There have been Heat rumors flying nonstop since the NBA Finals ended, but this one is by far the most fascinating we've heard so far.
According to ESPN's Brian Windhorst:
"...a victory for the Heat at this stage likely means getting James to commit for one more season. Again, this is not ideal. When that infamous “not five, not six …” speech was delivered, James was under the impression that he would be staying in Miami for a second long-term contract. Despite a strong and historic run, James isn’t ready to commit to that given the current state of the team.
The Heat are the favorites; this is not in question. But there is a window of doubt due to the way the season ended, Wade’s health and some bitterness James harbors that Micky Arison put the brakes on spending over the past year.
That is why his most likely path is to opt out of his contract after the draft so that he will maximize his flexibility while putting teams on the clock.
This would force the Heat to take action on the free-agent market to improve the roster and, essentially, spend money even though they are facing significant luxury-tax penalties. It would also buy time for James to meet with other teams and examine plans and for rival teams to make trades or signings to potentially make them more attractive. Some deals are more likely to happen in July rather than in late June."
Could King James be putting pressure on Miami thanks to discontent with recent roster moves? It certainly checks out - the Heat lost both Mike Miller and Joel Anthony thanks to financial decisions, and their lack of depth was badly exposed by San Antonio in the finals.
We seriously doubt that these frustrations are enough for James to opt out (see yesterday's article for reasons why), but this sounds like a way for LeBron to leverage his contract situation to motivate Miami to upgrade their roster.
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