LeBron James left the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010 and he joined the Miami Heat. Four years and two championships after, LeBron returned to Cleveland as he wanted to win a championship for the team that drafted him back in 2003. James made it happen in 2016, but recent issues with the team might make him leave once again. The four-time MVP will be a free agent next summer and it seems that he doesn't intend to stay in Cleveland.
According to Vince Grzegorek of the Cleveland Scene, Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert asked LeBron James if he can guarantee he will stay in Cleveland after next summer.
Gilbert needed to know this so he can pull the trade that would send Kyrie Irving to the Phoenix Suns. However, James couldn't guarantee staying in Cleveland after 2017/18 season.
LeBron James has good reasons to leave Cleveland
Just recently, the Cleveland Cavaliers let their general manager David Griffin go. Griffin's contract expired and Dan Gilbert refused to extend it, even though LeBron James wanted it. James made it known that he is not happy with Gilbert's decision and he was disappointed with it. This created big problems for the Cavaliers and it could be the reason why James leaves Cleveland next year.
In the rearview now but heard from very reliable source talks were very real pic.twitter.com/lxGyZKjZVM
— Vince Grzegorek (@vincethepolack) June 26, 2017
Another reason for LeBron James to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers would be the losses in the NBA Finals.
James is 1-2 in the Finals since coming back to Cleveland and from the looks of things, it is very unlikely that the Cavaliers will beat the Golden State Warriors next year.
Right now, James has 3 championship rings, but he also lost five times on the final stage. While the fact that he reached the Finals eight times is impressive, it is clear that James wants to win it all and he is not satisfied with just getting to the final round of the postseason.
Where could he go?
If LeBron James decides to leave Cleveland, he will have plenty of options to choose from. There were some rumors of him going to the West and joining either the Los Angeles Lakers or the Clippers. There is no doubt that James' impact would be huge and these teams could reach conference finals with his help.
On the other side, he could stay in the East and possibly take his talents to South Beach once again. Beside Miami, there are a lot of other good teams in the conference that could try to sign the superstar, such as the Washington Wizards or the Toronto Raptors.
It's hard to think about James leaving for another team, but considering everything that's happened with the Cavaliers recently, it won't be surprising if he decides to go somewhere else.
