OK. It’s a bit of hyperbole—but this is the time to ponder the impossible. Actually, the impossible just became the improbable.
It’s sort of like the meager anticipation Michael Bluth had in Arrested Development when he was watching his father’s real estate firm be torn to shreds by none other than CNBC’s Mad Money guru Jim Cramer: finally raising the company’s stock from a “sell” to a “don’t buy!”
Bluth, knowing his family’s company is as hollow as a stage prop, couldn’t help but celebrate. “Alright, this calls for a celebration!”
And there I was Tuesday night celebrating every Ray Allen three-pointer or Big Baby Davis putback.
This was one of the most interesting blowouts I can remember. Even with five or six minutes left in the third, and the Celtics up by 22, I still didn’t believe Boston had this one. LeBron had to put it into overdrive and get to the foul line. Throw down one of those yet-to-be-named-violent dunks down and jump-start an arena like they were spraying Red Bull and cocaine from the ceiling.
Never happened.
Mo Williams and Daniel Gibson were heaving up 27-footers throughout the fourth quarter and Shaq was their best player—evidently that’s a symptom of a loss these days.
LeBron was so bad—3 for 14 with two of them dunks—that it’s impossible not to think about that elbow. Of course, this was a concern a few games back when he off 40-something points and 13 assists on Boston in Boston. And, to tell you the truth, I can still see him doing the same—for two games, taking at least 35 shots in both contests.
Cleveland, despite the addition of Antawn Jamison, couldn’t do anything without LeBron. It is based entirely on his ability to drive and kick, get to the free throw line or isolate on the perimeter and get easy shots on rotations after the defense attempts to close out or trap him.
They played dead Tuesday. No they played Randy-Parker-from-the-Christmas-Story-dead, deferring to a fetal position in the snow while bullies lurked.
For LeBron, this may be the worst way to go out: An injury saddling him, a broken and depleted roster with a bunch of old guys and tweeners who wouldn’t be of much use on other rosters throughout the league. If you're a Cleveland fan, what would be the use?
"Hey, at least we've got Luol Deng!....oh (*slumping into chair*)."
If he goes out, and if you remember this was the only way I believed LeBron would leave in case of an early upset, the talk of LA, New York and Chicago will never die out for two months until LeBron re-signs with Cleveland.
We have to wonder: Can he leave a city that hasn’t had a championship since 1964?
• Can he leave his hometown and the franchise that has done nearly everything but provide an-onsite brothel near the practice facility to keep James?
• Is he too sensitive, as in not wanting to leave the portly, plain-Jane girlfriend that he’s been dating for years and hurt her feelings? Or does he have the Kobe-like tolerance of being the villain and being booed every time he sets food in Cleveland?
• That, and the inevitable, LeBron will never be Michael Jordan-Kobe-Bryant-or-Magic-Johnson rhetoric.
• Take all that, and the fact that LeBron is heading into his prime (and possible elbow surgery) at 26, he may, very well, as reports show, have no fucking idea what he’s going to do.
Would you?
Well, you’re not 6’9, 280 pounds with 8 percent body fat, can leap 42 inches in the air, run the 40 in 4.4 and can shoot half-court threes like your were setting up from the free throw line. But, you’ve spent the night in a Holiday Inn (aaaaay-ohhhhhh! Zing!). Imagine for a moment that you’re the most gifted basketball player the world has just about ever seen next to Wilt Chamberlain and it’s 2010 where Twitter gives everyone an outlet for opinion.
Your legend hangs in the balance of winning a title, not maxing a six-year-deal with Cleveland instead of a five-year-deal with Chicago. What would you do?
The most logical, on paper, are the L.A. Clippers. They have Baron Davis, Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman, Blake Griffin and a vacancy at small forward. They also have the second largest basketball market in the country without a football team and a franchise that is a woeful as any in the history of American professional sports. He would be a savior.
It makes sense. But Kobe Bryant is on the Lakers, and would LeBron want to be in his town? I’d say maybe. That roster would scare the shit out of everyone in the NBA, particularly if Blake Griffin is the player we saw in college.
He’s got Baron Davis—who would surely be interested in basketball again—to run the point, Eric Gordon to space the floor with his shooting ability, Blake Griffin to be the slashing, punishing, shot-blocking, power forward and Kaman to be the spazzy, hard-working center who plays unselfishly.
Secondly, on paper, the Bulls make sense. Derrick Rose will be the best point guard in the NBA and can provide the kind of explosiveness and open-court ability that would fit LeBron James on the break (it’s always confused me why the Cavs don’t play an up-tempo game with James unparallel ability to run). He’s also the kind of player that can take over at the end of games and take the pressure of LeBron.
Joakim Noah is Anderson Varejao-but-actually-good. Luol Deng would be shipped. Kirk Hinrich gives them a defensive dimension but also would probably be shipped and Taj Gibson would be the beneficiary of many, many, many easy assists as the defense collapses on James.
The Bulls may try to go after another free agent if Hinrich and Deng are shipped as they’ll definitely need a shooter, but they are legitimate contenders for James with the big city, one that James likes and have a ready-to-win roster.
The only other two that can factor into LeBron-or-bust sweepstakes are New York and New Jersey. New York, forget it. Their roster is worse than the Cavs and bringing in Bosh doesn’t figure in as well either.
New Jersey has a good chance at John Wall or Evan Turner, they have Book Lopez and Devin Harris and that Russian guy.
For me, and this is as dispassionate as possible, I’d consider the Clippers first and the Bulls second. But I’m not LeBron James, but I did spend the night at a Holiday Inn once.
Contact Mike Mitchell at michaelkennethmitchell@gmail.com
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