Better Late Than Never Right?? LeBron Thanks the fans in Cleveland!!

AKRON, Ohio (AP)—LeBron James(notes) finally thanked his fans in Cleveland on Saturday, making his first public appearance since he left the Cavaliers for the Miami Heat.

At his annual “King for Kids” charity bike-a-thon in downtown Akron, James addressed a friendly crowd of several hundred people who cheered as he took the podium.

“To the city of Cleveland, my fans in Cleveland, my fans in northeast Ohio,” said James, “I want to say thank you for the last seven years and the years that continue to go in the future.”

Then he repeated the thank you to Cleveland a second time, as if for extra emphasis.

“So I want to thank the city of Cleveland, also northeast Ohio, for all the great years that I’ve had,” he said.

Last week, James came under fire for taking out a full-page newspaper ad in the Akron Beacon Journal in which he thanked the city of Akron for its support. The ad contained no mention of Cleveland, where James got his start in the NBA.

Emotions are still running high among Cleveland fans who felt betrayed by James, who was revered in that city for years.

After James left for Miami to join Dwyane Wade(notes) and Chris Bosh(notes), Cavs owner Dan Gilbert sent off a scathing letter to Cleveland fans vowing to win a title before James does.

But in Akron, at least, James is still very much loved by the people who watched him grow up. After giving his brief speech—and without answering any questions from the media—James hopped on a bicycle and joined about 400 children who received free bicycles along the one-mile course.

Wearing a red shirt with the word “Akron” printed on it, James also thanked that city and its mayor for extending open arms to the player and his family. He said this is the most precious day of the year for him.

“Because I’m able to give back to the city that I grew up in, the city that I love,” James said to cheers. “And the city that I will always give back to.”

Most fans were pleased to see him, and didn’t understand the vitriol that has been directed at James from the rest of northeast Ohio since he left.

“This is his home. He’s been very supportive of us in the past,” said Tony Morganti, a Cavs fan from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. “He said he’s going to continue to be so, and I think this just proves it.”

LeBron, Wade, and Bosh Celebrates in Miami!!!!!

LeBron James chooses the Miami Heat

It's over. It's finally over. After a mind-numbing process that took the better part of two months, LeBron James(notes) has decided to join the Miami Heat.

The former Cavaliers forward more or less held the NBA hostage during its final few rounds of the playoffs, the NBA's draft season and the early part of the free-agency period as he and his retinue of handlers and representatives made executives and fans in cities like Cleveland, Chicago and New York all feel as if he was set to take his talents to their particular teams.

In the end, though, he'll join Miami. To play with Dwyane Wade(notes), Chris Bosh(notes) and little else. Rumors persisted throughout Thursday that the Heat were well on their way toward setting up a three-way deal to dump young forward Michael Beasley(notes) -- possibly not for any on-court reward, but so James, Wade and Bosh can get closer to a first-year salary that nears the maximum amount they're allowed to be paid. And that's what it's really come down to. A few more millions for the superstars, for no real reason at all outside of perceived respect, potential and roster-shaping be damned.

[Photos: See images of the LeBron free-agency circus and the star in action]

So now, for the first time since 2006, we're not speculating any more. We know LeBron James will be a Miami Heat for the next five years, and that a phrase like "will be a Miami Heat" just can't help but give you shivers up and down your spine. Legendary stuff. Snark aside, now that we have a team to plug him into, how will LeBron's choice hold up?

Well, for one, the Heat still have a team to build. If the deal with Beasley goes through, they will have just one player under contract (point guard Mario Chalmers(notes)) for next season as the Big Three's contracts get worked out. Add that triptych of All-Stars, and you still have 11 roster spots and six rotation spots to fill out with little money left underneath the salary cap.

How can they pull that off, legally? Well, once a team exceeds the salary cap they can add players making minimum salaries, but they will not have any of the larger-scale player exemptions that teams that entered the offseason over the salary cap get. So they can't work as Boston did this week, adding Jermaine O'Neal(notes) for around $6 million a year, or offer a fringe starter a cut from the mid-level exception, as the Lakers did this week with Steve Blake(notes).

No, they'll have to rely on players wanting to take less in order to play for Miami. Not just "less," too. We're talking minimum-salaried slots. And while you'd think that certain prospects would be chomping at the bit in order to sign with a team featuring James, Wade and Bosh, understand that money is money, and it drives players more than winning ever does.

[Video: Warren Buffett to LeBron: 'Call me']

On top of that, who is left? Chris Bosh has long been frustrated with having to play center, but unless the severely limited Joel Anthony(notes) returns to the Heat, he'll have to man the pivot and go up against Dwight Howard(notes) four times a season. James has long chafed at having to do most of the ball-handling work on his team without a pure point guard to help, but Chalmers struggled mightily in that role during his second season, and he's no sure thing at this level.

Then there's the structural issues. Erik Spoelstra's simplistic offense allowed for isolation after isolation for Dwyane Wade last season, getting to pound the ball while grabbing a screen and waiting for a decision. This is what James enjoys doing, as well, but neither are sound spot-up shooters to spread the floor while the other dribbles the clock away. And Bosh? The Heat could be paying a maximum salary for a guy averaging 12 or 13 points a game, as all the shots tend to go elsewhere. And with former forward Udonis Haslem(notes) heading elsewhere, Spoelstra will have to re-jig his zone-heavy defensive schemes.

This is a chance Miami had to take. When the best player in the NBA wants to play for the maximum deal for your team, you do everything in your power to satisfy him, no matter how distasteful. The Heat will now boast the NBA's best core, but in a league with five men to a side and 10 men to a rotation, the franchise still has quite a bit of work to do.

It's an enviable problem to overcome, though. You can quibble with the choice - Chicago already has two former All-Stars on its roster, one of the league's best young centers and an 17-points-per-game scorer in Luol Deng(notes) in its rotation - but Miami can work. And Cleveland? It's a miserable situation for fans of that team, but the Cavs made their bed in deciding to kowtow to James and his handlers years ago, and that team was unlikely to ever improve on its showings in 2009 and last season.

Miami has a huge task ahead of it. No team has ever been gutted to its absolute core like this, even if the demolition results in three All-Stars joining the squad. It will have to be precise and exacting in determining what sorts of players can complement a type of foundation like this. A foundation we haven't seen since Wilt Chamberlain joined the Los Angeles Lakers over 40 years ago. Wilt joined Jerry West and Elgin Baylor then, though that foundation failed to win a ring (with Baylor around, at least), as each of those superstars were well into their 30s.

James is 25, Wade a few years older, Bosh 26. This is a foundation for the ages. But in a team game, it can still be screwed up. Screwed up by bad coaching, by superstars who don't get along on the court and by a poor supporting cast. This isn't to say that we're expecting any of those things to crop up in Miami, but despite the hoopla, and the promise, there is still a lot that can go wrong.

Miami is pretty thankful, though, that James is going to give them the chance to get it right.

Yahoo

LeBron James is a Chicago Bull according to the NBA's web store!!! WTF??

Breaking news — The LeBron James(notes) watch is over. He's made his decision and he's going to be a Chicago Bull, at least according to the NBA's official online store which everyone knows is the world's most definitive source for breaking news.

As a Bulls fan, let me say that I really like the looks of this. As a fan of the Cavaliers, Knicks, Heat, Clippers and Nets would say, "this is fake." Well it isn't, my friends. It's a real screenshot from the customizable jersey page for the Bulls. I guess you could read this as the Bulls reacquiring Jerome James(notes) and giving him a new number, but let's be serious here.

Surely this will get changed in no time, so make sure you get your order in quickly to have a possibly irrelevant tank top because, as mentioned earlier, LeBron isn't making a decision until Monday. Or if you really want to customize a Bulls jersey for a guy who might not end up in Chicago, go crazy.

Nonetheless, to whichever NBA staffer who chose "James 6" as the example of a jersey you could make, nice work. This won't get anyone's hopes up at all.

UPDATE: Yep, it's gone. And just to clarify — yes, it was a customizable jersey, but the default for this version was "James 6" rather than "Player 00" which is present on all the other customizable jersys. That's the mistake and that's the funny part, so have some laughs, OK?

Cuban: Lebron Could be on his way to the BIG D!!!!

Mark Cuban is no stranger to bold statements, and the Dallas Mavericks owner has expressed his interest in acquiring soon-to-be free agent LeBron James(notes).

The outspoken billionaire, in an interview this week with CNNMoney.com, said “anybody” would be interested in James. Cuban said it would be tough to sign the two-time defending league MVP in free agency, but a sign-and-trade deal with Cleveland is something he would look at.

If James does not reach a deal with the Cavaliers by July 1, he would become an unrestricted free agent.

Cuban’s remarks could fall under the league’s tampering rules. NBA rules state that a “no comment” is the proper response when the media asks about pending free agents before July 1.

A Riding The Bench Exclusive!!!! Is Delonte West teammate of Lebron James "knocking the boots" with Gloria James??? Details Inside!!

Was LeBron James' teammate Delonte West having an affair with James' mother during the season?

An explosive report is rocking the NBA and the sports world at large tonight that one of LeBron James' teammates, Cleveland Cavalier Delonte West is having an affair with James' mother, Gloria. Most noteworthy to NBA fans is that James reportedly found about about the affair during the recently concluded playoff series against the Boston Celtics and that it shook him to the extent that he played well below his usual level throughout the series.

Particularly after Game 4, Cavaliers' fans and the analysts were stunned at James' poor play. Not only did he not produce, he seemed distant and disinterested at times. All year long, James played like an heir to Michael Jordan and was considered by many, if not most, to be the best player in the NBA; one capable of carrying his team through the playoffs and to a possible NBA championship.

Mysteriously, that all changed, however, during Game Four of this second round series. James'

Prior to Game 4, LeBron James was scored 32 points per game, on average, and shot 55% from the field during the playoffs. But in games four, five and and six, LeBron scored 21 points a game and shot 33% from the field.

But even that dramatic decline in his numbers couldn't fully describe the completely different way James was playing the game. People openly wondered what was wrong with him. Many wondered if he had just quit on the team and on the season. Some even speculated that James was intentionally dogging it to try to get his head coach, Mike Brown, fired.

Today, however, a story is being reported across the Internet that, if true, would potentially explain why James suddenly looked completely listless and ineffective against the veteran Boston Celtics.

The story is that shortly before Game Four, James found out about his mother having an affair with teammate West. This would not be the first time that Gloria James has created a distraction for her son.

While he was in high school, she was able to get a loan to buy an $80,000 Hummer based on her son's future earnings potential, and not on her own financial situation. While James himself did nothing wrong, it created an unwanted controversy for him.

The coming days very likely will shed light on LeBron James' mysterious disappearance from Game 4 on during the playoffs, and on the sexual relationship, if any, between LeBron James' mother and his teammate Delonte West.

Source: Staff Reporter, "Exclusive: LeBron's Teammate Sleeping With His Mom", terezowens.com

What Will Happen Next???? LeBron Bounced out of the playoffs and maybe out of Cleveland!!! Details Inside

LeBron James threw his wristbands and headband into the Boston crowd, and spread his Greek-god arms to reach the suddenly adoring fans on both sides of him. He ripped his Cavaliers jersey over his head, walked into the losing locker room, and flipped it to an attendant for what looked and sounded like the very last time.

"Me and my team have a game plan that we're going to execute," James would say.

Me and my team. No, James wasn't talking about the team that had just helped him lose a second-round playoff series to the Celtics.

He was talking about the team that will help him navigate the most frantic free-agent courtship in the history of American sports, and quite possibly place him in the Knicks' starting five next fall.

"Me and my team will approach it the right way," LeBron said.

"Me and my team [are] going to figure out what's the best possibility for me."

The team? Leon Rose, LeBron's agent, and William Wesley, a mysterious mover and shaker who is among the game's most influential men.

They will be scheduling a game in Madison Square Garden for the first week of July, when Donnie Walsh's Knicks take their best shot at convincing James there's no place like New York, New York, to win a championship and rule the world.

"I'm not talking about July," Rose said after the Celtics dispatched his client into the black Boston night. "I'm just here to support LeBron."

James needed all the support he could get. He delivered what has to be the quietest triple-double on record, with his 27 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists not feeling as significant as his nine turnovers felt in this crushing 94-85 Game 6 defeat.

LeBron was hardly the comatose figure he was in Game 5, sinking back-to-back 3s early in the fourth quarter, cutting a double-digit deficit to 78-74 and forcing Doc Rivers to call a timeout. A feeling of unease swept over the TD Garden, at least until James bounced a perfect pass to Anderson Varejao, who blew the layup that would have put the Celtics on red alert.

Cleveland came undone, but that blown opportunity captured the essence of why James could and should leave for New York, Chicago, wherever. He has no Scottie Pippen in place; no Rajon Rondo, even. Just a bunch of Varejaos and Anthony Parkers and Delonte Wests.

How did these guys ever win 61 games?

In his heart of hearts, LeBron must know he can't seize a title with this hodgepodge crew, and he knows Cleveland doesn't have the cap space to land the second max player the Knicks will claim (Chris Bosh?) the minute James signs on the dotted line.

"A friend of mine told me today, after the game," LeBron said, "that I guess you have to go through a lot of nightmares before you finally accomplish your dream. That's what's going on individually for myself right now."

No Cleveland fan liked the sound of this. James was talking about nightmares, his free-agent support staff, his possibilities and his burning desire to do the grand postseason things he couldn't do with the Cavs.

"First of all, I want to win," he said. "It's all about winning for me, and I think the Cavs [are] committed to do that, but at the same time I'll give myself options to this point."

The Boston crowd reduced those options to one. Every time James made it to the foul line, the fans mocked him with a chant of "New York Knicks." During one timeout, the Garden video board showed a fan wearing a Knicks jersey with LeBron's future number, 6, on the front, and his last name stitched to the back, drawing another mock cheer.

It was the longest day and night of James' NBA life. In the pregame locker room, LeBron sat on the trainer's table getting his ankles taped, rocking to the beat on his outsized headphones and singing the profane lyrics for all to hear.

He had just fielded some questions at his locker, denying an Internet suggestion he had torn ligaments in his sore elbow and swearing that his Game 5 no-show wouldn't haunt him from here to eternity.

"At the end of the day, I had a bad game," James said, "and it just so happened it came in one of the biggest games of the season. … I forgot about it and move on to the next one."

The next one. LeBron James never had a next one quite like this one.

LeBron was on LeBrink, and he wasn't strong enough physically or mentally to save the season. When it was over, James showed he'd learned at least one best-of-seven lesson over the past 12 months.

Ripped for refusing to shake hands with the Eastern Conference champions in Orlando last year, James hugged and congratulated every Celtics player and coach he could find.

"You're the greatest player in the game," Rivers whispered in LeBron's ear.

Alone in a Garden hallway a little later, Rivers, the former Knick, was asked how he felt LeBron might fare in New York.

"I literally can't talk about it," Rivers said, "but it's going to be an interesting July 1. … For me, New York was the best, the best. Boston and New York are two sports-crazed cities, and you can't do any better; you really can't."

Across the way, LeBron was sitting in a chair at his locker, soaking his feet in a tub of ice. He eventually showered, threw on a black-and-white sweatsuit and headed for a postgame podium to praise the Celtics, acknowledge that his elbow "limited me some" and declare he's "going to approach this summer with the right mindset."

The mindset of a great entertainer who looked and sounded like he's on his way to Broadway.

ESPN

"Empire State of King James"

Well, Well, Well the NBA playoffs have kicked off in a major way and a few 1st round winners have been decided while there are other must win games still looming in the darkness for a few teams. This year has been focused on the dream match of Kobe vs. Lebron, but Kobe and the Lakers seemed to be in trouble while Lebron and co. are taking care of business. Lebron King James can arguably be the best player in the league, and after free agency this summer he will become the richest.

The question is, should James stay or leave after this year playoffs? Bottom line I believe James have served his time in Cleveland and to the state of Ohio, but it is time for the King to conquer a new land. The land of New York. Think about it, big city, bright lights and a flock of investors that will not make James the richest player in the NBA but the richest athlete next to Tiger Woods. Maybe its not all about the money for Lebron, but opportunities only knock on a few doors for some people and this could be the S.W.A.T team breaking in for James if he is wise.

I get it!!! The best player in the league needs to play for a winner right? Well think about this, New York has the most cap space in this upcoming free agency that will allow the Knicks to sign James and another big time player such as Chris Bosh, Amare Stoudemire, Joe Johnson and the dream teammate on everybody wish list Dwayne Wade. Who knows Shaq may follow James to New York with that Diesel personality that would be a league favorite. The possibilities are endless but if my name was Lebron James I would have Jay-Z and Alicia Keys ready for my press conference performing "Empire State of Mind" while I sign on the dotted line with the Knicks.

Sorry Cleveland fans but it is just business not pleasure, do not take it personal!!!!!!