Yeah, I’ve been avoiding writing this because I was just too irritated, but the time has come to sit down and begin planning for the ’09-’10 Cavaliers season (and beyond).
Frankly, the discussion about Game 6 has been played out already. We had our runs at it and Orlando just had everything working for them (including getting the calls when Anderson Varejao touches Howard’s back, but not when LeBron gets tackled on his way to the basket). But whose fault is it? It’s everybody’s fault. Nobody had a full game Saturday night and as a result, everybody has the summer off.
Now for the good news.
After his brief hiatus from the media, LeBron James stepped forward and discussed his satisfaction with the Cleveland Cavaliers, including their front office and the direction of the team. Contrary to popular belief, LeBron has NEVER said that he wanted to leave this city (that’s the product of a frenzied media and several thousand internet trolls). What he DID say was that he wanted to stay in Cleveland as long as the Cavaliers continue building towards success and keep him happy.
Monday’s press conference with LeBron brought some sighs of relief to a city.
“I’m great. I feel great about this situation that’s going on. You want to continue to get better, that’s all you can ask. We got better and I feel this team will be better next season. You don’t want to take a step backward. I think we went forward from the Boston series last year. Hopefully we can go forward next year.”
Upon being immediately deluged with claims of LeBron going to New York after the Eastern Finals loss, this was a welcome sound for Cavalier fans worldwide.
Now, LeBron did NOT say he was going to re-sign with the Cavs, but this was a STRONG step towards that inevitable conclusion. The facts are laid out before him, he knows it, and everybody with half a brain knows it too.
The Cavaliers are the only team that can offer him everything he wants and needs, and his family is here. No major city, especially one that is in a rebuilding phase of it’s own, can give him anything more except money…..and the Cavaliers just got a HUGE infusion of cash to offer James. The news of a Chinese investment group offering to buy 15% of the Cavs will all but seal the deal to keep LBJ in wine and gold. With that move, LeBron can successfully market himself, his shoes, his jerseys, and anything else he wants to a billion chinese people who are starved for NBA stars. The Chinese government doesn’t allow an open and free market as much as we do, but with part-ownership in the team, expect to see Hu Jintao open the gates for anything with LeBron’s name on it.
But that won’t happen if LeBron leaves the Cavs….because the Chinese ownership is NOT of LeBron, it’s of the Cavs. Sucks to be you, Knicks.
Here’s our current money situation, seen through the eyes of an optimist like me;
- Currently, LeBron makes 14.4 million dollars, and he’ll want to sign for more before the next season begins. We can lock him up for a long-term deal at around 20 million a year plus bonuses that do not count towards the salary cap.
- Wally Szczerbiak has played his last game as a Cavalier. His contract is up, and we will not sign him again….making 13.8 million per year to be a bench player is not what we want or need. We loved you, Wally….but sorry.
- Joe Smith’s contract is also up, but he’s making 1.2 million. Give him more if he needs it, he’s a big part of this team’s chemistry and he’s inexpensive to boot. If he wants to break the bank though, we’ll have to let him go.
- Ben Wallace is talking retirement and he might want a buyout of his final year. Hell, we KNOW he’ll want a buyout. Anything we spend on the buyout also does not count towards the salary cap, so we should offer him that and wish him well. It’ll add to our coffers, as Ben was making nearly 15 million this year. Again, Ben…we loved you, thanks for your dedication and spirit.
- Anderson Varejao will be looking for more money. Again. His current 5.8 million dollar contract is not going to be enough to keep him, and we’re going to have to up that to 9 or 10 million per season. There’s very little question about that right now, especially with the possibility of losing Wallace and Smith. Also, Z’s age doesn’t make anybody comfortable in C-town.
This all adds up to good fortune for the Cavs. We’ll have to add 10-12 million a year to LeBron, Smith and Varejao’s contracts, but we save about 19 million with the losses of Wally and Big Ben. That leaves us with 7-9 million dollars left to grab a strong player to add to LeBron’s arsenal, and that’s only if we want to keep the same salary as 2008-09. We can go over the limit and pay a luxury tax to the NBA since we have that money to spend (hello, China!).
Translation – relax, Cavs fans. LeBron will stay, and with the mastermind known as Danny Ferry at the helm, we will get everything we need and start fresh again in October.
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