LeBron commits to Cleveland?

by John Bena (aka CavsBlogger) on Jul 7, 2009 8:09 AM CDT in Fear The Rumor Mill Comment 35 comments

LeBron James is apparently pulling out all the stops in attempts to get Free Agents to come to the Cavaliers. Sources close to Free Agent Trevor Ariza have said that James told Ariza he would be in Cleveland after next season.

"Trevor asked LeBron if he would be in Cleveland after next season," the source said. "And LeBron said, 'I'll be there. Of course, I'll be there.'"

Whether or not that was simply James trying to make a sales pitch to Ariza remains to be seen, and remember, while most people believe it is a given that LeBron will opt out of his contract after next season, CBA uncertainty, along with the economy could give James reason to pause, if only for one second.

There is also the possibility that LeBron could accept an extension this summer, say, for 3 seasons. The Cavaliers are expected to offer James the extension.

According the the report, Ariza was a bit skepticle about LeBron's guarantee to remain a Cavalier -

Ariza, who had accepted a five-year, $33.5 million offer from the Rockets last Thursday, also received telephone calls from James and Shaquille O'Neal. When James told Ariza he'd be a Cavalier past next season, Ariza was less than convinced.

"He thought it was just a recruiting tool," the source said. "LeBron definitely said it, but until he signs the contract it doesn't mean much."

Again, only time will tell, but like most of us have said all along, what reason is there for James to leave Cleveland when the Cavaliers are doing anything and everything possible to make him happy?

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This really means nothing...

and is not a story at all. Ariza is still going to Houston, and that is a fact. And Lebron still hasn’t publicly said what he is going to do. This is all hearsay….true or false, it doesn’t make a bit of difference til the ‘John Hancock’ is on the dotted line.

Hey... Cleveland happens.

by zdub1983 on Jul 7, 2009 8:26 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

If I'm not mistaken...

Ariza can still back out of his commitment with Houston, I’m saying he will, I’m just saying that he still has that option. (i.e. Hedo)

He can’t sign any contract till midnight, correct?

2009 Prediction: Att - Yds - TD
Jerome Harrison 95 - 532 - 8

by Simmsinns on Jul 7, 2009 9:49 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yes you’re right.

Hey... Cleveland happens.

by zdub1983 on Jul 7, 2009 10:46 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Has this been verified by anyone other than Broussard? All the other news outlets seem to be regurgitating ESPN.

by nosey313 on Jul 7, 2009 8:48 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I don’t know if it can be verified, Broussard is citing a source he has, its not as if others would have access to this source. To me Broussard gets the benifit of the doubt (at least that he is reporting what he heard from a source anyways, without knowing the source I don’t know how reliable that person has been) because he doesn’t come off as the type of guy to create something out of nothing (I’m looking at you Steven A. Smith).

by hans on Jul 7, 2009 10:25 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

This is why I don’t take anything from unnamed sources seriously.

You know Selig? Ombudsman.

by rolub on Jul 7, 2009 11:13 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Dang.

by JulioBernazard on Jul 7, 2009 11:44 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Of course LeBron’s going to deny the report. He’s not going to commit to Cleveland yet (at least not publicly).

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 7, 2009 11:54 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

the point is, none of these things, from Lebron promising he’ll stay to denying he said that to Ariza considering a change of heart, are all from unnamed sources, the scum of the reporting world and the lifeblood of ProFootballTalk.

I was going for a personal best 5 commas in that sentence but just couldn’t do it.

You know Selig? Ombudsman.

by rolub on Jul 7, 2009 12:17 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

That was a great sentence. If you really wanted to, you could have put a comma after “world” and set your record.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 7, 2009 12:19 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

well that made no sense.

i meant to say none of those things came from the individuals, but from all unnamed sources.

You know Selig? Ombudsman.

by rolub on Jul 7, 2009 12:21 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Also in the story, Broussard reports a few reasons Ariza said he signed with Houston over Cleveland.

Sources say several factors led to Ariza’s decision. First, his toddler son lives in Los Angeles with his mother and Ariza liked that Houston was a much shorter flight than Cleveland. Second, Adelman promised him the Rockets would feature him offensively while the Cavaliers refused to guarantee him a starting job. Instead, the Cavs told him he’d be given a legitimate chance to compete for the spot against last year’s starter, Delonte West.

“He wanted to be sure he’d start,” the source said. “That was a big hang-up.”

That is definitely believable. I could see Ariza wanting to start and worried about his role with the Cavs. As I mentioned before, with the injury situations in Houston he has a chance to play a much bigger role in the offense there than he would in Cleveland, so that’s probably a big part of his decision. And I’m glad the Cavs weren’t going to hand him the starting job but make him compete with Delonte West.

The reports said he strongly considered reneging on his commitment to the Rockets but ultimately decided to keep his word.

“He’s a very loyal person,” the source said. “[Rockets coach] Rick Adelman had lunch with him for three straight days last week and that meant a lot to him.”

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 7, 2009 11:13 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

this is all funny

loyal? what about loyalty to his hometown of Los Angeles? How about the franchise that made him a star? The team that gave him his first legitimate starting job in the NBA?

Laughable, all together.

"The problem actually is that PER is a extra-long, double high wagon load of horse crap." - timbo (7/3/09)

by tandur on Jul 7, 2009 4:04 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think at this point tandur there is simply no way to avoid your bias on this matter.

by hans on Jul 7, 2009 4:17 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Right.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 7, 2009 4:21 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

True. But I also think Ariza still has a LOONG way to go and alot to prove before he is truly considered a ‘star.’

by johnnyphoenix on Jul 7, 2009 7:47 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

i understand what LeBron is doing … and i would prolly do the same if i was him. you hold out till the bitter end and you get more money. but if indeed he did promise ariza that he would stay and he thought that would get better people to join cleveland. maybe he should rethink his plan. if he really wants quality people to join the cavs and he believes the only way they will go there is if he is signed .. then maybe he should just sign. its sad that no one wants to come to cleveland that actually has some sort of future … but i wouldnt sign with a team either that has its star player unwilling to commit to the future. i think the same goes for the Heat … i doubt you are going to see any FA signings of quality young guys cause they all know D-Wade is outta there. IMO i think LeBron should just sign and get it over with already … i think that would attract a lot more players to come play with us and not just older vets looking for a ring. its a catch 22 any way you look at it. any thoughts?

by jsneides on Jul 7, 2009 1:28 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

The NBA has maximum contracts, so LeBron won’t get more money by waiting until next year to sign an extension. He’s going to get the max no matter when he signs.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 7, 2009 2:35 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

well then i guess its up to him …

by jsneides on Jul 7, 2009 2:56 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I do think that the “LeBron Brand” gets more hype this way, though. More people are talking about him and will be talking about him up until he says something publicly and/or signs his next deal—and that’s worldwide.

I don’t think that’s why we are having ‘trouble’ signing FA’s though. We don’t have a ridiculous amount of money to spend, and we are a good team with a lot of strong players with only so many minutes to go around.

by rufio on Jul 7, 2009 3:59 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

is there anyway to make delonte and mo grow a couple inches? theres gotta be some kind of growth hormone haha

by jsneides on Jul 7, 2009 4:01 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Of course. LeBron loves all the attention, as most of us would were we in the same position.

by Buckeye Brad on Jul 7, 2009 4:22 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

the cavs can’t, under the rules of the NBA, offer LeBron an extension as of yet. i’m looking for the exact date, but they aren’t even allowed to offer him a contract for him to sign at this point.

by DontCallMeJoey on Jul 7, 2009 5:00 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sometime this summer, though, right?

by rufio on Jul 7, 2009 5:02 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

yes

by DontCallMeJoey on Jul 7, 2009 5:35 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

july 18th, according to pluto

by DontCallMeJoey on Jul 7, 2009 7:15 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

LeBron didn't exactly commit...

Check this out

http://www.fearthesword.com/2009/7/7/940841/sources-lebron-denies-arizas-story

by lrh86 on Jul 7, 2009 5:05 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Thanks Portland fan, but rolub already linked that up above.

by hans on Jul 7, 2009 5:55 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Yeah I have this article talks about how LeBron is the Cavs worst recruiter

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/213640-lebron-james-cavs-worst-recruiter

by basketballfan88 on Jul 7, 2009 7:05 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I can see where this uncertain status can be a hindrance. It’s extremely frustrating at times.

by johnnyphoenix on Jul 7, 2009 7:51 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Lebron/Ariza/Cleveland

First, there are two reasons Ariza turned down james. He would have to fight a emerging West for the 2 spot. 2nd, He starts in houston and gets alot more attention and endorsements. and he’s going to make twice what we were aloud to offer. I’m happy he’s not here, Shaq’s ego check will be hard enough. But don’t think the cavs don’t have money. They sold out almost every home game. They had a ton of games on tnt. And know we have wealthy chinese partners. Thats the part that excites me most. We have these new owner d/t James who is huge in china. And when it comes to re-sign him – no price will be to high for these guys. Also I think the next big player from chona will be coming to the cavs via our new owners. Thats why I was so happy to see them get a piece of the cavs. There pockets are endless, and they hold power – like recruiting a all-star chinese player. NY this year will pay 28 million in luxury tax, and for what? A possible .500 team. How are they ever going to have room to sign any big player in 2010. Don’t believe our nation “Press”. They all write for companys owned from NY — James will be here for many years to come, but the hype over him leaving is getting desprite writers something to write about. How about they focus on how artest/kobe project is going to blow-up in there faces.

by philip e on Jul 8, 2009 9:07 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

It doesn’t matter how deep our pockets are — the NBA has salary caps and maximum contracts. Also, if your new Chinese talent is anything like Yao Ming, he would be subject to the draft and therefore unavailable to us.

by Chemo on Jul 8, 2009 10:50 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

other than that, though, this guy was spot on…

/shakes head

by DontCallMeJoey on Jul 8, 2009 11:24 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

wow

First, the MLE is the same for every team. Both Houston and Cleveland are capable of offering Ariza the exact same amount. So Trevor’s not going to make twice as much there as in Cleveland.

Second, number of games on TV does not affect how much money a team has in terms of tv revenue. However, it does increase a team’s exposure, which increases the sales of team merchandise. So Cleveland does have more money than, say Oklahoma City, to spend on players, coaches, and staff, especially on players when over the luxury tax.

Chemo is also right in that the NBA has maximum contracts, so no matter how much money the Cavs do have, they can offer James a max contract, same as everyone else. The only thing the Cavs can do that other teams can’t is offer him an extra year on the contract, and higher raises from season to season (10.5% compared to 8%). Chemo also is right that any players coming from China that are good enough to be impact players will be placed into the draft pool, limiting the chances Cleveland has to pick him. Sun Yue, a decent young point guard from China, got picked up by the Lakers last year in the draft, and he saw VERY limited playing time this season.

New York is paying massively for it’s current roster because of almost a decade of poor free agent signing, bad trades, and overall bad management. But with Donnie Walsh now in charge, the team has been slashing payroll, and will have potentially $40 million free in cap space in 2010. Here’s New York’s cap situation.

"The problem actually is that PER is a extra-long, double high wagon load of horse crap." - timbo (7/3/09)

by tandur on Jul 8, 2009 12:08 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs