With the NBA offseason underway and 2 days into free agency, the number one question is will the era of the “Big Three,” centered around LeBron come to an end? There are tons of rumours circulating, but before we get into any of those, let’s pretend put ourselves in LeBron’s shoes: 1) You’re the best basketball player in the world; any team with a bit of cap space that thinks they have a shot at signing you will put down everything they have for you; 2) You want to win championships, and four or five by the end of your career would be sufficient; 3) You want to be paid like the best player in basketball.
It is these criteria that LeBron is looking to satisfy with his next move. To refresh your memory, last time the King was a free agent, he left his hometown team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, to join Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat in South Beach. Commonly known as “The Big Three” (we like to call them the three amigos for originality), the Heat went on to win back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013 championships, having been to the NBA finals four times in the past four years.
There is furious debate surrounding the three amigos this time around: Will the trio stay together in Miami? To be frank, here’s the deal: Dwayne Wade experienced injuries this year and had only a so-so season. With Wade and LeBron on the team, Bosh is… well….not what he was in Toronto. One can imagine that he was in Miami because the other two amigos were there. Also, those are three monster contracts for the Heat, so it’s hard to imagine that they’ll be able to live up to James’ request of being paid like the best player in basketball. Examining these facts, Miami might not be the best place for the King.
That being said, Wade, James and Bosh all opted out of their contracts to become free agents this summer. Some rumours suggest that they were moving in concert to make it easier for the Heat to re-sign all three of them plus add a strong supporting cast or maybe even a fourth amigo—New York Knicks superstar Carmelo Anthony is also a free agent this year. If this were the case, all three (or four) amigos would need to take a pay cut. This would be a very strong team though, certainly one capable of reaching the NBA finals, particularly if they did add a fourth amigo. Despite a wayward season and the fact that Wade will be winding down his career over the next several years, Wade is still one of the best point guards in the NBA and a good teammate for LeBron James. As for the biggest jerk of all basketball (You guessed it – Bosh!), he has been along for the ride with the other two amigos more than anything else but would be considered very valuable on a team that did not have the other two amigos (cough, cough).
Ultimately, the future of the three amigos depends on whether the King is more serious about winning championships than he is about laughing his way to the bank with some ridiculous monster max-contract. Over the years, he has made it clear that winning is more of a priority (just ask Cleveland), so it seems likely that he would re-sign in Miami, at least for a short-term deal, and then maybe move again if they can’t pull together a few more championships.
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