Lebron opting out of his contract

[metaldude26]

As has been mentioned, he isn't chasing the money here. He signed for less to come to Miami and he'll sign for less again if it gets him a chance to win. Regardless of whether he takes the max or not he is still getting underpaid. Dude should be making $60 million annually at least if we were talking about real value.

I think Lebron still returns with Miami. This is likely about getting a better deal in place for winning there and making sure that the rest of the Heat get in order as well. This is a team that cut a guy in Mike Miller, who would have been a serious asset again this season, just to save money. Lebron needs to make sure the Heat are in the business of keeping a contender around him.

Lebron is all about his legacy. He cares about it more than you can imagine. He knows that if he leaves Miami for another destination that he'll be branded a mercenary. Whether that's fair or not that's what the perception will be, since that's already the case in the mind of many. Now, he could return to Cleveland and that would be okay but otherwise that's not a move he can really make.

And just to be clear about the whole "Magic and Michael never left nonsense" well Magic and Michael also didn't have to leave. Magic was drafted onto a team with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, a top-five player all-time. He had success instantly with the Lakers and the team added more Hall-of-Famers through shrewd drafting and because they played playing in Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball. Just to reiterate, Magic played in freaking Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball!!! No shit he never left.

Michael played in another huge media market and while it took much longer for him to have success he was eventually surrounded with a great deal of talent including another Hall-of-Famer in Pippen, not to mention Rodman down the line. Now, it is fair to say that Michael never would have left Chicago to go join someone else's team. He was way too cut-throat for that. But if Chicago doesn't get Pippen or an all-time great coach in Phil Jackson couldn't you see him leaving Chicago for huge money because his owner was a complete cheapskate?

I'm sorry but just because other great champions didn't have to move to eventually win doesn't mean that it's wrong to do so. Give me a break. Relating this back to hockey, I suppose Ray Bourque winning the Cup with the Avalanche was a horrible moment - a slight on the sport. Or you know what, screw Joe Sakic, he signed an offer sheet with the Rangers so who cares that the Avalanche matched, he still quit on his team. I could go on.

I mean, just look at the roster he dragged to the NBA Finals in 2007. That team wasn't winning shit. It's a miracle and a testament to Lebron's genius that they made it as far as they did. That Finals was a thousand times worse than this year's Finals and I'd bet goes down as the worst Finals ever. The West had at least five of the league's best six teams that year. Whoever made the Finals out of the West was winning no matter who made it. The point is, Lebron didn't get shit for help in Cleveland so it's no wonder he left. The Decision was completely abhorrent but you have to respect the decision to leave. Four Finals appearances and two rings in four years? Gimme a break. Dude is great. Just shut up and watch the genius at work.

[MXHockey]

As has been mentioned, he isn't chasing the money here. He signed for less to come to Miami and he'll sign for less again if it gets him a chance to win. Regardless of whether he takes the max or not he is still getting underpaid. Dude should be making $60 million annually at least if we were talking about real value.

I think Lebron still returns with Miami. This is likely about getting a better deal in place for winning there and making sure that the rest of the Heat get in order as well. This is a team that cut a guy in Mike Miller, who would have been a serious asset again this season, just to save money. Lebron needs to make sure the Heat are in the business of keeping a contender around him.

Lebron is all about his legacy. He cares about it more than you can imagine. He knows that if he leaves Miami for another destination that he'll be branded a mercenary. Whether that's fair or not that's what the perception will be, since that's already the case in the mind of many. Now, he could return to Cleveland and that would be okay but otherwise that's not a move he can really make.

And just to be clear about the whole "Magic and Michael never left nonsense" well Magic and Michael also didn't have to leave. Magic was drafted onto a team with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, a top-five player all-time. He had success instantly with the Lakers and the team added more Hall-of-Famers through shrewd drafting and because they played playing in Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball. Just to reiterate, Magic played in freaking Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball!!! No shit he never left.

Michael played in another huge media market and while it took much longer for him to have success he was eventually surrounded with a great deal of talent including another Hall-of-Famer in Pippen, not to mention Rodman down the line. Now, it is fair to say that Michael never would have left Chicago to go join someone else's team. He was way too cut-throat for that. But if Chicago doesn't get Pippen or an all-time great coach in Phil Jackson couldn't you see him leaving Chicago for huge money because his owner was a complete cheapskate?

I'm sorry but just because other great champions didn't have to move to eventually win doesn't mean that it's wrong to do so. Give me a break. Relating this back to hockey, I suppose Ray Bourque winning the Cup with the Avalanche was a horrible moment - a slight on the sport. Or you know what, screw Joe Sakic, he signed an offer sheet with the Rangers so who cares that the Avalanche matched, he still quit on his team. I could go on.

I mean, just look at the roster he dragged to the NBA Finals in 2007. That team wasn't winning shit. It's a miracle and a testament to Lebron's genius that they made it as far as they did. That Finals was a thousand times worse than this year's Finals and I'd bet goes down as the worst Finals ever. The West had at least five of the league's best six teams that year. Whoever made the Finals out of the West was winning no matter who made it. The point is, Lebron didn't get shit for help in Cleveland so it's no wonder he left. The Decision was completely abhorrent but you have to respect the decision to leave. Four Finals appearances and two rings in four years? Gimme a break. Dude is great. Just shut up and watch the genius at work.

Great post, and LOL you're right that 2007 supporting cast in Cleveland is horrible.

[The Bottlenecker]

Look, I am not even basketball's biggest fan, and maybe the feeling that Lebron is becoming "a mercenary" is my biggest problem with him, and I think that is what pisses people off the most about him, thus negatively affecting his legacy (which is where I started in this thread).

Nobody in Boston felt the same way when Ray Bourque left for Colorado, and Bourque even brought the Stanley Cup back to Boston after he won it with the Avalanche. He was cheered! If Lebron had flaunted either of his championship wins within 50 miles of Cleveland, he would have been lynched.

Why? And this is where I go back to the cheapening of his legacy to the sport...because of the "how" he did it & with whom (a "super" team).

This has been fun, seeing e different opinions, and I hope nobody has been offended by my / and other's opposing thoughts.

[Daydream Nation]

And just to be clear about the whole "Magic and Michael never left nonsense" well Magic and Michael also didn't have to leave.

Michael played in another huge media market and while it took much longer for him to have success he was eventually surrounded with a great deal of talent including another Hall-of-Famer in Pippen, not to mention Rodman down the line. Now, it is fair to say that Michael never would have left Chicago to go join someone else's team. He was way too cut-throat for that. But if Chicago doesn't get Pippen or an all-time great coach in Phil Jackson couldn't you see him leaving Chicago for huge money because his owner was a complete cheapskate?

I mean, just look at the roster he dragged to the NBA Finals in 2007. That team wasn't winning shit. It's a miracle and a testament to Lebron's genius that they made it as far as they did. That Finals was a thousand times worse than this year's Finals and I'd bet goes down as the worst Finals ever. The West had at least five of the league's best six teams that year. Whoever made the Finals out of the West was winning no matter who made it. The point is, Lebron didn't get shit for help in Cleveland so it's no wonder he left. The Decision was completely abhorrent but you have to respect the decision to leave. Four Finals appearances and two rings in four years? Gimme a break. Dude is great. Just shut up and watch the genius at work.

During the late 80s Jordan was pissed about the lack of talent surrounding him and the fact that they were losing to Detroit. He was not best friends with his teammates and he referred to the Bulls GM (Krause) as "fatso." While I don't believe he would have every gone to the Pistons, Cavs, or Celtics in order to chase a title, no one on this board can accurately state that he wouldn't have gone to another team if he was in situation similar to LeBron in 2010. The reality is he never had the opportunity for free agency until he had 4 rings and had players such as Pippen, Rodman, and Kukoc on his team. Then he signed a 1-year, 30 million dollar contract. And Jerry Reinsdorf is not cheap. Money would have never been the reason he left the Bulls.

[Pengwin7]

LeBleaugh.
The only thing he'll go down as the "Best" is his chest thumping.
I predict he'll sign with the Clippers... he thinks he is such a savior.
I wish he was the tree in my front yard that all the dogs piss on.

[blayze]

Apparently cameras caught footage of Lebron as he was leaving the court after their Game 5 loss, and all you could see was him mouthing to his team mates "It's not my fault. It's not my fault".

I think that says it all about him.

[Big Ev]

As has been mentioned, he isn't chasing the money here. He signed for less to come to Miami and he'll sign for less again if it gets him a chance to win. Regardless of whether he takes the max or not he is still getting underpaid. Dude should be making $60 million annually at least if we were talking about real value.

I think Lebron still returns with Miami. This is likely about getting a better deal in place for winning there and making sure that the rest of the Heat get in order as well. This is a team that cut a guy in Mike Miller, who would have been a serious asset again this season, just to save money. Lebron needs to make sure the Heat are in the business of keeping a contender around him.

Lebron is all about his legacy. He cares about it more than you can imagine. He knows that if he leaves Miami for another destination that he'll be branded a mercenary. Whether that's fair or not that's what the perception will be, since that's already the case in the mind of many. Now, he could return to Cleveland and that would be okay but otherwise that's not a move he can really make.

And just to be clear about the whole "Magic and Michael never left nonsense" well Magic and Michael also didn't have to leave. Magic was drafted onto a team with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, a top-five player all-time. He had success instantly with the Lakers and the team added more Hall-of-Famers through shrewd drafting and because they played playing in Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball. Just to reiterate, Magic played in freaking Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball!!! No shit he never left.

Michael played in another huge media market and while it took much longer for him to have success he was eventually surrounded with a great deal of talent including another Hall-of-Famer in Pippen, not to mention Rodman down the line. Now, it is fair to say that Michael never would have left Chicago to go join someone else's team. He was way too cut-throat for that. But if Chicago doesn't get Pippen or an all-time great coach in Phil Jackson couldn't you see him leaving Chicago for huge money because his owner was a complete cheapskate?

I'm sorry but just because other great champions didn't have to move to eventually win doesn't mean that it's wrong to do so. Give me a break. Relating this back to hockey, I suppose Ray Bourque winning the Cup with the Avalanche was a horrible moment - a slight on the sport. Or you know what, screw Joe Sakic, he signed an offer sheet with the Rangers so who cares that the Avalanche matched, he still quit on his team. I could go on.

I mean, just look at the roster he dragged to the NBA Finals in 2007. That team wasn't winning shit. It's a miracle and a testament to Lebron's genius that they made it as far as they did. That Finals was a thousand times worse than this year's Finals and I'd bet goes down as the worst Finals ever. The West had at least five of the league's best six teams that year. Whoever made the Finals out of the West was winning no matter who made it. The point is, Lebron didn't get shit for help in Cleveland so it's no wonder he left. The Decision was completely abhorrent but you have to respect the decision to leave. Four Finals appearances and two rings in four years? Gimme a break. Dude is great. Just shut up and watch the genius at work.

Naw, **** Lebron.

And **** basketball, what a disgrace of a sport.

[MXHockey]

Naw, **** Lebron.

And **** basketball, what a disgrace of a sport.

LOL, all anger, no substance. But still good stuff.

[Ross The Boss Palmer]

As has been mentioned, he isn't chasing the money here. He signed for less to come to Miami and he'll sign for less again if it gets him a chance to win. Regardless of whether he takes the max or not he is still getting underpaid. Dude should be making $60 million annually at least if we were talking about real value.

I think Lebron still returns with Miami. This is likely about getting a better deal in place for winning there and making sure that the rest of the Heat get in order as well. This is a team that cut a guy in Mike Miller, who would have been a serious asset again this season, just to save money. Lebron needs to make sure the Heat are in the business of keeping a contender around him.

Lebron is all about his legacy. He cares about it more than you can imagine. He knows that if he leaves Miami for another destination that he'll be branded a mercenary. Whether that's fair or not that's what the perception will be, since that's already the case in the mind of many. Now, he could return to Cleveland and that would be okay but otherwise that's not a move he can really make.

And just to be clear about the whole "Magic and Michael never left nonsense" well Magic and Michael also didn't have to leave. Magic was drafted onto a team with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, a top-five player all-time. He had success instantly with the Lakers and the team added more Hall-of-Famers through shrewd drafting and because they played playing in Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball. Just to reiterate, Magic played in freaking Los Angeles with the best owner in basketball!!! No shit he never left.

Michael played in another huge media market and while it took much longer for him to have success he was eventually surrounded with a great deal of talent including another Hall-of-Famer in Pippen, not to mention Rodman down the line. Now, it is fair to say that Michael never would have left Chicago to go join someone else's team. He was way too cut-throat for that. But if Chicago doesn't get Pippen or an all-time great coach in Phil Jackson couldn't you see him leaving Chicago for huge money because his owner was a complete cheapskate?

I'm sorry but just because other great champions didn't have to move to eventually win doesn't mean that it's wrong to do so. Give me a break. Relating this back to hockey, I suppose Ray Bourque winning the Cup with the Avalanche was a horrible moment - a slight on the sport. Or you know what, screw Joe Sakic, he signed an offer sheet with the Rangers so who cares that the Avalanche matched, he still quit on his team. I could go on.

I mean, just look at the roster he dragged to the NBA Finals in 2007. That team wasn't winning shit. It's a miracle and a testament to Lebron's genius that they made it as far as they did. That Finals was a thousand times worse than this year's Finals and I'd bet goes down as the worst Finals ever. The West had at least five of the league's best six teams that year. Whoever made the Finals out of the West was winning no matter who made it. The point is, Lebron didn't get shit for help in Cleveland so it's no wonder he left. The Decision was completely abhorrent but you have to respect the decision to leave. Four Finals appearances and two rings in four years? Gimme a break. Dude is great. Just shut up and watch the genius at work.

Agree. Can't rep ya, because ya know, rules.