Would you want Lebron in 2017

This is entirely hypothetical, but I'm curious to hear your take. Lebron's contract is up in 2017. Cleveland is not going to win it this year, and not in 2017 either. They have given Lebron everything he wants (Love, Thompsen, JR, etc, etc), but its just not working. The chemistry is awful. I suspect Lebron can barely stomach playing with a selfish point guard like Kyrie. He and Love don't seem to be bros. Rebuilding in Cleveland around Lebron is not realistic at this point - he is too old. He needs a team that is already built, that is one star away from contending. Lebron is a smart guy, and I'm sure he sees this. He wants an historical legacy, but knows he is not quite there - he needs more rings. What is he thinking? He looks around the league - GS is still GS, and maybe the Spurs are still the Spurs. He could go to one of them on a discount to get a ring, but do you really think Lebron wants to go down as a ring chaser, riding on Steph's or Kawhi's coat tails? No. He looks around. What team could he quickly transform? What team has all the pieces in place - a great coach who has implemented a great system; a great GM who doesn't commit to stupid signings; a team of talented, hi bbiq players who play the game the right way? The answer is obvious. Lebron has already admired Brad publically. Is it unreaonable to think he would look at this situation and think, man, with me on this team, 2 or 3 championships is realistic?

My question: would the more-or-less current Celtics plus Lebron be in the same league as GS and SA? If Lebron wanted to play with our team-game squad under Brad, would you even want him? Personally, I think he would thrive with the Celtics. I don't think he really want s to play iso-hero ball, and that he would love playing team ball. I think he would respect Brad, and not undermine him. I think that is he does bring a championship or two, Boston would ensure him a god-like legacy, maybe not like Russell, Brady, Bird, or Orr, but he would be forever loved in Beantown.

All this is total fantasy, and there is no hint of a rumor that it could ever come to fruition, but I'm curious to hear what you all think. Of course this assumes we don't get our super-duper star in free agency this summer.....

No! And hell no!

I'd rather cheer for that purple and gold team from the left coast.

No to LeBron, for multiple reasons, both basketball-related and non-basketball-related.

LeBron wants power over a franchise. He doesn't want anyone telling him what to do, he wants his posse in positions of privilege within the franchise, and he wants veto power over what the coach says. It's a position that throws the balance of the franchise out of whack and corrupts all kinds of relationships within the franchise. Throw in his passive-aggressive way of dealing with conflict, and it makes pretty much everything that happens off the court full of unnecessary tension and counterproductive to the objective of winning a championship.

From a basketball standpoint, I thought LeBron had seen the light in the middle of his Miami tenure and realized that team play was the way to go, but it turned out that he grated against that and longed to return to a LeBron-centric style of play. My theory is that he honestly believes the force of his individual greatness is the path to success and championships, or at least he's convinced himself of that. At this point, he only wants a team where he dominates play, where most of the offense is him having the ball and deciding whether to drive to the hoop, shoot a jumper, or pass to a spot-up shooter or cutter. The other players are pieces whose purpose is to support what he wants to do rather than everyone being part of a unified team, and when things go wrong, he never accepts blame and always finds fault in his teammates. Everyone and everything else has to adapt to him and his individual greatness. All that would be the opposite of what the Celtics have built, where everyone works together in service of the whole.

On top of that, he's past his peak, and the downside of his career is coming fast. All that bulk that he's moved with such explosiveness has taken a toll on his body. His jumper has already started to desert him -- his percentages from three or even outside the paint have fallen drastically. He used to be a superior defender, but now he gives defensive effort only occasionally, and he's actually a liability on defense much of the time and expects his teammates to cover for him. He has declined noticeably in the past couple of years, and within a few years, nagging injuries and diminished performance will reduce him to a mere mortal.

None of that fits in with where the Celtics are going. They need to add a star, but they need one who puts the team above himself, like Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Tim Duncan, or Kawhi Leonard. The ideal situation would be to acquire a young, emerging star, not an old, declining one, particularly one who comes with a freight train of baggage like LeBron.

nope

he's on the downside now with a LOT of miles on those legs.

Hi,
I add one more "NO". As for reasons - I don't have anything to add to what Outside and Kdp said.
I have a better idea: Let's concentrate our collective mental power on convincing KD and Horford to come and play for Celtics.

AK

While I am not as convinced LeBron James is on his last legs, I still am going to agree with Sinus's final point.  We should focus on Durant and Horford.  LeBron cannot leave Cleveland, Irving and Love or no Irving or Love.  He has already left home once before and they took him back with open arms and all was forgiven.  If he leaves as a free agent, without the Cavaliers getting a KG-to-Boston type of deal, he will never be able to go home again and I don't see him doing that.  He has invested too much emotional capital into rehabilitating his reputation after stiffing "The Land" with his "I'm taking my talents to South Beach" decision.

Setting aside the likelihood of LeBron leaving Cleveland, sure, I'd take him.  He's a draw for other great talent.  Tim Duncan is at the very end of a very long career.  His skills have obviously diminished some, but he was still able to help draw LaMarcus Aldridge and David West to San Antonio just as KG  was able to bring talent to Boston in what everybody thought would be his last few years .

Talent wants to play with talent. Winners want to play with winners. That is why it was so important for Isaiah Thomas to make the all-star team. It gave us a player other all-stars would have respect for and have interest playing with.


bob


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I will add a strong NO!!!!!!!! to go along with the rest. I agree with most of other's reasons for NO! and I will add another:

We are building a "team" and LeBron does not understand the true definition of the word. When our team finally gets to the next level, I for one will take great joy in beating LeBron and the Bron-ettes, each and every time we play them!

gyso

No

Don't like him PERIOD !! End of story.

beat

Pretty much what I expected. I guess I would agree with Bob, I'd take him but would definitely prefer KD and Horford (or even just KD or just Horford). The scenario I painted is IF we strike out this summer on free agency and IF the situation in Cleveland continues to implode. I also agree that there is almost no way Lebron's image could surviving ditching Cleveland again. However, if he wanted to come, I would definitely take him - he is objectively ne of the best players to ever play the game, and even if he is one the decline at 32 he will still be better than 90% of the league.

I wonder how Ainge what answer the question ?

swish

swish wrote:I wonder how Ainge what answer the question ?

 swish

Ainge would deny wanting him even as the ink on the deal was drying.. and then smile to himself thinking about how smart he was to even find a way to aquire a draft pick out of the deal...

LeBron is a crazy power scoring forward version of Wilt.  One of the greatest players of all time, but his focus more on individual and less on team is what will leave him with only 2 championships on his resume unless he tries to steal one/take a pay cut on the way out.

Keep in mind he took CLE last year on his back without Love and Kyrie all the way to the finals and with a few favorable bounces, they could have been champs. It is clear he can take ANY team to the finals (which for the most part he has), but at 2-5 now, things are looking a little iffy. Let's not forget...he's still LeBron!  

db