The Dolphins Make Me Cry.com - Forums

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/11203027/lebron-james-says-returning-cleveland-cavaliers

I'm thankful for the 4 years.  I think this is a dumb move by LeBron.  Cleveland is a shithole and Dan Gilbert is a clown.

But he's a grown man and has to make himself happy.  Thanks for the memories.  It's been fun.

Yeah .. I'm with Dave .. I enjoyed him here .. and i think this is a really dumb move. But what can you do.

I don't see Cleveland winning in the next few years ..at this point even Indiana should beat them.

the heat are basically missing a 1st round pick every other year now too until 2020 .. but then again pat riley has been historically bad with draft picks .. so i'm assuming the heat will be in free agent acquisition mode anyways

Word is bosh is leaving too .. which gives miami a whole ton of cap space to use this year and next.

I can hear the screams of joy all the way from Boston and New York

I'm sure that's true, but it's not like they gain anything.  Miami just goes from being the favorite to Cleveland being a favorite.  They'll still be a good team....in fact, Miami still has cap space and potential players.  NY and Boston might be worse off.

Your right.   But those fans hate the Heat just because they love to hate

It was an awesome run.  It was cool to be the Yankees of basketball for a bit.The bandwagon is about to get much lighter.    ;D

He wants to rebuild his image after being a villain for 4 years. Nothing would do that more than going back to Cleveland and winning a championship. The Cavs are in good shape with Kyrie Irving and some recent draft picks, there are rumors they are even trading for Kevin Love.

They are certainly better than the Bulls now and who the hell knows what is happening with the Pacers after their collapse.

What is the most interesting thing to me is, why did Wade opt out of money he will never see again if he wasn't 100% sure they would all re-sign? Bosh is signing with Houston and Lebron is gone.

I don't get it.  Why would a player leave a team that went to the Championships four years in a row, winning two of them??  The heat wanted him back, and were willing to pay him I assume, so this just doesn't make sense.  Especially after Gilbert trashed him when he left Cleveland.

To me this is like Marino or Kelly or Brady leaving their teams after four trips to the Super Bowl.

Did you watch the Heat in the playoffs this past season? Dwyane Wade is a shell of his former self. Chris Bosh would rather chill in the corner and mortar-launch treys, rather than play like an actual power forward. The supporting cast had diminished, and Riles' answer was what? Danny "has-been" Granger and Josh "never-was" McRoberts? LeBron saw the chances of winning more titles in Miami as minimal, and wanted to go for one of his other goals...to bring a title back to his home state. Cleveland might be a shit-pile, but it's LeBron's shit-pile, and he goes to a team that has 3 of the last 4 #1 overall draft picks on the roster, two of which actually deserved to be #1 (Irving-Wiggins).

While I am a little sad that the "LeBron to Phoenix" rumors disappeared like a beer fart in the wind, I think this was actually the best move LeBron could make. I've enjoyed watching him down here the past 4 seasons, and wish him nothing but the best with the Cavs.

He is from Cleveland and if he won just one championship with them, it would trump anything he ever did in Miami. Plus, Wade is essentially done. Looks like Bosh is actually re-signing and the Heat won't lose 60 games next year, but Cleveland is in great shape with Lebron now. They have Irving and 2014 #1 overall pick Wiggins. They can add some pieces in Miller and Ray Allen.

They may be the best team in the East. Certainly better than Chicago. Only Indiana can be considered better, but they failed so spectacularly down the stretch, who knows if they even have a winning season in 2015? Cavs in the 2015 Finals is not a shock, it's pretty much expected.

Bosh stays in miami . D-wade is Riles boy no way he let him go. Dont  Hate lebron. Its a dumb move but hey at the end of the day he is a grown man and has to make his decision.  Guess the weight of being hated for yrs started to weigh on him. Thanx for the 4 yrs.  D-Wade will Always have the 1-up on ya LOL (rings).  Seriously, I dont see cleveland being any better with Irving, Bennet, and wiggins.  Cleveland fans already saying their big 3 is better than Miami. 

LeBron is from the area and was drafted by the Cavs.  He took the Cavs to the Finals almost single-handededly.  That is not a valid comparison.

For you guys bashing Cleveland as a city, I've stayed in better parts of Cleveland than some of the shithole, bars on every window neighborhoods I've been in while staying in Miami. Shitholes are not exclusive to other cities.

Come on man. When you're a multi millionaire the best parts of Miami far outweigh the best parts of Cleveland...or most anywhere in america.

And now Kevin Love is rumored to be going to the Cavs, just have to find a 3rd team because they won't include Wiggins.

Basically, the Cavs are doing what the Heat did that essentially made the league have 3-4 super teams and everyone else sucks. If this goes through, the Cavs are going to dominate the East like the Heat did unless a miracle happens and in 2015 the Knicks actually get more pieces to complement Carmelo if he returns.

Being a lifelong Knicks fan, I assure you they will screw that up somehow.

If this isn't the "feel good" story of the year, I don't know what is. I wish Lebron & Cleveland the best. The man has a chance to do something very special. I hope he achieves it. Now if only Orlando could grow some home area, once in a lifetime talent....

5 years $118 million for Bosh??  Riley overplayed his hand big time.  This move reeks of desperation.

Bosh's game had to change because he was now the 3rd scoring option. Now, he can go back to being the primary weapon. He was going to get a max contract from other teams, so of course Miami had to match. He will put up better numbers.

To me, he's still a power forward who wants to play small forward

Now he's their only power, going forward.

Personally, I don't think he's a max deal type of player. There should only be about 10-15 of those in the whole league if even, but sometimes a team overpays because they have to. Hell, I bet right now if the entire league became free agents, about 50 players would get max deals.

This is why they had a labor strike a few years back, so that guys like Stephon Marbury can't make $23 Million a year for 5 years anymore. Only guys who actually help a team like Lebron and Kevin Durant.

Can you name 15 players in the league that are clearly better than Chris Bosh?

Lebron James, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant, Paul George, Russell Westbrook, James Hardin, Dwight Howard, Tony Parker, Dirk Nowitski, Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry, Deron Williams, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love, Kyle Lowery.  I think that's fifteen

Chris Paul is another.

This isn't a knock on Bosh because I think he is going to have an excellent season in 2015, I just don't think he's a guy that a team can win titles with if he is "the man". Not that everyone else on the list has, but not all circumstances are created equally.

Chris Bosh is like a Scottie Pippen.  He can't win titles without Lebron James (Michael Jordan)

Not in the current NBA format where a guy like Lebron can join Kyrie Irving and still not the frontrunner for the NBA title. It's a league of supergroups and Miami started it to perfection.

For the record, Lebron's contract is just for 2 years with an opt out for NEXT SUMMER. So, it's quite possible he leaves Cleveland in 2015 if things go poorly or they win it all and his mission is accomplished. It's probably so he can get a longer max deal to end his career with the new TV Contract the NBA will get soon.

Still, don't think you won't hear a lot about him opting out considering the Knicks will have a ton of cap space next summer and a Top 10 player already on their roster.

Miami didn't start it.  The 95-96 Bulls did with Jordan, Pippen and Rodman.  That team may quite possibly be the best ever assembled.  A big three group is nothing new.   The 07-08 Celtics also did it with Pierce, Garnett and Allen.  The Knicks tried to do it but screwed it up like everything else they do.

Depends on how you define it.  AFAIK, the original "Big Three" were Bird, McHale, Parish... but Boston traded for Parish at the same time they drafted McHale, which was directly after Bird's rookie season (and Parish had never been an All-Star before the trade), so those three "came up" together.

If you're talking about a team with one really good veteran acquiring two more really good veterans at the same time and immediately becoming contenders, I think Pierce/Garnett/Allen started it.

Yeah, I think you're right about Boston. Although, even though they won the title and were contenders for years, I still think the Heat did it the best with what they acquired via free agency. Not very often you get the best player in the game to play with one of the Top 5 best and another Top 15 player.

I think people forget, that Bosh was "Kevin Love" in Toronto. A big who can drop 20 & grab 10, with outside range. That's not a skill that grows on trees. It's an asset that got two titled in Miami.  No player is winning a title by themselves. If Miami didn't pay Bosh, they're a lottery team today. At the same time, there is a salary floor in the NBA. If Bosh was on my Magic, they're a playoff team. So how does Bosh not make your team better?

That's a good point.  You can say that Love (as the best player on a crappy team)  is "clearly better" than Bosh right now, but put Love on any team where he's the third-best player on the floor (e.g. OKC) and I doubt you'd think so highly of him.

I'm actually fairly impressed with what Pat Riley has done this offseason. You could make the case that losing the best player in the NBA for nothing in return is the worst possible thing to happen to any franchise in the league. Coming back with a roster that will probably end up as a top 3 seed in the conference as a result is quite the bit of work.

Yeah, the HEAT come away from this looking good, IMO.  There was no saving Lebron and we're going to manage to put a competitive team on the floor next year.  I think that a 4 seed is what you're looking at (or thereabouts).  ...not championship calibur, but you can play spoiler.

I really respect the HEAT and this whole Lebron thing makes me like them even more.  They have it together.  They do things the right way.  Their philosophy, win or lose, is something to be proud of.

It makes me feel that we lost out on the greatest talent that this city will ever see, but we'll still bounce back because we have championship DNA.

I disagree about the seeding.  With as weak as the East is, the Heat will be a #3 seed at worst.  I cab easily see them in the ECF next season.

Their division is pretty weak, so if Wade can play 20-25 minutes a game as a very good role player, Bosh turns into a 24/10 guy and everyone else does their part, they can still easily win their division. The Cavs are now the class of the East, but everything else is still a mess. I have no idea what is going on with the Pacers. The Bulls can't rely on Rose to walk, let alone play and the Atlantic is so crappy, the freaking Knicks have a very good shot of winning the division with Phil Jackson adding stability.

I would be surprised if the Heat returned to the Finals, but it wouldn't be the most mind boggling thing ever.

I don't see how you can say a #3 at worst.  They were a 2 seed with Lebron.  Chicago, Indiana, Cleveland are definitely capable of doing well....and don't discount Washington.

Does turning Bosh into a 24/10 guy require your basic abra-cadabra sort of magic incantation, or is there a blood sacrifice involved?

Yeah I don't see how they could be a #3 at worst either.  Wade is on the downside of his career, and he sat out time last year to give him rest, now he would be forced to play more.  Don't discount Boston, they drafted a couple good players in the first round this year.

The only reason they were #2 last seaSon is because the Pacers were frauds and playing lights out for a portion of the season.  Come spring we saw who they truly were.  Add five more games to the regular season and the Heat would've had the top seed. 

Chicago will never be the same without Derek Rose being what he used to be.  Washington will find a way to screw up what they currently have.  Cleveland scares me though with Erving and Wiggins and possibly Love teaming up with LeBron.

LeBron, Love and Irving would definitely be impressive, but there is no way that Minnesota trades Love to Cleveland without Andrew "Ender" Wiggins coming back in the deal.

We'll have to wait and see on that one.  Minnesota has told Cleveland that any deal for love would have to include Wiggins.  Cleveland says they will not trade Wiggins.  We'll see who blinks first.

5-7 Virgins would have to die, I haven't run thorough calculations yet.

In all seriousness, he was a 24/11 guy his last year in Toronto. So, if, and I stress IF, he is the main focus of the offense again and it changes to suit his strengths, then it really wouldn't be a shock if he turns back into that.

This was old news by the time you reported it. Reports are that Cleveland has been offering Wiggins, Bennett & their first rounder next year but that Minnesota wants more than that for Love.

I'm really amazed by all of this. People honestly think the Heat are a 3 seed at worst? Toronto, Indiana, Cleveland, Washington, Atlanta, and Chicago all have better rosters. Good luck getting out of the 1st round of the playoffs, let alone a 3 seed.

Chicago has a better roster than the heat IF rose is healthy
Indiana has a better roster than the heat IF Hibbert stops putting up 0 pt. 0 reb games, losing stevenson will hurt them alot.
Cleveland has lebron .. and then a PG that has missed more games with injury than Wade has
Toronto doesn't have a better roster than the heat and hasn't added anyone.
Washington lost ariza and. they couldn't afford that to begin with.
Atlanta won't even finish 3rd in the division, much less the conference.

I wouldn't be offended by the notion that Chicago, Indiana or Cleveland could finish with a better record than Miami .. those other teams .. no

You also missed out on Charlotte .. they had a pretty decent team last year and they've only added talent

^^^^^ You're right. I dropped Charlotte off of my list. I think that's one team Miami will finish higher than. Atlanta was 3rd in the conference before their best player (Al Horford) got hurt. They still made the playoffs and gave Indian fits in the 1st rd. Toronto should repeat as division champs. Rose or no Rose, Chicago is still a beast. They did get better without adding Carmelo. Indiana is still Indiana until proven otherwise. So that's still 5 teams that I feel will finish higher than Miami. Miami will still be a playoff team. Just on the bottom edge of the tree.

I think it would be a big mistake to trade Wiggins for Love.

Wiggins' salary is the big difference; CLE can keep him and pick up some more veteran help.  Love will soak up all available salary.

as a heat fan .. i'm hoping the trade of wiggins + bennett + 1st rounder in 2014 for love goes through .. there is no quicker way for cleveland to mess their team up than that

Three Max contracts on the same team. Where have I seen that before?

Irving and Wiggins are on rookie contracts, not max contracts.  Love wouldn't be on a max contract, either.

Kyrie signed a max extension at the beginning of this month. Love would be expected to the same (or near it) if traded to Cleveland.

The top 4 seeds are determined by the 3 division winners and the non-division winner with the best record. Miami's division isn't strong, and they can very conceivably win their division and beat up the crap teams enough to have a Top 3 record, if not more.

The East is still a mess, they just gained a new top dog in  Cleveland and knocked Miami down some.

Every time I see this thread I can't help but hear the Budweiser commercial "I'm coming Home" from the Super Bowl about Lt. Chuck Nadd coming home.

"Every soldier deserves a hero's welcome!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7L5QByvXOQ

I don't think you have.  None of the Big 3 had max contracts.  They all took less money to help pad the bench.