LeBron Sweepstakes 2010

With the LeBron Sweepstakes in full swing, everyone has a guess of where he and Wade will end up. But the better question (I think) is where should they end up? John Hollinger did an article on the best player matches for LeBron, but I didn't read it...not an ESPN Insider.

For LeBron, I think he could use a dominant big man, and guards that can shoot. Anyone who plays with him automatically becomes a better shooter (see Gibson, Daniel). But I think Greg Oden and Brandon Roy make the Portland TrailBlazers a great fit. LaMarcus Aldridge is a low post scoring threat that does not demand the ball. Both James and Roy seem to be the type of stars that can share the ball. The big question marks are Oden and Roy's health, which is probably to big of a gamble for James to make.

The next best fit is the Cleveland Cavaliers with one free agent acquisition: Joe Johnson. Johnson plays above average defense, is versatile enough to score or handle the ball, and could play Pippen to James' Jordan. Williams (B.J. Armstrong/Steve Kerr) and Varejao (Horace Grant/Dennis Rodman) are two great fits to play with James; add Johnson, and you would just need 3 centers that could play some defense and foul. Antawn Jamison's stock goes up by coming off the bench as a scoring threat and providing depth at the 3 and 4, a la Toni Kukoc.

For Dwayne Wade, the best fit is the Oklahoma City Thunder. He pairs with one of the best shooters in the game, Kevin Durant, who scores most of his points in the flow of the offense. Wade is the slasher; the Jordan to Durant's Pippen. In some ways Wade does many of the same things as Russell Westbrook, so it may open the door for Westbrook to be traded, unless he can develop a 3-point shot. I also am skeptical that the Thunder have a Grant/Rodman type that is needed to complement the scoring at the 2 and 3. And Durant will have to raise his game on D even more.

One of the underrated measures of the Jordan/Pippen championships were their dominating defense. When James and Wade start searching for a new team and teammates, they would be well served to look at the current players who have been on more than 1 NBA All-Defensive Team (1st or 2nd team) and who are not old (Duncan, Garnett, Bryant). There are 5 players who meet this criteria: LeBron James (2), Dwayne Wade (3), Chris Paul (2), Rajon Rondo (2), and Dwight Howard (3). James and Wade should both want to team with one of these other 3.

As the Orlando Magic have anchored their ship to Vince Carter and Rashard Lewis' bloated contracts, good luck there. I cannot imagine any other team taking on one of those 2 after these playoffs. Ditto for what is happening in New Orleans, unless someone can lure the Hornets into a horrible trade (Paul and Peja (or other high priced player) for Devin Harris and the #3). Sign LeBron, trade for Paul, and team with Lopez fill out roster with good shooting 2 that can play defense (Byron Scott) and a rebounding 4 that plays D (Rodman); not bad at all.

Finally, the Celtics are interesting. With Ray Allen coming off the books, if Paul Pierce were to opt out to renogiate his contract, that would open the door for the Celtics to make a play for James or Wade, teaming the All-Defense members with Rondo. All they would need to do is sign Kendrick Perkins to a long term complimentary player deal (around $10M/season) and see if Allen or Pierce would come back for a hometown discount. That's all we need; 2 long-term dynasties in Boston and L.A. again.

I am not as big on the Chicago option. Derrick Rose is a bit hyped; right now, he does not have the shooting ability or defense to make a team elite. Chicago might be better adding Chris Bosh or Amare Stoudamire, who I also do not consider elite because of their defense. If they could do this without giving up Deng, they would be a solid team capable of winning the championship in a 90's/04-07 Detroit Pistons model if the team would develop good chemistry - Joakim Noah could play the Ben Wallace role and provide some cover for Bosh and Stoudamire's defense.

I guess we will just have to wait like everyone else to see what happens.