<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Riley would not address free agency, "I'm going to back upstairs and crunch some numbers."</p>— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) <a href="https://twitter.com/IraHeatBeat/statuses/483673700999262208">June 30, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
If he crunches those numbers and it looks close to Tom Penn's guesstimation of 4.4M in cap space....he won't be happy.
If LeBron starts at $22 million with Miami, and we know Bosh wants at least $15 million, then Cole, Napier and minimum cap holds... you're basically around $45 million already, just between those guys. Unless Wade takes a starting salary of $7 or 8 million, which seems incredibly unlikely, you're not going to have the money to go significantly above the MLE, and if that's the case, why opt out in the first place? The only person who would benefit is Miami's owner in terms of not paying the tax... it wouldn't significantly upgrade the team's ability to build a roster around the Big 3 at all. Something isn't adding up here. Either A) Wade is going to take an enormous paycut, like Barkley in Houston, B) the Heat are going to do something cold-blooded, like allow Wade or Bosh to walk or C) LeBron is truly open to leaving. Because except for scenario A, the math doesn't add up to where it could be a preordained plan among the Big 3. The money just isn't there, if LeBron is starting at $22 million and Bosh at $15 million or higher. I've thought for a few days that the media was putting the cart before the horse with the assumption of "if Wade/Bosh opt out, it must mean LeBron is staying". Fact is, they would be demonized if they didn't. They would be seen as single-handedly destroying the Heat. Their relevance, in terms of playing on a contender, would assuredly be over. Their own fans would despise them. They really didn't have much of a choice, when you consider their images, legacies, etc. Opting out was simply an obvious starting point. Now is where the fun begins and Miami has to see if they can make the numbers work. What's funny to me is Miami media already parroting the line of "$10 million in exceptions" as a viable route for LeBron. Uh, really? You had that from the beginning, no matter what. If a simple MLE addition is enough for LeBron to stay, why wouldn't they all have just opted in and each continued to make over $20 million?
Maybe the big 3 are just opting out and giving the Heat the chance to pull a rabbit out of their hat? "Here you go Riles, you basically have an empty payroll, show us what you can do"
Because apparently Lebron wants max money. Lebron's opt out was about flexibility. It may be enough to just get him his max dollars while the other guys take paycuts.
Obviously free agency still has to play out but the whole plan of opting out and bringing in not-quite-a-max-free-agent but still someone good...not happening? http://miamiherald.typepad.com/spor...y-canes-football-notes.html#storylink=addthis
I have a feeling LeBron is tired of being the best player in the world, and not even being being the highest paid player on his team. I think his main goal in all of this is to finally be the player that ISN'T taking the pay cut. He wants somebody else (i.e. Wade) to be that guy now.
Well said. A guy on sportscenter just ran thru it with... LeBron at 22 Bosh at 17 Wade at 12.5 Haslem at 3 Cole at 2.1 Napier at 1 And he estimated that, those figures would only leave ~4 million. While on paper that is the same way they began in 2010, who in the east is going to stop them? They will still be good enough to win the east. Especially if Melo comes here. Even if Melo goes to the Bulls, Rose has to stay healthy. The Pacers were MIA, and Wizards won't be ready yet. Even with Wade at 50% who in the east can beat the Heat?
Really great post Ben! Amazing that this salary structure isn't being talked about much in the media. Plan "A" would represent basketballholic's wink/wink plan.
We can make a sign and trade work, can't we? Lin (8.3), Asik Trade Exception (8.3) Parsons (whatever is needed to match the gap) for LeBron max. We'd need to shell out our picks and get raped of whatever Miami wants from us, but we could get LeBron.
Seems like Miami could help themselves if they could trade Norris Cole to a team with cap space to get him off the books. And then backload Udonis Haslem's contract. That might help bump up that 4M of cap room a bit.
Weird that he backed up a staircase in front of reporters. Just kind of creepy. Maybe Riley is going Howard Hughes on us. <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/JLsKnx2sGgY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
