The Cavaliers may have to turn the page fast if LeBron James lands elsewhere.
Cleveland has been tied to James throughout free agency, but that chase has started to look less certain as the process drags on. James is now a free agent for the fifth time in his career, and ESPN’s Shams Charania said the picture is narrowing.
“It’s decision time for LeBron James… The Leading suitors have been CLE, MIA, GSW, PHI, and MIN…. LeBron James has made it clear privately that he wants to go somewhere he can compete for a championship. Somewhere he feels he finds that happiness from a team environment and culture that he can uplift,” ESPN’s Shams Charania said.
If Cleveland comes up short, CBS Sports’ Robby Kalland believes the Cavaliers could move quickly to another proven name: DeMar DeRozan.
“The most likely answer is that the Cavs fill out the roster with minimum-salary players and try to run it back coming off an Eastern Conference Finals appearance. Then there's DeMar DeRozan, who is the best available veteran free agent forward after getting waived by the Sacramento Kings, and figures to be an early call for a lot of teams that miss out on James,” Kalland wrote.
DeRozan became available last week after Sacramento waived him, a move ESPN described this way:
“The Sacramento Kings have waived DeMar DeRozan, the team announced Monday, making the six-time All-Star one of the top free agents on the market. DeRozan had a partial guarantee on his contract for next season, but he and Sacramento worked on his release to allow him to find a new home. Multiple contenders are expected to have interest in the veteran guard,” ESPN wrote.
A 17-year veteran, DeRozan has spent his career piling up production and paydays, with more than $305 million in contracts to his name. He has not had many chances in recent years to join a true title-caliber team, and Cleveland could offer exactly that. The Cavaliers already have one of the Eastern Conference’s strongest rosters, and adding a scorer with DeRozan’s track record would only deepen their push toward the NBA Finals.
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Kings Loss Leaves Fans Asking One Big Question About This Approach
The Kings Summer League trip through Las Vegas has been less about the final score and more about figuring out what kind of identity this group can build on the fly, and Tuesdays 82-76 loss to Boston only sharpened that conversation. Sacramento dug itself a deep hole early at the Thomas & Mack Center, missing 18 of its first 19 shots and going scoreless for nearly seven minutes before finally finding a rhythm.
Alex Karaban gave the Kings a reason to keep pushing, finishing with 21 points and eight rebounds, and Sacramento even clawed back from a 16-point deficit to make things uncomfortable late. But Boston had the steadier answer when it mattered, with Hugo Gonzalez posting 24 points and 10 rebounds, leaving the Kings with another reminder that the margin for error is thin when the offense starts this slowly. [Read more 🡒]