If John Wall goes to New Jersey, they can make a good case to sign him. Chicago seems the most likely choice, though.
IMO King james is all about playing in front of Celebrities. Madison Square Garden is all about that. There is no bigger stage. ( other than maybe in Hollywood. ) Brooklyn is not Manhattan One thing I don't see happening is Cleveland helping Chicago by doing a sign and trade for Deng. Regardless if it would help Cleveland. They would have to offer much more than that.
Yeah, Cleveland would rather let him walk than trade him. But what a steal from the Bulls perspective.... they might as well trade Kirk Hinrich for Wade while their at it.
Hey man, my point was only that they have enough money to improve their roster, on top of signing him. I think there's a huge difference between playing for the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, and playing for NJ and Miami. I think Bron likes being in the spotlight, and playing for the Knicks would put him there. I also think he's cocky enough to think he doesn't need a second fiddle to win. And to be honest, I don't think winning matters that much to him, anyway.
Good point, I forgot roster cap holds. They'd have 6 slots open if they re-signed Lee, so that would be $2.85 million lost to those cap holds. Anyone know what a max contract is this year?
It's based on the player's prior year salary, $15M in Lebron's case. If he signs outright with another team, the first year max is 108% of 15M, or 16.2M. If he signs with Cleveland (or goes elsewhere via S&T), then it's 110.5% of 15M, or 16.65M.
Miami . . . doesn't have to live in Jordan's shadow or deal with the lowly Knick organization. Miami fits Lebron's need for a big market team, his need for an active nightlife and his greed as he will not have to pay income tax. Now that I think about it . . . I should move to Miami.
A brand new arena + LeBron + a new owner with an aura of the disreputable and dangerous. Sounds like the rebirth of Studio 54! Let the die-hards hang out at the Garden - the "hip" crowd will follow LBJ.
Answer: Mystique. The Knicks are The Knicks. They play in Madison Square Garden. The Nets are the Clippers on the East coast. Don't forget Terrence Williams, who is set to become a VERY good player. And if NJ could also sign Bosh... (And also drop the "NJ" part.) PLUS: don't forget the Nets' brand new Russian Mafia owner. The downside is, I'm not sure Harris works with James. But then again, he certainly wouldn't work worse than Wade in Miami or Rose in Chicago. If it was about chance to win, then NJ would be tied with the Clippers and the Bulls (we'll find out tomorrow if they move ahead of those two). But if it's about "mystique", then nothing beats the Knicks.
Related thought: if NJ win the Wall lottery: 1. do they trade Harris? 2. do they ask LeBron if he wants them to trade Harris? 3. do they trade Harris ASAP to get players they think will entice James most? 4. do they just play Harris and Wall together as twin combo-guards?
Only LA fans would think the two comparable. LA is notorious for fans that arrive late, leave early and check their messages throughout the game. NY fans are passionate, and Madison Square Garden is legendary. The Staples Center is...not.
That's a very good question. In their shoes, I would give the Harris/Wall combo a chance, but I doubt that is what *they* will do. My money is on #3.
