LeBron James decision recalls one by Kobe Bryant: LeBron James Rumor Mill

Chasing down rumors about LeBron James' basketball future could be a full-time job. Every day we'll compile a list of the rumors we're hearing about James and his next contract. Just remember these are just rumors, not necessarily facts.

With anticipation grown for James' announcement on ESPN at 9 p.m. on Thursday, we're posting rumors as we hear them today.


A thoughtful piece from ESPN's J.A. Adande compares James decision to that of Kobe Bryant six years ago.

Writes Adande,
"Of course it would end like this, with a personal decision that has become public property, offered for the world to consume on live TV. Everything has been building toward this LeBron James announcement on ESPN on Thursday night. Not since Game 5, not since his last visit to Madison Square Garden, not even since he and Dwyane Wade signed the contracts with a 2010 opt-out that turned this summer into Armageddon. This is almost two decades in the making, a product of a culture that long ago removed the borders between reality and reality TV.''

Adande says Bryant handled his decision in much the same way James has.

"People that wonder how Kobe Bryant would have handled this have short memories. He strung everyone along before his opt-out summer of 2004, just as LeBron did. He had the Bulls, Knicks and Clippers come meet him, just as LeBron had teams meet him. (Although at least Kobe's pursuers got to go to Newport Beach instead of Cleveland). Two year later, Kobe changed his number, just as LeBron will next year. So it's a mistake to say Kobe wouldn't have done it the way LeBron did it. He has. He also went on radio to demand a trade, then appeared on another show to retreat from that position, then charged forward again in a different radio appearance. That was followed by the secretly taped parking-lot conversation in which he took swipes at teammate Andrew Bynum and Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak. Kobe didn't use technology; technology used him.''

LeBron headed to New York either way


From ESPN.com's Chris Sheridan: "We know one thing for sure about LeBron's future: He is coming to New York this weekend, according to the New York Post, to attend Carmelo Anthony's wedding to LaLa Vazquez.''

Tweeting frenzy

James announcement of his impending announcement has set the sports world atwitter.

Some of the best recent tweets:

• KCJHoop (K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune): 45 hours until LeBronathon ends. Here's a shot at rankings that have never changed for me: 1) Cavs; 2) Bulls; 3) Nets; 4) Knicks.

• AschNBA (Steve Aschburner of NBA.com): Once LeBron announces, will an ESPN scribe "confirm?"

• MaureenEF (Maureen Fulton, former Plain Dealer intern and Toledo Blade reporter): Brett Favre thinks LeBron needs to tone down the drama 'king' act a few notches.

And four good ones from Frank Isola of the New York Daily News:

1. Until LeBron speaks, I still rank it as Cavs, NY, NJ, Heat, Bulls & Clips. Lakers are out cause they already have greatest baller on earth

2. Sources: LeBron’s decision to be based on which team’s bench players create most insufferable dance routine during player introductions

3. There hasn't been this much anticipation about an athlete's future since the O.J. Simpson verdict

4. Too bad LeBron didn't put this much thought and energy into Game 5 against Boston.

Never tell me the odds

According to Predicto, a vote-by-text poll site, James will return to the Cavs. Predicto is the only mobile voting game with more than 1 million subscribers. The Cavs earned 30 percent of the votes, followed by the Knicks with 27 percent and the Bulls with 26 percent.

New odds on where James will play next season have upgraded the Heat and downgraded the Bulls, though the Cavs remain the favorite.

NBA Free Agency Rumor: LeBron James' Choice Down To Cavs Or Heat

How does the news that Chris Bosh has opted to join Dwyane Wade in Miami, eschewing a potential sign-and-trade to Cleveland, affect where everybody's favorite Global Icon, LeBron James, lands? Well, if an anonymous team official from one of the franchises pursuing James is to be believed, it means James will either follow Bosh to Miami or re-sign with the Cavs, according to Yahoo!'s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Throughout the melodrama that has been this summer's free agency, rumors have swirled that the trio of James, Wade and Bosh intended to join force in Miami and form a super-team. James was expected to be the first domino to fall in the line of NBA mega-free agents, but by preemptively committing to Miami, Bosh and Wade have effectively pressured James to do so as well. Aside from questions about whether jumping ship to Miami would "diminish the LeBron brand" by having to share the spotlight, the biggest obstacle for the proposed super-team would be that they'd only be able to add minimum contract players (in addition to their four second-round picks from this past year's draft) to their roster. Then again, they'd have LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh...it shouldn't be too hard to convince some ring-hungry vets to sign on as mercenaries for a year or two.


Beyond hometown loyalty, it's not clear what would entice James to remain in Cleveland. Indeed, after failing to convince Bosh to accept a trade to the Cavs, it's difficult to see how they could measurably improve their roster to compete in what figures to be an increasingly competitive Eastern Conference, with the Heat figuring to contend along with the Magic and Celtics.

Meanwhile, the ubiquitous Chris Broussard of ESPN (via Arash Markazi) disputes that the Heat and Cavs are the only remaining contenders for LeBron James' services, adding that the Bulls remain in the mix. According to Broussard, the Heat are the frontrunners for James at this point, with the Bulls the second favorites and the Cavs third.