New suitors for LeBron James’ services in free agency have emerged in recent days, including the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves and the Philadelphia 76ers. But the frontrunners seem to be, at least according to Shams Charania of ESPN, the 76ers, Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers.
Plenty seem to feel that the Cavaliers make the most sense for him, at least from a sentimental and happiness standpoint. The Cavaliers, of course, were the team he spent his first seven NBA seasons with, and he later returned for an additional four-year stint with them, during which he led them to their first world championship.
The Stein Line recently reported that going back to Cleveland is the “scenario to beat” for James’ other suitors. Brian Windhorst talked about the possibility of James going to Philly, and he said that the feeling is that the 41-year-old is going back to Northeast Ohio.
“I’ve talked to people in Philly, and I’m like ‘What do you think,’ and they’re like, ‘We’re afraid it’s Cleveland,’ – everybody I talked to is like ‘We’re afraid it’s Cleveland.’ Nobody seems like they have optimism.”
James is originally from Akron, Ohio, which is not far away from Cleveland, and he has always been loyal to his hometown. The Cavaliers are coming off a run to the Eastern Conference finals, where they were swept by the New York Knicks, and some feel James could make them into a legitimate championship team right away.
He averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists a game this past season with the Los Angeles Lakers. After Luka Dončić suffered a season-ending injury in early April, he stepped up his scoring and led the Lakers to an upset victory in the first round of the playoffs over the Houston Rockets.
He clearly has something left in his tank, but the question remains of which team would be the best situation for him, especially when it comes to what his biggest priority for this coming season will be.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Windhorst: NBA teams are ‘afraid’ LeBron will return to Cavaliers
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
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By Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire | USA TODAY Network
