With the league's schedule on hold, Adam Silver is pressuring LeBron James to finalize a high-stakes free agency move that will reshape the NBA’s national calendar.
DALLAS - C'mon, LeBron.
"C'mon'' to the Dallas Mavs? Not likely.
No, here the "c'mon'' is more about, "C'mon, LeBron James, hurry up and announce another of your 'Decisions' so the NBA can get on with its business.''
It speaks to the gravitas of James, even at age 41 as he enters Year 24 of his brilliant career, that the entire league is at a sort of standstill as it awaits his next move.
But that's a fact.
Most people within the NBA believe a decision will come next week. ... even as James has said he won't be hurried.
But NBA commissioner Adam Silver has issued a push for James to make his decision ASAP.
“Where LeBron plays will affect the schedule,” Silver said over the weekend via the CNBC Sport x Boardroom: Game Plan Summit. “So, I would like him to make his announcement already, so we can finish the schedule. Because, as you might imagine, the teams are calling us, the networks are calling us, and everybody wants to lock in the schedule. …
"It will influence how we set the schedule, how we set opening week, Christmas Day, etc., etc. So, I need him to make a decision.”
The list of suitors has narrowed. It seems James is expected to sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves or Denver Nuggets.
Our best guess? James goes home to Ohio to re-sign with the Cavaliers, his first NBA team.
James averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game for the Los Angeles Lakers last season. ... but his view is obviously that the Lakers - even with Luka Doncic on board - aren't championship-bound any time soon.
Said the four-time MVP, four-time champion and four-time Finals MVP this weekend ...
“I want to compete at a high level. I want to join a franchise that shares the same model as myself. That’s like practicing championship habits every day. But trust in the process more than anything. I think you trust the process of actually getting to that point.
“The process is what’s most important. Because if you just fully immerse yourself in that, then the outcome will take care of itself. If you’re already worried about the championship, or you’re already worried about the playoffs, already worried about what lies ahead, then you will skip steps along that journey.
"So, being with a franchise, being with a group of guys that kind of has the same model.”
James has earned that right, of course.
But the basketball world would like him to hurry up and exercise it.
