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Do IT this week: Layering
LeBron, Bosh and Wade facing hard decisions that they may delay
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Saturday, Jul 18, 2009
INDEPENDENCE: Decisions, decisions.
It probably looked like the right move when LeBron James signed his contract extension with the Cavaliers three summers ago.
The league would be in great shape. There would be plenty of cash to go around and there would be a long line of suitors trying to bring James to their city in 2010.
Things have changed.
With the country dealing with a recession, the NBA has been hit with declining revenue that led to less than half of the teams turning a profit this past season, Commissioner David Stern said earlier this week.
The league slashed the salary cap by $1.1 million for next season and a widely circulated league memo suggested that teams prepare for
another reduction of up to $8 million for the 2010-11 season, when the league's collective bargaining agreement ends.
Looking at that situation, it wouldn't be surprising if next summer's prized free agents begin signing extensions this summer.
Along with James, the Toronto Raptors' Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade are free agents.
There's little doubt about whether the Cavs will offer James a contract extension, according to a source close to the situation. And if James is looking at the situation merely from an NBA salary standpoint, now would be the time to extend — or maybe not, according to an agent for several NBA players.
''Who knows what can happen by then?'' the agent said. ''Revenues may be high enough so they won't do anything. Nobody knows for sure. It's a projection.''
He said it's unlikely that any of the marquee free-agent players from next season will lose a whole lot, but he doesn't expect them to jump at contract extensions.
''I think they're going to wait it out and see how they do as a team, especially LeBron,'' he said.
Wade, for one, has been coy about what he'll do.
Although his recent courting of the Los Angeles Lakers' Lamar Odom and his team's reported $35 million offer to Wade might change that.
However, the agent said James is a unique case in the NBA.
''LeBron is a different case because he's from the town that's drafted him,'' he said. ''There's a difference. LeBron has more of a familiarity with his surroundings. He's a hometown product. . . . There's that comfortability there.''
But James also has options.
New York Knicks fans and media haven't been able to contain their glee at the prospect of James playing at Madison Square Garden and, depending on whom you believe, James' endorsement dollars would rise significantly with a move to New York, offsetting any money he'd lose in salary.
But if James is true to what he says, money isn't a concern. And given the fact that it's 2009, not 1989, and communication moves instantaneously over a vast array of media, market size isn't as big a concern as it once was.
James has said on more than one occasion — all while allowing himself some wiggle room — that he's happy playing in Cleveland. If he sees the commitment from team owner Dan Gilbert and General Manager Danny Ferry, there's every reason to believe that an extension of some sort is in the offing.
There is a solid group of players surrounding James with the Cavs.
The Knicks have the cash and cap room to sign him, but he wouldn't be looking at the same situation. Thanks to the expected salary cap reduction, the Knicks probably wouldn't have room to offer two superstars a contract. James would essentially be the lone force on a team in the midst of a rebuilding project — something he's already experienced with the Cavs.
George M. Thomas can be reached at sportswriterabj@sbcglobal.net. Read the Cavs blog at http://www.ohio.com/thomas. Follow Cavs coverage on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/cavsabj
INDEPENDENCE: Decisions, decisions.
Get the full article here.
Comments
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Naples, FL
Posted 09:08 AM, 07/18/2009
Knick fans, you'll get LeBron.....in your face, twice a year when the Cavs travel to the Garden! Go Cavs!
Canton, OH
Posted 11:51 AM, 07/18/2009
Join the rest of the world, overpaid jocks. . The recession is here. . .
AK, Oh
Posted 01:57 PM, 07/18/2009
Cleveland Cavs THANKS Mr. Stern for making it possiable for Lebron to stay another year in Cleveland. If Lebron stays he stays... but he wont win a ring in Cleveland...
findlay, oh
Posted 12:15 PM, 07/27/2009
It will be interesting to see what will happen if some of these guys sign extensions based on the economy now, but then once the economy and revenues pick up again, will they then want to re-structure their contracts?? Or is that just in football that they do that?
