The Decision has been made. LeBron James is returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers, a league source tells SheridanHoops.com.
James met with Miami Heat president Pat Riley today in Las Vegas to deliver the news. A contingent of other Heat officials were informed they were not welcome at the meeting, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity.
An official announcement will be made on www.lebronjames.com, as I first reported yesterday.
For Cleveland, this is one of the most important days in the city’s sports history. No pro team has won a title of any kind since the Browns won the NFL Championship in 1964, and now there is a distinct possibility that the 50-year drought can end. James will be joining a team led by Kyrie Irving, who just agreed to a five-year contract extension, along with Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 pick in last month’s draft.
It is a young core that will grow older with James as their tutor and leader, and he returns to Cleveland as a grown man who has learned what it takes to win.
For Miami, it is the end of an era — a four-year period in which a superteam was constructed and went to four straight NBA Finals.
Why is this happening? It comes down to LeBron building a legacy, which leads us to three points:
- There is nothing left for him to accomplish in Miami. He went there for four years, he went to the NBA Finals all four years, and he won two titles while learning what it takes to be a champion. Nobody can ever take that away from him.
- A chance to return home as a successful, seasoned adult with a chance to deliver the city of Cleveland its first championship since 1964 is too much of a legacy opportunity for James to pass up.
- And another thing: With all due respect to Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade, the best player he has a chance to team up with is named Kyrie Irving.
In today’s biggest piece of news from the morning, the Cavs cleared the cap space to make a max offer to LeBron by dealing away Jarrett Jack, Sergei Karasev, Tyler Zeller and a 2016 first-round pick in a three-way trade with Boston and Brooklyn.
Today, all eyes have turned to Las Vegas, where James opened his annual summer camp, then held his meeting with Riley.
Once James makes his intentions known publicly (and the same goes for Carmelo Anthony, who reportedly will stay with the New York Knicks), the free agency dam is going to burst.
Greg Monroe, Pau Gasol, Trevor Ariza, Luol Deng, Lance Stephenson. They are all going to lock up their deals in a very short span of time, and it is going to be madness.
We have been telling you for weeks that Cleveland is in the hunt for James. Some have dismissively scoffed at the notion. Others have surveyed the landscape, summoned their inner Spock and said: “Why not?”
James traveled Monday to Las Vegas, and a source who has been briefed on James’ free agency maneuverings told SheridanHoops that James’ inner circle, from his wife, Savannah to his agent, Rich Paul, to his best friends, Maverick Carter and Randy Mims, are unanimous in their belief that James’ best move is a return to the team he played for from 2003-2010.
Fans in Cleveland have been holding their collective breath, and now they can exhale. The chance for the city’s first championship in any major professional sport since 1964 is now a distinct possibility.
The Cavs were the only team able to offer James something no one else could: Redemption. Let us not forget that we are reaching the four-year anniversary of “taking my talents,” Jim Gray, Cavs fans burning jerseys and Dan Gilbert wrongly predicting more championships for Cleveland than Miami in his infamous comic sans stream-of-consciousness Internet post — a post that was purged from the Cavs’ Web site overnight Sunday.
Never has the balance of power in the NBA hung in the balance quite the way it does now. OK, it was a similar situation four years ago regarding the balance of power, and we all were witnesses to how much sway The Chosen One holds over our beloved Association. Now, it is a question of whether he can turn a young nucleus led by Kyrie Irving and Andrew Wiggins into championship material.
The man who has been greasing the skids for this epic event is James’ agent, Rich Paul, who has been meeting with potential suitors in Cleveland during the first week of the NBA’s moratorium on signings and trades, which expires July 10. Much of Paul’s work has been taking place under the radar, although there have been clues, such as Mavericks owner Mark Cuban being spotted in northeast Ohio. The Lakers had a stealth meeting Friday, and the Rockets and Suns also spoke with Paul.
Meanwhile, on the Carmelo Anthony front, he has finished his tour of meeting with prospective teams and was told by the Knicks that they are indeed willing to make him a max, five-year offer. His decision could come at any time.
The list below shows our Top 25 free agents, but keep in mind that there are more than 100 NBA players whose contracts have expired and who will be looking for new deals in the next several weeks. Nobody can sign anything until July 10, but verbal agreements — such as the one Cleveland made with Kyrie Irving on a five-year max extension — are permitted. — ChrisSheridanHoops.com
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