By Antonis Stroggylakis/ info@eurohoops.net
The Cleveland Cavaliers are down 3-0 in the Finals and need to achieve something which has never been done before in history to completely overcome the Golden State Warriors and their juggernaut force.
No team has ever fully recovered from such a deficit in a playoff series and the sweep looks like a certainty. The Warriors are the definition of “too much” from any way you look at it, even for a Cleveland Cavaliers squad that trail-blazed its path to the Finals.
The futile effort to counter the awesome firepower of the Warriors has exposed some major Cavs’ problems and their inability to compete against such a super-team. Meanwhile, Lebron James definitely doesn’t look happy in the prospect of getting swept in the Finals for the second time in his career and the thought of such rout getting repeated in the future looks even uglier.
Two days ago, Jalen Rose left Cavaliers fans bewildered when he said “I don’t think Lebron will play his last games for the Cavs”, in ESPN’S “First Take”, opening the Pandora’s Box to let out a fury of rumors.
As an article by The Ringer suggests, there is some ground to them and the above are just some of the reasons that might lead Lebron to seek career destinations not called “Cleveland” when he becomes a free agent in 2018. More specifically, there is cause for him to join the Western Front with the L.A. Lakers or the L.A. Clippers.
Those cases can appear attractive to Lebron for different reasons and his move to L.A. might happen not only because he owns a house located just 30 minutes away from Staples Center, as discussed in “First Take”. When it comes to the Lakers, the possible presence of Paul George, drafting a guard like Lonzo Ball that doesn’t need the ball much on his hands in order to perform and the promise that talent of the team carries, might create circumstances that please James.
The Clippers could provide James with a reunion with the 2003 fellow draftees Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade. And also buddy Chris Paul, if the rumored talks with the Spurs don’t culminate to a deal, as The Ringer writes.
Lebron had previously expressed his wish to play alongside Paul, Carmello and Wade to Bleacher Report, “at least for one or two seasons” before their career is over. It might look as a “fairy-tale” scenario to some and Jalen Rose vehemently said that “he’s not going to play with the Clippers”, but it’s not that far fetched considering the bond of friendship among those players and the desire they share to win.