Now that TSIO*O (*Officially), where will LeBron play next season?

dnc

LeBron obviously wants to knock off the Warriors, and that's the main thing he's going to care about in selecting his next team. As I see it, that means there four teams that HASWTG, but I'll list five plus Janet Reno since someone's probably going to argue for the Cavs:

dnc

Houston

How I see it:

Houston - The obvious frontrunner. The team that gave the Warriors the best competition, Houston makes the most sense on the surface. But how would LeBron fit with two other ball dominant stars (assuming Paul stays, which we must assume for this exercise - if he doesn't Bron isn't going to Houston)? This is a real question IMO. I don't think LeBron makes Houston better than GS but I know a lot of people will think he would. As a fan I'd love to see this if only to see LeBron leave the safety of the East.

Boston - The other frontrunner. Boston is actually closer to winning a title than Houston is IMO and adding LeBron would make them every bit as talented as GS and probably deeper. A lineup of Irving, Heyward, Tatum (or Brown), James and Horford would have more than a punchers chance against the Warriors, especially with Rozier, the other of Tatum or Brown and mainly Stevens on the bench. My guess is this is the scenario GS wants the least. There are at least two and probably three problems with this scenario though: 1. Kyrie just ran away from LeBron, you'd almost have to trade him if you do this. Rozier looks ready to take his place but you know Kyrie steps up bigtime in the Finals, you don't know that about Rozier. 2. LeBron has always liked to call the shots on the court, he's not going to get to do that with Stevens there. Would he go for that? 3. LeBron has always liked to call the shots with the roster, he's not going to get to do that with Ainge there. Would LeBron go for that? Ultimately, I don't think Boston happens.

Philadelphia - The Process is rolling and LeBron would obviously accelerate it significantly. Nothing would take the attention of Colangelo's alt handles and jumbo collars like bringing in LeBron. On the court, he appears to fit well - a lineup of Simmons, Fultz (assuming he finds his shot), LeBron, Saric, Embiid is scary. Even if Fultz is donezo, it shouldn't be hard to find a shooter at the two to replace Reddick if need be. LeBron hasn't shown a willingness to work with young guys in the past (hello Andrew Wiggins), but I'm guessing Simmons and Embiid have proven themselves well enough that LeBron would overlook that in this case. The real question here is whether the front office shitshow will scare LeBron off. I'm guessing it will. If they don't fire Colangelo, it should.

LA Lakers - The Lakers clearly don't have enough to be contenders right now, but LeBron plus Chris Paul or even Paul George could hypothetically get them close. If this happens the Lakers almost have to trade Ball who is an awful fit as a ball dominant guard who can't shoot but doesn't bring the scoring that Simmons does either. Obviously if they sign Chris Paul anyway then Ball's a backup and it's a moot point. But assuming they don't, Ball creates a dilemma. And clearly we know James doesn't want to play alongside IT. Does a lineup of Ball, Kuzma, James, George, CENTER have enough juice? Switch out Paul for George and add Ingram back in and you're getting close (Paul, Kuzma, LeBron, Ingram, CENTER).

But does LeBron want to be fodder for the LaVar Ball show? Between the roster holes and the off the court pain in the ass, I don't think he's going here, but you can never count the Lakers out for a big name.

I don't think Boston will take him, and I think LeBron will ultimately decide the Lakers need to much help, so it's going to be down to Houston or Philadelphia. If Philly ires Colangelo I think they're the favorites, if not it will be Houston. EWIBI.

I'll take the Rockets.

mod power at @dnc 's request: Fuck everything I wrote above. Philly. Cook that shit.

Gladstone

Philly

Gosh, looking at it strictly from W-L/chance-to-win-ship perspective, Boston makes the most sense. Irving + Ainge + Stevens makes that questionable though. Well said.

Philly.

allpurpleallgold

Houston

I voted for what I would choose.

Philly is interesting and if I was Lebron and 3 years younger I might go there.

Boston would be funny if Lebron was traded for Kyrie.

If he chooses the Lakers he’s basically deciding he’s more interested in life after basketball.

Swaye

Houston

#myRockets

dnc

Houston

Gladstone said:

Gosh, looking at it strictly from W-L/chance-to-win-ship perspective, Boston makes the most sense. Irving + Ainge + Stevens makes that questionable though. Well said.

Philly.

I think LeBron wants to beat GS badly enough that I think he could accept having a strong GM if that meant he had Boston's roster. And likewise I think he wants to win badly enough that he would say (and probably mean) all the right things about having a strong coach. But we're talking about a guy who has basically been his own coach for damn near 1400 NBA games,, suddenly relinquishing on court control is easier said than done. There's some things that are deeply engrained in him at this point that I don't think he can just turn off. Ultimately I think LeBron needs Boston more than Boston needs LeBron, and it will be the Celtics who say no because they see it being too much of an on court challenge, which is ironic since on paper LeBron fits the Celtics' roster better than anybody else's.

dnc

Houston

allpurpleallgold said:

I voted for what I would choose.

Philly is interesting and if I was Lebron and 3 years younger I might go there.

Boston would be funny if Lebron was traded for Kyrie.

If he chooses the Lakers he’s basically deciding he’s more interested in life after basketball.

This is an interesting scenario.

haie

Write In

Portland

RaceBannon

Race's Lakers

I picked the Lakers because that is what we are hearing here. That Lebron is ready for his post life

I love the Celtics idea. The thought of Celtic Fan saying how much he has always loved Lebron is awesome. And despite my well documented hatred of young talent I came away very impressed with Tatum. He wasn't afraid at all

Houston would mean rings

DerekJohnson

Write In

LeBron James to the Seattle Storm. Hardy har har

BleachedAnusDawg

Houston

Houston for one season. Weak coach who doesn't know WTF he's doing, he's buddies with Paul. Also, no state income tax. LeBron should go full mercenary status for the next 3 seasons and pick the team he can push over the top each season.

Warriors are done if he goes there. Burnout from 4 straight trips to the Finals. They almost tripped over their own dicks vs Houston this year.