like dude is some humble G-Leaguer trying to make it big. He's the best player ever.
So yeah, it's understandable, since he's dealing with a shortlist instead of picking one specific squad and since he's willing to play for relatively nothing, that Lebron waits to see what his preferred destinations can put together without him. None, as it currently stands, are definitively champions. And none, as it currently stands, would have all of their shortcomings solved simply by bringing in the King.
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