Random thoughts: LeBron James

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

It’s official – LeBron James is leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Los Angeles Lakers.

The announcement was made via a simple press release on Sunday. No fanfare, just a few sentences that said LeBron had agreed to a four year, $154 million dollar contract with the Lakers, which has led to some random thoughts.

Not a surprise

When you stop and think about it, the signs were there all along that he wasn’t going to re-sign with the Cavs.

For weeks, Las Vegas sportsbooks had pegged the Lakers as the favorite to land LeBron, and they don’t build those shiny mammoth casinos and hotels by being wrong. So there’s that.

Then there’s the fact that LeBron didn’t commit to re-signing when asked about it during the season. Don’t get me wrong – he was committed to the 2017-2018 Cavs, as evidenced by his play throughout the regular season and the playoffs. But if he truly was going to stay in Cleveland, don’t you think he would have just said yes when asked?

Plus, he already has a Los Angeles area home, a production company there and an interest in movies. The point is, there were plenty of signs he was ready to move again.

Now, if Cleveland had somehow won the NBA title, there’s a chance he would have stayed.

A dream

It was widely reported that LeBron’s childhood dream was to play for the Lakers.

Assuming that’s the case, how can anyone be upset with him over that? Look at it this way – if you had the opportunity, the means and a way to fulfill a lifelong dream, wouldn’t you do it?

As a Cavs fan, I would have liked to see him stay in Cleveland, but I’m not angry that he’s gone. A little disappointed, but not angry because after all, he delivered a championship to a city and fan base that was  starving for one.

Something else that LeBron did that people don’t often discuss – he made a huge economic impact on Cleveland.

How much time left?

You can easily argue that last season was LeBron’s finest. He didn’t miss a single game during the regular season or playoffs, and he literally carried the Cavs to the NBA Finals.

Naysayers point out that he didn’t deliver another championship, but that’s mainly because there’s a difference between the best player right now and the best team right now. But that’s a discussion for a different time.

The question is, how much longer can LeBron play at the high level we’ve become accustomed to seeing? He’s played 15 NBA seasons, a large number of playoff games, plus three different Olympics. He’ll turn 34 at the end of this year, which isn’t old for you and me, but is in basketball terms. In other words, there’s a lot of wear and tear on his body. You can tell he’s in magnificent shape but at some point, he’ll slow down.

My only hope is he don’t hang on too long and become of shell of what he was, i.e. Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant.

A good fit?

Is LeBron a good fit in L.A.? I don’t know. There was much speculation that he, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard would join forces in L.A. in hopes of dethroning the Golden State Warriors. But George stayed in Oklahoma City, and I have a hard time seeing the Spurs trading Leonard to another Western Conference team. There’s still time for things to happen, but even with LeBron, the Lakers don’t look like a team ready to challenge Golden State.

Will LeBron have the same personnel pull with Magic Johnson that he did with Cleveland’s front office? That’s a good question.

Then there’s the whole LeVar Ball situation. Lonzo’s Ball’s father can best be described as brash and/or over the top. He’s said some pretty outlandish things, and he rubbed LeBron the wrong way a time or two last season. It will be very interesting to see how this plays out.

LeBron vs. Gilbert

It’s been rumored for a while that LeBron and Cavs owner Dan Gilbert aren’t exactly best friends. Who knows if that’s actually true, but it wouldn’t be a big shock. I’m guessing there was still some bad blood from when LeBron left the first time.

Regardless, they learned to co-exist over the last four years. LeBron had a large say in things and Gilbert shelled out big bucks for players LeBron wanted. Some of those players panned out, some didn’t.

Is Gilbert relieved that he doesn’t have to cater to LeBron now? Probably. But he also knows that the Cavs likely won’t play to sellout crowds anymore.

What now for the Cavs?

I’ll state the obvious and say they won’t be nearly as good. Things will get worse if they trade Kevin Love. I’ve never understood the calls to trade him. Why would you get rid of your second best player? The argument that his numbers were down from his time in Minnesota is downright silly. He put up bigger numbers with the Timberwolves because he had to. He was the best player on a bad team. His role was different in Cleveland.

The Cavs have said they want to keep Love, but we’ll see. If they do trade him, you can expect to see a few others go in a fire sale, and things won’t be pretty for a while. It could be a complete teardown and rebuild, which will take some time.

There is some talent on the team, but unless there’s a secret weapon we don’t know about, I’m guessing we’ll see 35-40 wins next season, at best.

Thank you and good luck

Again, I wish LeBron stayed in Cleveland, but he’s made his decision. I’ll end things by saying thank you for what you the championship and the excitement you provided to Cleveland fans, and good luck in L.A.