Lebron will be a Knick?
Based on the Knicks' salary cap... They can't afford to sign Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire and then LeBron. I'm not sure about Stoudemire, but Bosh will command a max deal... Especially after the season he's having. The Knicks can't afford to sign two max deal free-agents.
Magic Johnson said he believes LeBron James will decide to leave Cleveland to play for the Knicks -- but urges Knicks team president Donnie Walsh to lure "The King" by first signing a marquee free agent such as Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudemire.
The Hall of Fame point guard/businessman, asked by The Post for his gut feeling on LeBron in 2010, said: "I think he's going to go to New York.
"They're in the lead, they just have to make it [attractive] for him. LeBron will come to New York if he knows they're gonna win. . . . So, if they sign a free agent first, that would probably seal the deal, I believe. They should have somebody else on their radar to make him want to come."
Someone not named Dwyane Wade.
"Him and Wade can't play together, I don't care what they say, because they both dominate that ball," Magic said. "You want somebody like a Chris Bosh. . . . You want somebody like Stoudemire to go along with LeBron. You got Yao Ming, if he's healthy, I'd take a look at him as well."
Knicks fans should hope LeBron seeks out Magic's opinion -- just as Alex Rodriguez did when he was contemplating signing with the Yankees, and re-signing with them as well.
"I wouldn't say, 'Go to one place or another,' " Magic said.
But one place is the one and only place.
"He could really be a 'King' if he could revitalize the Knicks," Johnson said. "You got some of the best basketball fans in the world, and now you could be responsible for bringing a championship back to New York. Now, it's gonna take a few years, because you still gotta add more pieces. He's got more talent in Cleveland, but he can do more incredible things in New York.
"When Alex Rodriguez called me to meet with me, he flew out to Los Angeles, the first time making a decision between Boston and New York. I told him, 'This is a no-brainer, you gotta go to the Yankees. Just imagine if you win as a Yankee.' "
Then A-Rod opted out. But he quickly opted back in after another West Coast sitdown with Magic.
"I told him again, 'Can you imagine when you break the home run record as a Yankee?' " Johnson said. " 'When you're 80, people will know you as a Yankee.' "
Stoudemire would welcome a reunion with Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni, his former coach in Phoenix.
"I would say for [LeBron], and knowing what he wants to accomplish, if he said he wants to be a billionaire, or close to it, you gotta go to New York," Magic said. "And I would tell him this: 'Wherever you go, sign for three or four years, and then look at the situation.'
"If you don't like it, you could go somewhere else. I think he's looking at the Knicks very, very hard. He really probably wants to go to New York, but I think he's gonna see what both teams end up doing, who has the most talent."
A little magic from Walsh, please.
article is from the New York Post
by: Steve Serby
lol..its just magics opinion..its not based on any conversations with james..its no different then me or you saying he will be a knick..more peopel who have been closer and had convo's with bron thinks hes gonna be a cav. knicks dont have the peices to get him closer to a title. yeah he'd go there if he wasn''t bent on getting closer to a title..sorry knicks fans but its not gonna happen
People think that just because the Knicks don't have talent in 2010 then then LeBron won't go there. You guys have no long term vision. Look ahead to 2011.
In 2010 the Knicks sign LeBron
In 2011 Curry & Jefferies come of the books. Here are just a few of the big men available unrestricted free agents in 2011: Kirilenko, Perkins, Glen Davis, Diaw, Zach Randolph, Gasol, etc...
Plus Mo Williams will be a free agent in 2011. So if LeBron wants his buddy to join him in NY well then that is possible.
LeBron is smart. He is going to look past 2010 and take a look at what the Knicks could possibly have after 2011 free agency.
how do i hate on the knicks because i stat facts?..what im saying is the same thing alot of media and players are saying..the knicks even with lebron is not a title contending team. if anything you and a couple of knicks fans are just being unrealistic. they talked about it on one of the espn shows about even with lebron and another ok-good player they still wouldnt be a title contending team...lebron is smart like you said gator and hes gonna look and see what a team can do now. he wants to win now not wait. if anything he has a better chance at going to miami then he does the knicks. theres no upgrade in the post in ny..lee is gone after this year. just gotta understand chances are alot higher that he stays in clev then go to ny. and to say hes tired of playing with garbage big men liek z and shaq only makes sense if you talked to him or can read his mind. i dont think i can ever call a career 14 and 8reb guy garbage
he wouldnt win one in ny..he has a better chance in clev plus its home for him. and maybe he wants to bring a title home. i mean there are alot of players who would love to play with him. and some knicks fans used to say " the ny market" but many media and players( amare for one) said the market doesnt matter these days because you can get paid and endorsements anywhere. nike and gatorade isnt gonna pay him more because he's in ny
He could eventually win a title in Cleveland. He's one player away. If a player was willing to take less money in Cleveland such as Chris Bosh, they could win.
Dhamp2...the greatest basketball mind in the world. Next to Hubie Brown anyway.
Kenny Anderson
Sherman Douglas
Mark Price
Johnson Stockton
Rolando Blackman
i understand that ya'll love youre knicks and would love for him to come there but listen and read around and you can see the chances of him going to ny is slim. the chances of him staying are very high. and sometimes it takes awhile to win a title..how long did it take jordan to win one?..6 or seven years right?..how about hakeem?..david robinson? what i think he will do is see what clev will bring in because they got alot of money coming off the books after this year because of shaq. why not stay in clev if you can get bosh?..wit a allstar in mo williams and up and coming good player in hickson a good back up in west and worker off the bench in side show bob.
no one cares about big markets anymore. if they did duncan would have been in ny or some of the other players. ny just doesnt have the team together that will take lebron where he wants to go. clev nor ny is one of my favorite teams and i actually like ny more then i like clev but i liek to look at things realistically. ny has big money problesm and after signing lebron they wouldnt be able to get anoter good player. on top of all that d'antoni way of coaching wont get you a title. then you also hender youre self with galli playing the sf position because he cant guard a four if you are thinking of puttin ghim there and whos youre shooting guard?.wilson chandler?..yea hes talented but he's lacking in many areas. if lebron was younger then ny would have a better chance( as in being 21 20. but hes a vet that wants to win now. and clev has the edge because he is from there and has played there his whole career. if anything miami has a better chance then ny and im sure dwade will try his best to convince lebron to come. they have more money then ny and are much much much closer to a title then ny with better talent
Gatorheels, 10 years ago, I would have agreed with you. But everything Lebron can do in NewYork, he's already doing in Cleveland. Heck, he has a movie coming out, who needs Times Square. He's revolutionaizing marketing.
Dhamp2...the greatest basketball mind in the world. Next to Hubie Brown anyway.
Kenny Anderson
Sherman Douglas
Mark Price
Johnson Stockton
Rolando Blackman
heres a couple other reasons that i copied from a writer on a betting site
1. Salary Cap Of $51 Million In 2010
The top players in the league right now are making between $20 million and $23.3 million. If that’s the value of top tier talent in the NBA, nobody will be able to afford two of the top guys coming in to the fray in 2010. The league is hemorrhaging money at an NHL-level right now, and though some teams can afford the luxury tax, I’m not so sure New York can.
Currently their payroll is a bloated $86 million with the highest salary being billed by the Lakers at $91 million. Their biggest cap vampires in 2010 will be Eddy Curry (player option of $11.3 million) and Jared Jeffries (player option of $6.9 million) with about $9.1 million spread out amongst four key role players.
That leaves $27 million already committed to 2010, and just $24 million under the cap. Do you really think that the Knicks can roll out with a combination of LeBron and Bosh with a payroll of nearly $75 million devoted to just seven players? Only a lunatic like Spike Lee would put betting stock in that kind of roster.
3. Coach D’Antoni Plays An Offense Heavy System
The only guy that would want to play on a team that doesn’t play defense is Dwyane Wade. Bosh and James are very strong defensive players, and King James might be the best defensive player in the league because of his size and strength. Why would playing on a team filled with role players and one other marquee player be attractive to these guys?
They’d be chasing the scoreboard against good teams no matter whose on the Knicks. Obviously, this isn’t an offense to Mike D’Antoni. It’s just that when you have one trick in your bag, it becomes a battle of “Coach vs. Star” and right now the coach is holding all the marbles
. David Lee Is Not Under Contract In 2010
David Lee is the only reason anyone would want to sign in New York, but the Knicks are refusing to sign him to the $50-$60 million deal that he’s flat out worth. Averaging 17.9 points and 9.9 rebounds is going to bring him the big contract he wants, but it won’t come from New York unless James or Wade refuse to sign in the Big Apple.
Without Lee, the Knicks’ only dangling carrot is contract money, but even Wade and James are smart enough to realize that the league is so packed with talent that nobody can win a championship alone.
Since this offseason has been less than spectacular, we should take a closer look at the much hypedLebron/Wade/Bosh sweepstakes of next Summer. Many teams this year have been dumping salaries in the hopes of stockpiling major cash to land one of the prized free agents of ‘10. What happens if this season’s free agency moves influence the big three’s decision on whether to opt out, or not, of the last year of their contracts? Let’s take a look at each players’ individual situation.
Chris Bosh is in a similar situation as James, in Toronto. The Raptors have also brought in players to surround their superstar, like Hedo Turkoglu, to show that they are committed to putting a winning team on the floor. There have even been rumors of reuniting Bosh with former Olympic teammate Carlos Boozer, via trade, to entice their best player to not opt out in “10, or resign with the Raptors. Bosh, in this case, would also become a free agent in 2011. Although Toronto is one of the bigger NBA cities in terms of population, it is hardly considered a basketball mecca like New York or Chicago. They were barely on the NBA landscape when Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady were making the playoffs. That is why Bosh will eventually leave Canada no matter what Raptors management does. The lure of bright lights, shoe and clothing deals, and unlimited money is to much for one of the league’s most underrated players.
Dwayne Wade is probably the most likely out of the big three to become a free agent next season since his team, the Miami Heat, did the least to improve so far this offseason. Since they lost out on Lamar Odom, the Heat have also been rumored to be interested in trading for Carlos Boozer, which may be a deciding factor in Wade’s staying in Miami or testing the free agent waters next Summer. Wade, since already winning an NBA title in ‘06, may be enticed to go back to his hometown and join a team that is a player or two away like the Chicago Bulls.
The Summer of 2011 could get even more interesting since Carmelo Anthony could also become a free agent if he exercises his early termination clause in Denver. Other key free agents that Summer could include Yao Ming, Tony Parker, and Pau Gasol. Restrictive FA players could also potentially be Greg Oden and Kevin Durant.
Of the teams that would have the most money to spend, the New York Knicks are in even better shape in 2011 since the contracts of Eddie Curry and Jared Jefferies are set to expire. New York’stotal salary for the ‘11-’12 season would be just barely over $8 million. The only players under contract would be Jordan Hill, Toney Douglas, Danilo Gallinaro, and Wilson Chandler. Another season would enable the Knicks to add a 2nd and a possible 3rd scoring option in ‘10 from “B” level players like Richard Hamilton, Joe Johnson, or Ray Allen, to go along with James in ‘11.
In my opinion, the best choice for James would be to wait until 2011 since Cleveland is his best chance to win now. Although the salary cap is set to decrease next season, waiting another year may be a financially sound move because it gives the volatile economy a chance to recover and may improve any potential endorsement deals. The money will be there wherever he goes since teams will shovel boatloads of cash towards a once in a generation type player like King James, but in his quest to become the greatest player ever, and officially be mentioned in the same breath with Kobe and Jordan, Lebron knows he must go to the team that gives him the best chance to win NBA Championships.
article is from here:
http://thehoopdoctors.com/online2/2009/08/how-the-prized-2010-free-agency-could-be-pushed-to-2011/
I thought it was pretty interesting.
some players might not care about big markets, but the NBA does. The NBA tv ratings have been through the roof the past few years, as compared to the previous few. DUe to the fact that Boston, and LA have been at the forefront. You throw NY into the mix as a good playoff team with an allstar, and the ratings and interest will be that much better. You notice how you dont hear too much from San Antonio fans? Thats because there arent many of them. And when they were winning, the casual basketball fan just turned the tv off. So trust me the NBA would love to see Lebron go to NY. But to be honest Im a diehard Knicks fan, and Im not sure I want him or not. The dude is kind of a prick.
it's simple if lebron wants a championships he will go to miami, starting lineup chalmers, wade, lebron, beasley, o'neill with haslem of the bench
if he doesn't chris bosh will go there and beasley will play the three
i nearly guaarentee wade will stay
as a cleveland fan i hope lebron leaves, we have had him for six years know and we still haven't given him much help. Mo is just a glorified spot up shooter and shaq is close to death, we have no offence and our coach refuses to make substitutions because he thinks it makes him look weak. Lebron i think your the best but please, for your own sake, leave cleveland.
It was a ESPN rumor
can some one post?