Is LeBron Really Planning to Rejoin Cavs in 2014?

By Larry Durstin

In the September 2010 issue of GQ magazine, which hit the newsstands about a month after his infamous “Decision,” LeBron James was asked if he would ever come back to Cleveland and play for the Cavs. “That would be a great story,” the Chosen One responded before going on to pepper the rest of the interview with third person references, most of which either extolled LeBron’s own humility or emphasized how LeBron had spoiled everyone with LeBron’s superlative performances both on and off the court.

And now, after a tumultuous season in which James failed miserably in the NBA Finals and became the most hated player in the league, rumors are bubbling to the surface that LeBron – upset with Miami GM Pat Riley’s heavy-handed tactics in, among other things, exiling James’ knuckle-headed entourage from the Heat locker room – will sign with the Cavaliers after opting out of his contract in the summer of 2014. And what a story that will be! The Prodigal Son returning and being welcomed by tens of thousands of forgetting, forgiving and fixing-to-be-forever spoiled fans. A dry eye will be impossible to find in the ESPN studios.

Of course the whole thing is a sham, a transparent PR effort concocted by LeBron and his handlers in order to rehabilitate James’ sagging image. The fact that this “story” has surfaced partially via the speculation of former Cavs beat writer Brian Windhorst – who followed James to Miami – casts serious doubt as to its credence. Those who have covered LeBron over the years know that Windhorst has no special personal relationship with James, had no one-to-one access to him at all while writing his book on the Akron-born superstar and is viewed by many as being an eager conduit for the James’ marketing machine.

This “LeBron Returns” charade is the same kind of nonsense that was put out by former Ohio State coach Jim Tressel and his PR crew when they cooked up the “news” that the Vest was being seriously considered for the head coaching job with the Indianapolis Colts. The ethically “flexible” Tressel needed a publicity boost, so a phantom job-offer from the Colts was run up the flagpole a week or so before the announcement came that the disgraced ex-Buckeye bossman had copped some kind of flim-flam fundraising gig at the University of Akron.

The manufactured fantasy about James’ future is part of the conscious effort to make him more consumer-friendly which began in earnest with the splash about him getting down on his knees and offering to make an honest woman out of his long-time girlfriend. That’s so sweet. Now LeBron can be hawked as a loyal hubby who wants to right the wrong he did to Cleveland and make up for lost time by delivering multiple championships to the Cavs. And even if he ultimately doesn’t do it and – after neither confirming nor denying the rumor for the next two years – goes instead to the Lakers, well, at least he thought about it and that should be enough to restore him as the truly adorable guy we always knew he was and doesn’t this all make us feel better about ourselves?

Let’s hope not, since the only thing that’s really happening is another one of LeBron’s calculated teases. Besides, due to the draft lottery last year, Cavs fans should jettison thoughts of the duplicitous hoopster and instead rejoice over the fact that the team was fortunate enough to acquire 19-year-old Kyrie Irving who, one-third of the way through his first season, is actually outperforming what James himself did over the same span as a rookie.

Matching Irving’s stats for his first 20 games with LeBron’s for the same period shows Irving with a distinct edge. While playing only 28 minutes per game vs. LeBron’s 40 minutes, Irving averaged 18 points per game (which would project out to 25 ppg over 40 minutes) and shot 51% from the field, 41% from three-point range and 82% from the foul line. In comparison, James averaged 20 ppg but shot only 39% from the field, 32% from the three-point line and 70% from the charity stripe. Perhaps more importantly, Irving led the Cavs to an 8-12 record in that period and looked remarkably in control while doing so, whereas James’ team was 5-15 with LeBron often having long stretches of erratic, unproductive play.

This season, LeBron is once again putting on a show. He’s posting huge numbers, something Cavs fans became used to from him during the regular season. Once again pundits are singing his praises as the most dominating player in the game. He’s flexing and preening and dancing and grimacing and beating his chest and mugging for the cameras and generally acting like he’s the baddest man on the planet. And as part of that show he and his peeps are conjuring up whispers that he’s longing to return to Cleveland.

Well, Cavs fans have seen this disgusting act before and should know how it will end: a spectacular regular season dissolving into a choking/quitting playoff meltdown – and the transparently self-serving rumors of him signing with the Cavs disappearing into thin, toxic air.

[Photo: Keith Allison]

Larry Durstin is an independent journalist who has covered politics and sports for a variety of publications and websites over the past 20 years. He was the founding editor of the Cleveland Tab and an associate editor at the Cleveland Free Times. Durstin has won 12 Ohio Excellence in Journalism awards, including six first places in six different writing categories. LarryDurstinATyahoo.com

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