Labron and Miami

[Cowboys 4 life]

I know its basketball but the whole Labron thing had America captivated on Thursday.

I don't care that he went there I just don't like the way he did it. Many of the top FA's are taken so Cleveland is left out in the cold. Going to Miami was what was best for Labron but how he did it wasn't. Because of the way he handled it he will not liked in Cleveland. Cleveland gave the man everything but it was the pressure that had Lebron packing.

Now everything is great right? Well all 3 just signed and 1 other player Chalmers is signed. Need 12 to make a team. They are going to need to get a bunch of guys to play for cheap minimum contracts to fill that out.

Lets see what it cost em: The Heat sent two future first-round and two second-round picks to the Cavaliers for James, while packaging two first-round picks to the Raptors for Bosh.

So you signed Wade, Bosh, Lebron for 6 years and gave up 4 first rounders and 2 second rounders?

Guess we will see what happens but without depth this team will always have a weakness.

[Nfl Fan]

Many of the top FA's are taken so Cleveland is left out in the cold.

Thing is, Cleveland is 'left out in the cold' because Cleveland CHOSE to be left out in the cold. They had every opportunity to sign free agents, and there were a bunch of good ones out there. For all the whining and bellyaching that the owner has done over the last couple days, he can look straight in the mirror and see the reason why LeBron James in no longer a Cleveland Cavalier. If he would have gone out and gotten Wade and Bosh, or Wade and Boozer, or Wade and anybody else worth their salt, LeBron would be a Cav. It was well stated for months that LeBron wanted rings and the Cleveland Cavaliers were not providing the supporting staff for them to do so. He could not do it by himself. So the Cavs did NOTHING to better their team and LeBron left. This is on them.

That's my opinion and I'm stickin to it!

[mattb47]

I felt a lot worse for Cleveland and the ownership there before their owner released that ridiculously juvenile letter to his fans...I mean how old is that guy? 12? Sounded like someone just took away his favorite toy or something...that alone made me feel a whole lot less sympathetic for that team even though I know Cleveland has had its fair share of heartache throughout the years.

I'm not sure I fault LBJ for how he went about making the announcement though...the media is just as much to blame as he is for making SUCH a big deal about the whole thing and emphasizing his free agency and talking about it non-stop to the point that he almost needed a stage from which to announce it for there to be a good conclusion to it all. I personally don't really have a problem with that part of it actually.

As for the Heat, they'll be instant contenders. LeBron (yes LeBron, not LaBron ), Bosh, and Wade all signed for less than the max so that they would have room to sign other players. Word is they are close to grabbing Mike Miller who is a nice pickup, they have Chalmers on the team as well as easily signing the 3 2nd round draft picks they took for pretty cheap (and the guys they grabbed aren't terrible either). Derek Fisher was just in town as well and could be intrigued by being the point guard for a star-studded team like Miami and there have been rumors about Shaq making a return and play for cheap as their Center who would be a good fit as a banger down low and a compliment to Bosh.

I think they'll find enough solid to good players to fill in the cracks as there are plenty of guys who will want to play with this group as all 3 have proven they can and will be unselfish if the situation calls for it. I think the Heat are instantly the best team in the East...I mean teams have trouble preparing to try to guard ONE of these guys when they were on separate teams...how do you guard all 3 at the same time plus a couple of solid role players? I think they make a Finals appearance this year and I wouldn't be surprised in the least if they win it all in their first go around.

[joejlitz]

I'm just glad it is over. For over a month, I've had to listen to Mike & Mike in the Morning talk about nothing but this crap.

Conversely - If Shaq goes to Miami, I might even get interested in the NBA again.

[A Fleshner Fantasy]

Many of the top FA's are taken so Cleveland is left out in the cold.

Thing is, Cleveland is 'left out in the cold' because Cleveland CHOSE to be left out in the cold. They had every opportunity to sign free agents, and there were a bunch of good ones out there. For all the whining and bellyaching that the owner has done over the last couple days, he can look straight in the mirror and see the reason why LeBron James in no longer a Cleveland Cavalier. If he would have gone out and gotten Wade and Bosh, or Wade and Boozer, or Wade and anybody else worth their salt, LeBron would be a Cav. It was well stated for months that LeBron wanted rings and the Cleveland Cavaliers were not providing the supporting staff for them to do so. He could not do it by himself. So the Cavs did NOTHING to better their team and LeBron left. This is on them.

That's my opinion and I'm stickin to it!

He tried this. He even worked out a deal for a sign and trade to get Bosh, but Bosh refused. How is that his fault?

[Cowboys 4 life]

Looks like Stern agrees that lEbron should have told the Cavs earlier and didn't like the way he did it on national TV. He also said they acted within their rights colluding the way they did to be on the same team.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=A ... sion-stern

I think the Cavs owner went way overboard to. He was pissed that he gave lEbron everything and lEbron turned his back on his home town. He should have left that in the saved drafts to read the next day. Just cost him 100k.

Looks like the FA is working for them so far. Haslem took 14 mill less to stay in Miami and I hear they got Mike Miller although it hasn't been anounced. Still need to lock down some bigs though with minimal cash to do it. These guys are only 6' 8" and Bosh has made it well known he hates playing against bigger centers.

My Lakers are ready.

[FantasyMan13]

Its not gonna be a walk in the park as most people think, IMO. The Lakers are still the most complete team, Orlando and Boston are still great teams, the Thunder are up and coming, the Bulls are getting better, etc.

Problems I see: The enormous amount of pressure thats going to be on these guys to perform every night (LeBron has not shown an ability to respond to pressure in the playoffs); the fact that they will be playing with 9 minimum salary players; Bosh was the 3rd best power forward signed this offseason; When things go south, they are gonna go south fast.

But speaking about LeBron from an Ohioan, non-Cavs fan POV, I do not blame him entirely for this mess. ESPN is obsessed with building up superstars to be larger than life. Sure, LeBron should not have had a prime-time show dedicated to where he was signing, but its the execs at ESPN I blame for caring about ratings above all else. Superstar teams and players are all they care about, with a few side notes about other teams and players sprinkled in every so often, and dont forget the occasional heart warming story. Forget Fox News; ESPN should adopt the slogan "fair and balanced."

[bungle613]

Can anyone say lockout. This will solidify the "poor" owners stance on the ridiculous NBA structure.

[A Fleshner Fantasy]

The just signed Udonis Haslem to a 5 year, 20 mil contract, and they got Mike Miller as well. That should pretty much round out their starting 5, which is, to say the least, very solid. With that said, I love the Miller signing for them and hate the Haslem one. Miller is great for them, because they need a guy that they can pop it out to, and Miller can nail threes. That said, I'm not really sure what Haslem brings to the table. He can rebound, but that's about it, and on a team that has Lebron and Wade playing as smaller guys, rebounding really shouldn't be a huge issue anyway.

[mattb47]

About to sign Ilgauskas from Cleveland too so there's another piece. I don't think it will be "a walk in the park", it never is, but I definitely think they'll be there and I don't know that LA is definitely a more complete or better team if you really think about it. I mean I really don't see LA being able to defend those 3 guys consistently at all...Artest is no longer as elite a defender every night as he once was and while Kobe is a good defender, they generally try not to put him on a great offensive player to keep him from wearing down as much.

I don't know how it will all play out...but if these guys play as well together as I think they can, then I don't see anyone stopping them.