faba Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 LeBron aware that Nets, Knicks looking to snag All-Star in future By Chris Sheridan ESPN.com (Archive) Updated: June 30, 2008, 6:28 PM ET Comment Email Print NEW YORK -- All that LeBron James-to-the-Knicks speculation might be focused on the right city but the wrong team. It appears, judging from James' comments Monday, that the Nets might be James' preferred destination if he opts out of his contract in the summer of 2010 and becomes an unrestricted free agent. James listed New York as his favorite city Monday (his hometown of Akron, Ohio came in fifth behind Washington D.C., Dallas, and Los Angeles) as he took part in a one-day USA Basketball media blitz, and he also gave an answer to a follow-up question that'll make Knicks president Donnie Walsh and head coach Mike D'Antoni cringe. "My favorite borough? Brooklyn," James said, choosing the proposed future home of the New Jersey Nets over the borough of Manhattan, where the Knicks play their home games. "Brooklyn is definitely a great place here in New York City, and some of my best friends are from Brooklyn, so I stick up for them." James is personal friends with the performer Jay-Z, who owns a small piece of the Nets, but James said that relationship would play no role in whether he decides to leave Cleveland -- either when his contract expires in 2011, or if he exercises his opt-out in 2010. The Nets made a major financial move on draft night to position themselves to make a maximum offer to James in the summer of 2010, shedding Richard Jefferson's contract when they dealt him to Milwaukee for Bobby Simmons and Yi Jianlian. If New Jersey chooses to trade Vince Carter for a player or players whose contracts expire before the summer of 2010, they'll have more than enough room to offer James a maximum salary. The Knicks have also made clear that their No. 1 priority is to clear cap space for the summer of 2010 when James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade can all become unrestricted free agents. But they'll have to move Zach Randolph and at least one other player already under contract through 2010-11 -- Jamal Crawford, Eddy Curry and Jared Jeffries -- in order to get far enough below the cap to make James a max offer. If James waits until 2011 to become a free agent, the Knicks are positioned to have enough room to make a max offer. James is a frequent visitor to New York, and he constantly hears pleas from Knicks fans -- and a few Nets fans -- to relocate to the nation's media capital two summers down the road. The Nets plan to relocate from East Rutherford to Brooklyn in 2010 if owner Bruce Ratner is able to clear the final hurdles that have delayed the building of his massive Atlantic Yards project in central Brooklyn, which will have the Nets' new arena as its centerpiece. "They have a right to dream about it, and I can't take that away from them. My friendship was way before Jay was part-owner of the Nets, and I loved the Garden way before I got to the NBA," James said. "For some reason when I get to the Garden I always play well, so they want me to do it 41 games instead of just two nights a year." Knicks fans were in abundant supply at midday Monday as James and the rest of Team USA were introduced at a Nike press conference at Rockefeller Center, and James played to the crowd like a true showman -- sprinting with a wide smile and open arms into bleacher seats erected at both ends of a temporary court, embracing dozens of youngsters clad in blue "United We Rise" T-shirts. Earlier, James waved demonstrably at a boatful of tourists from the deck of a ship the team chartered for a photo shoot in New York Harbor with the Statue of Liberty as the backdrop. "I never thought about doing it, but once you get out there & I'm a big kid personally, I got two young sons at home and I know what they like, so anytime I get around a group of kids it's like a kid in the candy store for me. So, I'm happy I was able to put smiles on those kids faces," James said. "It made my day, totally." The crowd ate up his act, as did his teammates. "Was that New York-driven? No, I think it was James-driven. That's who he is," Kidd said. "He's a kid, he's full of energy, he has a lot of personality ... LeBron just has a lot of personality -- you see it in the commercials -- and that's him, and for him to interact with the kids, it might put a little stress on security, but for the kids to be able to touch him and see him in that light, you can't ask anything more than that." Chris Sheridan is an ESPN.com Insider. He has covered the U.S. senior national team since the 1996 Olympics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 LeBron James won't sign with a team who has no chance of winning. Hmm Lakers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kobe24jets Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 LeBron James won't sign with a team who has no chance of winning. Hmm Lakers? nah im tha future of that team ya dig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irish Jet Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 nah im tha future of that team ya dig You're a fag. Just sayin'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kobe24jets Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 You're a fag. Just sayin'.i aint kno fag u footfairy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anskyruben Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 Stfu mankisser. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irish Jet Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 i aint kno fag u footfairy nice pic of Weezy. Where u get dat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackout Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 baron davis lebron danillo galinari Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KudosForND Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 LeBron James won't sign with a team who has no chance of winning. Hmm Lakers? lol any team has a chance with lebron on the team exspecially a team that has money like nets and knicks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackout Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 if you put Lebron on the Knicks they become a winner especially in an overall weak east Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 lol any team has a chance with lebron on the team exspecially a team that has money like nets and knicks Are you kidding me? That explains your basketball knowledge right there. The Knicks have money? HAHAHA WOW! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 IJ u dont like kobe no mo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KudosForND Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 Are you kidding me? That explains your basketball knowledge right there. The Knicks have money? HAHAHA WOW! wow ur stupid. the knicks have the highest salary and when lebron comes in 2010 marbury will goin, and probably other ppl wont be there i think marbury makes like 2nd most behind garnett.. 1. New York Knicks $90,991,250 2. Dallas Mavericks $79,817,214 3. Portland Trail Blazers $79,672,295 4. Cleveland Cavaliers $79,601,862 5. Denver Nuggets $76,906,392 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaBrick Wall Posted July 2, 2008 Share Posted July 2, 2008 I believe the Knicks will have to get rid of either Curry or Randolph to get under the cap enough to make a run at LeBron. If Donnie Walsh can pull that off he's a genius. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterNorth09 Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 I believe the Knicks will have to get rid of either Curry or Randolph to get under the cap enough to make a run at LeBron. If Donnie Walsh can pull that off he's a genius. Actually, if you check the Knicks salaries on hoopshype.com they don't even need to do that to get under the cap. Their current payroll for the summer of 2010 is $45.5 million, substract the team option for scrub Wilson Chandler which is $2 mil and another $5 mil for Renaldo Balkman and Mardy Collins who are both coming off the books their payroll is now like $38 mil. The NBA Salary cap is currently $55 mil, it goes up every year like the NFL salary cap does so it will probably be about $57 mil in 2 years. If Walsh plays it smart he will have enough cap room to sign a big free agent like Lebron James. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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