The Arizona Republic reports that the Cavs are one of three teams thought to be in talks with the Suns about trading for star Amare Stoudemire.
Brian Windhorst of the Cleveland Plain Dealer breaks down the potential issues the Cavs face if they do deal for Stoudemire:
But with Stoudemire having the right to become a free agent this summer, it would be foolish for either team to trade for him without an agreement he’d re-sign with them. He already made it clear he didn’t want to go to Golden State last summer, which was one of the sticking points to that failed trade. It is hard to believe he’d want to stay in Minnesota, which is in the middle of a large rebuilding project.
That factor reduces Stoudemire’s value on the trade market and is why such a deal would make some sense for the Cavs. Stoudemire has said he wants to play for a contender, but probably would also be attracted to New York or Miami in the offseason. So the danger is the Cavs may find themselves renting him as well.
Another issue in thinking about this potential trade, however, is Stoudemire’s relationship with O’Neal. The people in Phoenix say that O’Neal and Stoudemire got along just fine in the locker room, but they didn’t so much on the floor. Their styles got in each other’s way, and it was one of the reasons the Suns first thought about trading Stoudemire a year ago and then flirted with the idea again in the summer before trading O’Neal instead.
Windhorst states that the natural trade that makes sense for both the Cavs and Suns would be Zydrunas Ilgauskas and J.J. Hickson for Stoudemire, since the Suns have “a history of interest in Hickson.”
Rotoworld.com is reporting that the Nets, Pistons, Warriors and T-Wolves are also interested in Stoudemire, although the Suns aren’t interested in a salary dump. They want good players and will seek the best offer.
At 6-foot-8 and 250 pounds, James often describes himself as a football player. He was an All-Ohio selection at Akron’s St. Vincent-St. Mary High School and still plays flag football at the school during the offseason.
James said he had input into the commercial, which shows using some of his basketball skills to help the Browns on the football field.
“I chose what team I wanted to wear, what I wanted to do and which routes I wanted to run,” he said.
James has been criticized by Cleveland fans for supporting the Cowboys and New York Yankees. He triggered a public outcry when he wore a Yankees cap to an Indians playoff game two years ago and again to a Browns home game against Dallas last season .
So was it tough pulling on an orange Browns helmet and not one with a star on it?
“No,” James said with a wink. “I love the Browns.”
Hmm. Depending on how far Cavs fans want to take LeBron’s comments, maybe the superstar is leaning towards staying in Cleveland instead of bolting for the Big Apple like many expect? Hey, Cavs fans can hope anyways, right?
That’s enough to make the Brown fan in you think about the possibilities of LeBron lining up wide and enough to make the Cav fan in you want to take a bath with an electrical device.
I did an “All-Athlete (minus football players) Gridiron Team” one time in which I selected players from sports other than the NFL to fill a football team. I enlisted LeBron as a running back because Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett were my receivers, but I could definitely see King James as a wideout.
If LeBron James struggles for the Cleveland Cavs next year, the team can look back to the time when a Joe Blow destroyed him in a game of H.O.R.S.E. for answers. SPORTSbyBROOKS.com has the story of a random guy burying James in the popular schoolyard game.
And he gave a heck of a money quote afterwards. Dan Kalb was selected to play LeBron James in “LeBron’s Trick Shot Challenge” in Venice Beach, California. Not satisfied to merely show up, he took down the Olympian in a best of three round of H-O-R-S-E.
Kalb told the MANSFIELD NEWS JOURNAL “I’m sure it was in fun,” Kalb said, “but part of him was probably thinking, ‘I can’t believe I lost to a bald 26-year-old.’”. No kidding.
Don’t get carried away thinking you can pull this off. Kolb is a trained professional. He played basketball at Wynford High School in Ohio, ample training to take down NBA stars in publicized games of H-O-R-S-E.
I will get carried away. I say the Cavs sign Kolb and trade James immediately. If they can even get anything for LeBron now, that is.
