DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum LeBron answers question on leaving, douses flames of the media's pipedream

I know it's still 2 years away but there's little to talk about right now.

FINALLY, LeBron actually comes out and says leaving Cleveland is unlikely.

http://www.cleveland.com/olympics/index.ssf/2008/08/cleveland_cavaliers_lebron_jam.html

"There's going to be a lot of opportunities for me in 2010 to decide if I want to stay with Cleveland or if I want to go elsewhere. Could I ever imagine it? No. Is it a possibility? Yes."

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That's pretty much all I've been wanting to hear him say for some time. Doesn't guarantee he'll be here but it definitely hints at this whole story (leaving for "x" city) being a bit of a media fabrication. I think LeBron just wanted to play the game a little, egg them on.

I don't read it that way. I read it as a neutral comment.....but if it makes you feel better, read it any way you want.

Now if it read, Could I ever imagine it? Yes. Is it a possibility? No" , then one could jump for joy.

I still believe that all things being equal, LeBrons decision to stay or go in 2010 is solely dependent on how good the Cavs are... I think he will stay (or go) with the team that gives him the best chance to win championships.... However, if he's going to be on a team that isn't going to win championships, then he might as well be in a big market so he can make more endorsement money... If I was him, that's how I would view it at this point.

And I am pretty sure that is how he does view it.

If we don't win the Championship between now and then, he will bolt for one of the 2 scenarios you present.

The only thing Cleveland can offer him is championships. If it doesn't do that, forget it....he's gone.

As the saying goes:


Ya cant worry about things ya cant control, What ever Labron does Labron is gonna do, We cant make him stay, if he wants to go he's gonna go, it's up the orginazation to give him reasons to stay and I dont mean just money, Labron is gonna want part ownership, max deal, talent to win a NBA championship around him and much more, somebody will give it to him.

All I know is Labron will do what Labron wants to do.

It's LeBron, not LaBron.

That's pretty much what we've been saying all along. Chris Broussard's article the other day was a complete joke, and a sorry excuse for journalism ... went around to anyone remotely associated to LeBron until one of them finally gave him the quote, "he might consider it", and then used that to write an article saying Lebron might go to the Greek Leagues.

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It's LeBron, not LaBron.

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Thanks...i'll sleep better now

I will preface this a few ways,

I used to fall under the LB's not going anywhere umbrella, I then ended up getting older and living in Ohio long enough to realize he just could leave.

A cleveland sports fan can only see their hero's walk away so many times. In a free agent world, in a perfect world, a trancendant star becomes the icon of the NBA. A player that epitomizes the game and how it should be played. In a perfect world, this player stays in Ohio. Then again, this is my perfect world

lebron will leave cleveland if it is the right thing for him to do...

if we do not make this team better, and bring in another star, or 2 stars, he will be gone, and i don't think we can blame him, you only get to go through your prime once, and you don't want to be stuck in a bad situation for too long, just look at the years kevin garnett wasted in minnesota...

i truly believe lebron will stay in cleveland if this organization can bring in a guy the caliber of michael redd... i think he wants to stay, but he has to have a reason to

and right now he doesn't have a ton of reasons to stay, this team has to get better, this year is so important.

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if we do not make this team better, and bring in another star, or 2 stars, he will be gone, and i don't think we can blame him, you only get to go through your prime once, and you don't want to be stuck in a bad situation for too long, just look at the years kevin garnett wasted in minnesota...

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lbj, are you from ohio?

August 8, 2008, 2:49 am
Would LeBron Play in Europe?

By Harvey Araton
Harvey Araton

BEIJING — Not surprisingly, LeBron James was happy to fan rumors that he would be open to fielding offers from European teams when his contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers expires in 2010. For the N.B.A. megastar, what better place is there to attract foreign investors into the eventual bidding war than the Summer Olympic Games?

“Growing up, you never think about any other league besides the N.B.A.,” James said at the United States men’s basketball team news conference Friday morning. “But things are changing really fast and you never know. I can’t throw all my eggs in one basket. There are going to be a lot of opportunities for me in 2010 to decide if I want to stay with Cleveland or if I want to go elsewhere.”

Asked if he ever imagined the possibility of playing abroad, he added: “Did I ever imagine it? No. Is it a possibility? Yes.”

Why would he have said anything else? While it’s difficult to fathom the man who bears the tattoo “Chosen One” on his back losing a precious year or two in the pursuit of N.B.A. championship rings (the true measure of all-time greats), let’s create a financial scenario that would make it tempting for him to become a global groundbreaker.

Already there has been a modest trend in reverse basketball immigration, with a rash of recent signings by European teams of European-born players who had established themselves as N.B.A. role players. Josh Childress, an American player, bolted the Atlanta Hawks to sign a $20 million deal with the Greek power, Olympiacos, which Sports Illustrated last week reported would have interest in James when he becomes a free agent.

With N.B.A. teams still bound by a salary cap, with the U.S. economy in a downturn and the dollar sliding against the Euro, it is always possible that in two years LeBron Inc. would take a hard look at a tax-free megadeal to become the American David Beckham. Of course, Nike, his corporate underwriter, would have to give such a relocation its blessing.

A salary of $50 million has been floated, which may sound ridiculous, except for the fact that Michael Jordan earned over $30 million at the end of his run with the Bulls – and that was 10 years ago. Is such an offer from an owner in Europe – let’s hypothesize from a Russian with oil money to burn and the audacity and ego to reel in an American celebrity — so far-fetched?

“I haven’t been offered that, I haven’t talked to anybody,” James said. “It’s just rumors?”

When I asked him if he liked hearing them, he smiled and said: “I like hearing good rumors, not bad rumors. That’s a good rumor.”



http://olympics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/08/would-lebron-ever-play-in-europe/