Weekend Meet Between LeBron, Bosh and Wade Confirmed
Today ESPN reports that the all-star player summit between Chris Bosh, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade has indeed taken place. Sources confirmed the meeting Monday night and said that the three biggest names in basketball, met on the weekend in Miami to analyze future prospects and seriously consider the possibility of teaming up en masse with Wade’s Heat.
Stress was likewise placed on the fact that James, while apparently intrigued with the possibility of playing for an ‘all-star team,’ has not yet confirmed that he will be departing from his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers for South Beach.
The news has placed NBA analysts in frenzy. Controversial journalist Stephen A. Smith reported yesterday on his twitter that a credible source had informed him all three would be signing onto the Miami Heat proposal. Such an arrangement would undoubtedly affect other teams like the Knicks or the Bulls who are looking to make gains out of the Free Agents pool.
Free Agency opens officially Thursday at 12:01 a.m. ET. Teams looking to make players offers are not allowed to communicate with them until then. LeBron James has repeatedly stated that he is committed only to fielding free-agent pitches at this time, though the Chicago Bulls have emerged as a highly appealing destination. Other possibilities include staying in Cleveland, going to Dallas or South Beach.
Today the Miami Herald reported that two Wade representatives deny the meeting took place, stating that Wade had been in Chicago all weekend. However sources closer to the situation told ESPN.com that the three players were drawn to Miami in the wake of an annual two-day party and golf tournament hosted by DJ Irie, who serves as the Miami Heat’s official DJ.
The three were seen Saturday in Miami.
The South Sun Sentinel, on its website yesterday, quoted a source close to Wade as saying that the 2006 Finals MVP "believes his team is poised to pull off a free-agency coup" by signing James and Bosh and re-signing Wade.
In a follow-up report Tuesday, a second source close to Wade confirmed that he had considered the possibility “in recent days” and that the focus was on the “financial machinations” that require tweaking should the players all decide to be on the same roster.
The situation is complicated by the fact that unless Miami trade away former No. 2 overall pick Michael Beasley to a team with salary-cap space, so it can avoid taking salary back, Heat president Pat Riley will not be able to offer the estimated 2010-11 maximum salary of $16.5 million to all three Team USA stars.
Ever a question of money, fans should not be too hopeful everyone will be willing to take less to make the fantastic possibility a reality.
But sources insisted that the three were optimistic and likely to trump contractual complexities if need be. It is unclear as well if Bosh would sign with the Heat simply, or if he would want to hold out for a sign-and-trade.
Yesterday Toronto Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo said Monday for the first time in a radio interview that it is becoming “more and more clear” that the prospect of resigning Bosh is “not going to happen.”
Others said still that LeBron James is first and foremost concerned to speak to the Chicago Bulls, due to his lifetime admiration for Michael Jordan. It is unclear if the Bulls would be willing to take on both James and Bosh.
When asked about the reality of a summit, NBA Commissioner David Stern said: “They can have it,” explaining that the league does not punish player-to-player interaction in the offseason the way it does against team-player tampering before the Free Agents’ opening of July 1st.
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