make pressure on Riley and try to get the best offer then if nothing works he can take his talents elsewhere...
so what was the consensus of the talking heads that project melo to chicago and love to lakers and rockets will settle for travis outlaw as their big signing? Did they say he was gonna opt out or no? I know most were saying he would give his answer after his june 29th vacation... so much for that
Why would he want to opt out? The team just went to the finals? I understand Wade isn't the same player but the Heat are still contenders
I think the fact that LeBron opted out without Wade and Bosh opting out as well is pretty indicative of LeBron definitely thinking of leaving. If all three opted out together then I would say it's 100% they would stay together but now it's not too certain. C'mon Rockets.
I don't believe it's happening... I think right now LeBron is all about his legacy, so he needs a good story. I can see him do 1 of 3 things: 1. Stay in Miami, he has basically all he needs there and they will upgrade. He could try to build a dynasty. 2. Go to Cleveland. He got lots of hate for leaving Cleveland, now he can come back to his hometown and bring them championship glory. They have Kyrie in place, the first pick in the draft and at least some talent around that. 3. Go to a place with lots of history and bring back championship glory. This could probably only be Chicago or the Lakers. The Knicks would've been a possibility, but they have no chance to get the money in place. Now going to Houston would mean, he is going to the place that makes the most sense basketball-wise. It would basically be the easiest road to another title. I don't think he wants to be known as the guy that always took the easiest road. Chicago is in the same boat, but it is the more glamurous city and it's the city Jordan built, so the story is a lot better there. That being said, I'd love to get him, so prove me wrong!
Just because he opted out doesn't mean he isn't going to resign with the Heat for 4-5 more years. Opting out makes sense even if he wants to stay in Miami, get 4-5 more years guaranteed as opposed to one.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Lebron opting out will give the Rockets the chance to pitch their team and the advantages of Houston. But for him, all it means is that he has more options. It forces the Heat to take notice- but by doing it now it will give them time to try to make some moves to make their roster more attractive to them. This gives all other teams a chance, and I don't think anyone knows what he is going to do yet. I would imagine that resigning in Miami is still the most likely outcome at this point though.
No matter where he goes haters going to hate. Might as well go to a place where he can also win the rings because in the end, thats what really matters.
LeBron had to carry that entire team last year. In the end, Wade, despite having one-third of the regular season to rest, looked exhausted. It was the way I looked last weekend after moving to a new place and hauling furniture in the heat up and down stairs and having to make up work hours and sneaking in glimpses of the World Cup and not getting enough sleep, multiplied by two. And Bosh didn't seem engaged at all. And who can blame them? Staying on top for four years is a challenge, even when you mainly have your games in the Leastern Conference. I'm sure LeBron will try to push ownership and management to bringing in an MLE player (forget all that Big Four crap, can't happen) who can help take the minutes off him. Or do something that'll help him share the load. The odds are strong he stays in Miami, but he can't be real happy right now, and if Pat Riley doesn't step up to the plate, Bron can tell Pat, "Look, it's been a good run, but this can't work out, if Dwyane and Chris don't take pay cuts..."
For the Rockets sake, the best news now would be that Wade opts in. Maybe Wade is all about winning to the point that he will take that paycut. Maybe he has enough money stacked away that he will go for rings over cash. But he is already on the decline and if the Heat were to make moves JUST on what would make the team better, I don't know that the Heat would bring back Wade after he opted out. Lebron said he isn't taking a pay cut just so the Heat can avoid the luxury tax penalty, but the Heat would be 4th year offenders if they do what he wants and the cost will be insane. Certainly their owner could afford to do it if he doesn't mind losing millions for his entertainment, but it's a cost that would continue to rise. If the Heat aren't willing to take a big loss in luxury tax then that also helps the Rockets chances.
