This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang, but with a wimper
Not with a bang, but with a wimper
-TS Eliot, The Hollow Men
The day is here folks, for all signs point to today being the end of the long, arduous journey that "the King" has led us on. Free agency has only been open for a total of nine days and I think pretty much everyone is already exhausted. Regardless of whether or not you thought that there was a possibility of the Cavs bringing back the best player in basketball, I think that everyone by this point has at least had the slight thought pop into their heads:
"But.... what if?"
There will be outrage regardless of what LeBron's decision is. If LeBron goes back to Miami, a good portion of the Cleveland fan base will feel betrayed once again, believing they were used like a rag doll in bargaining tactics to force Riley to improve his roster. If the choice is to come to Cleveland, the Miami fan base (whatever is left of it) will be devastated, left almost literally without a team. And if (and there's a .0000001% chance of this happening at this point) LeBron goes somewhere other than Cleveland or Miami, the entire league will be left scratching their heads.
If you go to Twitter right now, you can see that #ComeHomeLeBron is trending in Cleveland. This city is starved for a winning team, and the Cavs can be brought to championship level with the player who most of us thought would never leave. Bringing LeBron back to the Cavs makes you a contender, not in a year or two, but now.
But bare in mind, regardless of what the decision that comes down today (which will reportedly be announced on LeBronJames.com), the team is in a better place now than they've been in years. Not only that, but this roster is built to be young and competitive for 6+ years if players continue to develop and assets (draft picks, cap space) are not used recklessly. If you need a reminder, Sam Amico was hearing about our most recent #1 pick:
If you go to Twitter right now, you can see that #ComeHomeLeBron is trending in Cleveland. This city is starved for a winning team, and the Cavs can be brought to championship level with the player who most of us thought would never leave. Bringing LeBron back to the Cavs makes you a contender, not in a year or two, but now.
But bare in mind, regardless of what the decision that comes down today (which will reportedly be announced on LeBronJames.com), the team is in a better place now than they've been in years. Not only that, but this roster is built to be young and competitive for 6+ years if players continue to develop and assets (draft picks, cap space) are not used recklessly. If you need a reminder, Sam Amico was hearing about our most recent #1 pick:
Here is the analysis I received on Cavs rookie Andrew Wiggins out of Vegas so far: "That kid, wow. Just wow. Wow, wow, wow."
— Sam Amico (@SamAmicoFSO) July 9, 2014
Oh, and does everyone remember that we had the
#1 pick last year as well? I know that Bennett had a disappointing (read: pitiful) rookie year, but he was injured to start the year, missed the entire summer, and was horribly overweight (he weighed at least 260 lbs. at the beginning of the season). But it certainly looks like he's been getting himself into tip-top shape for this season:
Per @CavsFredMcLeod it looks like Anthony Bennett donated about 35% of Anthony Bennett to charity pic.twitter.com/3wL5zYsjSe
— Zac Jackson (@FSOhioZJackson) July 9, 2014
Oh, and if you didn't watch much of him in college, his game tape at UNLV was pretty darn good as well.
But I don't mean to turn this into an "Anthony Bennett love-fest." What I'm trying to convey is the optimism that should be had for this team. With three number one overall picks, and another four first round picks, this team is young and hungry (no Bennett jokes please). And now with a coach that is apparently renowned for connecting with players in Blatt, we may finally see the potential that this team can offer. In fact, we'll get to see a glimpse of what the young guys look like at the first summer league game on Friday at 8 p.m. against Milwaukee. And lest I forget... WE MAY BE RID OF JARRETT JACK!
Waiting on LeBron may have lost the Cavs opportunities with a few free agents, including Channing Frye and more recently Gordon Hayward, but Ariza, Parsons, and Monroe are all viable options that are still sitting on the market. There's also several possibilities for trades involving the expiring contracts on the roster, as well as some of the young talent that may not fit in as well with the team (Dion seems to be under the impression that he may be out the door, since he retweeted this).
So bare in mind as you are mashing F5 on LeBronJames.com this evening, even if the night ends in a whimper of defeat, the Cavs will be better than you'd expect (probably).