Why LeBron should stay with the Cavs, why this free agency may not be all that it was cracked up to be, and how players who truly want to ‘win’ can help their teams big-time.

SCOTT JACOBS

Well, we’re officially one day into free agency, and I kind of havta admit– I feel ripped off.

Besides watching a bunch of teams throw comedic dollar amounts at complementary players there is a growing feeling within me that this infamous Summer of 2010 that has enveloped our sports world, may be nothing more than smoke and mirrors.  And a change of scenery for a pair of forwards.

As the hours go by I can’t help but feel convinced that LeBron James is going back to Cleveland.  D-Wade looks like a pretty comfortable bet to re-up in Miami.  And Chris Bosh could end up with a team none of us have even had on our radar.  Or maybe not.

But with Joe Johnson being offered a maximum deal, prompting one Yahoo sports writer to immediately pen it down as the worst NBA contract ever (dude, the guy hasn’t even officially signed it, ease up holmes), and looking primed to return to the Hawks, the pieces are falling in place for a whole lot of nothin’ to happen.  Sure, this summer hinges on what LeBron, Wade, and Bosh do, but the reality is, these second tier guys are the ones that may ultimately hold the most water.

If Amare Stoudemire and Carlos Boozer for instance, re-up with their teams (not likely) or go to a team like the Knicks or Nets, it’s possible they could further encourage the NBA’s super 3 to just… well, stay put.  Okay, not Bosh, but you get the point.  Going through the free agency supermarket, GM’s like NY’s Donnie Walsh and others are looking for second tier players to couple with the big ‘pie in the sky’ star.

That seemed to be New York’s intention.  Lure Joe Johnson to the Big Apple and maybe Amare and then LeBron will come.  O s*%$!  You mean he’s going back to the Hawks?  Crap.

The lower-tier guys/complementary guys are lining their pockets flush with cash as the NBA’s biggest free pieces continue to roam.  But I’ve put a lot of thought into this the last few days.  Read a lot of articles.  And I’ve been left with the impression that LeBron would be an idiot if he (wait for it, wait for it) left Cleveland.

Yes!  You’ve read that correct.  Forget the Knicks, Heat, or Bulls, James is best suited to stay in Cleveland and bring home a championship to his home state.  It really is the Jordan effect, and this has nothing to do with Chicago.  LeBron will forever be knocked for an inability to win a ring for the Cavs if he bolts for greener grass in another free agent city.

Forget the scenarios for a second.  Forget the super-pairing he could form in Miami, or the nice duo he could make in Chi-town.  LeBron’s legacy should be going for it in Cleveland.  Win, lose, or fail.  It’s no longer about the parts he has to work with or the new coach or any of that.  It’s about finishing what he started.  Truth be told, LeBron’s legacy will never be greater than if he wins the title starved city of Cleveland a championship.  That would be bigger than him winning a ring as a Knick.  Or a Nyet.  Why?

Because ultimately, people are sick of New York teams.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, New York teams that win are good for any sport and commissioner’s psyche, but you know what?  If LeBron James is so big that all our major sports writers are following him and his posse from city to city, and his house to strange hotels, just to see who he’s meeting with now, than clearly it doesn’t matter who he plays for.

Ahh, I said it.

The Cavs are irrelevant without LeBron.  With him, they’re Lakers East.  They don’t go out to the beach and date supermodels, but they get the job done.  They don’t have Jack, they have average Joe.

You see it hit me today.  LeBron doesn’t need a big city to make him immortal in the eyes of the sports world.  He needs to finish what he started.  He needs to deliver a title to a city that no longer knows what it feels like to celebrate one.  He needs to show that loyalty is not dead.  LeBron can become a billionaire in Cleveland or New York.  Just look at your TV.  Vitamin Water, Nike, the list goes on.  What’s New York going to do?  Will TMZ get into the act?  A couple witty New York post headlines?  C’mon!

LeBron’s legacy is whatever he makes it.  And if he wins titles in Cleveland as ‘the man’ with what many would consider a lottery bound team without him, than boom, there’s your legacy.

Boston-Los Angeles makes for nostalgic conversation and the usual East versus West mumbojumbo, but if the Cavs and Lakers had played in the Finals it would have been a ratings bonanza bigger than Shaq’s head.  So cut the crap with the whole, LeBron’s legacy thing.

And here’s another thing, and this one has really bugged me lately.  Guys wanting to win, but not willing to actually sacrifice to do so.  Example: Joe Johnson, who will most likely re-up with the Hawks, keep them just decent enough to be relevent, but hampered by his absurd contract that they can’t make any upgrades because they don’t have cap space.

Guys are full of crap when they say they want to win.  Prove to me you want to win.  D-Wade could sign for $10 million a season, leaving the Heat tons of cap space to play with, but he wants the max.  He deserves it.  But he could easily contribute to Miami’s chances by taking one for the team.  Then Miami could sign guys like Haslem or Dorell Wright to contracts without worrying if it cuts into their monopoly money.

Just imagine for a second if a guy like Chris Bosh wanted to win so badly, that he took $10 million a season in a sign and a trade so that a team like Heat could also afford to give him a bench too.

But it’s a giant ego-stroke for these guys, who want to win, but want to get their’s.  Must be tough making only 16 million a year.  O the horror.  Because with only $10 million a year and let’s say $20 million in endorsements you can’t really buy any nice toys.  Ha, what a joke.

My rant leaves you with one final thing to ponder: are NBA teams just stupid or ignorant?  Max dollars for Rudy Gay?  $30 million for Channing Frye?  Darko is still in the league, and getting paid $20 million?  How!  Just because you have money doesn’t mean you have to set it on fire, as these soon to be overpaid players roll around in the mud not sure what to do with the cash that just fell out of their backside.  Drew Gooden?  He hasn’t been relevent since … um, I’ll get back to you on that one.

Photo: AP

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