LeBron James free agency: Making the case for each finalist

LeBron James’ next team remains a mystery. The new iteration of “The Decision” has more or less left everyone in the dark, and has an extremely different air than past choices. Rather than being the nexus of a championship team, the 41-year-old iteration of LeBron instead serves as the indispensable veteran, the glue guy, someone who gets added to be the third option on an established contender to push them over the hump. There’s incredible appeal for his skills with so many teams mortgaging the future to win right now, and if LeBron is the final piece of the puzzle, he’ll be well worth it.

Now we dive into the six teams who seem to be the favorites to land LeBron and break down why (and why not) it’s a good fit for him.

Cleveland Cavaliers

There’s poetry in the symmetry and seeing a career come full circle. Over the span of his 20+ years in the league LeBron went from hometown hero, to villain, to returning savior — and this would be a chance to potentially land one more championship for Cleveland before hanging it up.

There’s a lot to like here. The Cavs have their microwave scorers in Donovan Mitchell and James Harden, their bigs are established as well with Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. If you slot LeBron into the lineup, it gives the Cavs the most complete and well-rounded starting five in the NBA. There is absolutely no doubt this team would win a lot of games and dominate the regular season.

Notice that caveat, because that’s what is critical here. There is no doubting Cleveland would be a great team, but a championship team? That remains to be seen. This is a landing spot that doesn’t really have that bonafide superstar on its roster. Mitchell and Harden are great, but compared to some of these landing spots there’s just not the same punch. Also the entire purpose of LeBron going to a new team is explicitly to win a championship, and this would be going to a team that is inherently relying on James Harden to show up in the postseason, a guy who frankly has a reputation for fading away when games matter the most.

That makes Cleveland an A+ spot for Bron when it comes to the vibes, but far below average when we talk about actually winning a trophy.

Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets are a team in this process that hasn’t really been discussed a lot, but it’s a team that makes a lot of sense. The biggest blocker for Denver right now (like most of the West) is trying to solve the Victor Wembanyama problem — and while LeBron doesn’t solve the issue, it would be an additive piece to spread the floor more and give the offense more dynamism.

LeBron would be the ideal third option glue guy for Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, slotting into the lineup beside the two stars, and Aaron Gordon. One of the big advantages the Nuggets have is that they wouldn’t have starters operating on an island, considering their bench depth. It would mean that the Nuggets would have a very compelling total roster that could make a run to the NBA Championship.

There are some downsides here too: Sticking in the West means dealing with Wemby, which is a factor every player has to consider when it comes to trying to win a championship. In addition, Denver would be a very small market for LeBron to land in, and that is a factor in all this as well. There is a chasm of difference between Cleveland with its lifelong ties to James, and Denver where he effectively has no prior relationships.

Overall it would be a solid landing spot for LeBron which wouldn’t really make or break anything. The Nuggets would be a top contender in the west, but perhaps not the favorites for the NBA Championship.

Golden State Warriors

There’s been a lot of hype behind the idea of LeBron going on a run with Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler — three aging superstars trying to get another ring like it’s The Bucket List.

It would be undeniably fun to have three players like this on the court together, and really bring back some rapid 2010s nostalgia — but this would be a bit of a wild decision. The Warriors are on the verge of fundamental change as they face the eventual retirement of Steph, and the team has made some smart moves when it comes to trades and the draft, but still feels like they’re a little bit too far away compared to their peers.

Joining the Warriors after the Lakers feels too much like a lateral move. It might sound fun, but I don’t think LeBron makes them a championship-caliber team in the West.

Miami Heat

Another chance of history repeating comes from Miami, which obviously brings the Big Three potential when it comes to winning a title. Putting LeBron James alongside Giannis and Bam Adebayo is fascinating, with the Heat already boasting one of the best bigs in the league, and now one of the ultimate do-everything superstars in the NBA.

The big issue here is looking at the Heat as a total team. This is very similar to past LeBron experiments with superstars — then nothing else. The question is whether a core of Giannis/LeBron/Bam is good enough to mitigate the lack of talent the rest of the roster has? Andrew Wiggins is fine, but after that the roster falls off a cliff. In order for James to guarantee a championship he really has to believe the three stars are enough to win it all.

Ultimately, I don’t think they are. The pairing of Giannis and Bam is solid, but unless the Heat are able to pull off a flurry of moves post-LeBron they have one of the weakest total rosters in the NBA right now besides their stars. This imagined team could compete in the East, but I don’t know if they’re close to being the best team in the East.

Philadelphia 76ers

The long-suffering Sixers haven’t won a championship since 1983, despite being favored so many times over the years. Philly has been trying to mash rosters together to get them over the hump to no avail, but this really might be the moment it comes together with the coup that led to the Sixers landing Jaylen Brown.

On paper the idea of Jaylen Brown/Joel Embiid/LeBron James seems absolutely incredible. It’s a lineup that checks all the boxes, especially when you factor in the other players that Philadelphia has like Tyrese Maxey and V.J. Edgecombe. It would be a unit with star power and depth.

The perennial question remains: Can Embiid remain healthy? Year in, year out this team has lived and died by the big man’s ability to play and that is a very iffy proposition. LeBron needs to look at this roster and ask himself if he thinks it can contend in the East if Embiid isn’t able to play — because that’s the new normal. That is a big ask, but perhaps the idea of Maxey/Brown/Bron is good enough regardless of what happens in the middle.

Minnesota Timberwolves

This team is all-in trying to prove they can be a contender and keep Anthony Edwards long-term, trying desperately not to repeat the mistakes the organization made with Kevin Garnett. In this scenario we have LeBron suiting up alongside Edwards and LaMelo Ball to form one of the more bizarre Big Threes we’ve seen, but nonetheless potentially effective.

There are some other nice pieces here too in Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosunmu, meaning Minnesota has some ability at all five positions. The primary problem is they really lack bigs at the moment, and bigs are everything in the West — while also raising questions is LeBron is really to play basketball dad to Edwards and Ball, who frankly aren’t the most structured of superstars in the NBA.

Overall this is an interesting small-market fit, but feels far too much like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. LeBron would leave a Lakers team with electric guard play and no paint presence, and gain… electric guard play with no paint presence. Fun idea, but doesn’t make a lot of sense in the end.