Cleveland is still undecided about what to do with the top pick in Thursday’s draft, but it really shouldn’t be.
The NBA draft is only a day away, which means the bidding wars for the Cavs’ No. 1 pick and the Wolves’ Kevin Love are in their final hours. However, if Cleveland is at all serious about seeing LeBron James return to town to contend for a championship in its franchise’s foreseeable future, it should seal a deal for Love before it’s too late.
In the last 30 years, only three No. 1 overall draft picks have led the team that drafted them to a championship —Tim Duncan, David Robinson and Hakeem Olajuwon. A unit led by James, Love and Kyrie Irving would have better odds of winning a championship than a squad featuring Irving and say, Andrew Wiggins. Plus, Cleveland isn’t about to become a popular free-agent landing place unless LeBron returns, so adding talent via free agency could be tricky.
The Wolves are going to trade Love, and while there has been no shortage of offers from around the league, no one can put together a more enticing package than the Cavaliers. The Cavs can get Love without the guarantee of getting LeBron, but they can’t get LeBron without first getting Love. The one and only way to bring LeBron back to Cleveland is to first set Love in the heart of Ohio, so the Cavs must take a leap of faith.
As I mentioned in “Lots Of Love To Go Around On Draft Day, But Only One Kevin,” Dwyane Wade was great in 2013-14, but now might be the time for LeBron to find a new, younger All-Star duo better suited to maximizing his playmaking abilities going forward. Since Miami’s offense was predicated on spacing the floor with shooters for LeBron, it would make sense for him to leave Boshtrich for the sweeter-stroking Love Doctor; and abandon the aging Wade (who never developed a reliable long ball and struggled in the 2014 Finals versus San Antonio) for Irving, the 2013 3-point contest winner and reigning 2014 All-Star MVP.
It is still possible LeBron will opt to re-sign with Miami or take his talents elsewhere, but due to the depth of talented teams in the West, it’s much more likely he plans to stay in the East. A core of Love, Irving and Tristan Thompson would probably be enough to make the Cavs the Eastern Conference favorites, and Cleveland automatically would become a desirable destination for free agents looking to join a contender.
The 2014 NBA Draft is the most highly anticipated since LeBron, Wade, Melo and Bosh were taken in 2003, but still none of these soon-to-be-rookies are guaranteed to become All-Stars, let alone MVP-caliber players. The 2014 NBA Draft may turn out to be one of the best the league has ever seen, but this also may be a once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity for Cleveland to woo Bronny back with Love.
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