LeBron James‘ hopes for another NBA title took a significant hit when Game 1 of the NBA Finals was essentially dribbled away by J.R. Smith. It was a tragic event for Cleveland Cavaliers fans who know their time with James on the roster might be coming to an end. He can be a free agent this summer, after all, and many people believe he will head for greener pastures.
Since there will be no real news on this until it happens, though, everyone is looking for opinions from those who know James and the Cavaliers that might have some additional insight into what will happen. That includes former Cavaliers general manager David Griffin, who left the team abruptly just before the NBA Draft last year.
Griffin often appears in the media to give his take on NBA going ons, and on Sunday he was asked why the Philadelphia 76ers might have an advantage in signing James this summer. The connection is one that’s been brought up before: James’ agent, Rich Paul, is connected with a number of different clients, including Philly’s standout rookie Ben Simmons.
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The Sixers make sense for a lot of reasons, namely that their cap situation allows them to offer James a max contract without having to sacrifice any of its future core. Simmons himself seems interested in playing with James, too and the two have been very complimentary to one another, but whether James wants to take a role in mentoring Simmons is another question entirely.
LeBron’s future playing destination isn’t likely to be a project. He wants to win now, and do as much with the remainder of his career that he can. Philadelphia is an appealing destination for that reason, but it’s not perfect given the roles of the key players they have on the roster currently. No NBA team is, really, which is why there will be intrigue about where James ends up until he makes the decision for himself.
