- 10 hours ago
NBA analyst for Grind City Media Mike Wallace stops by to discuss the latest on LeBron, his fit in Miami and why he believes Golden State remains a very serious contender to land the 41-year-old.
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00:00Mike Wallace, he's on the Toyota of Hollywood Hotline.
00:03He is the senior editor, contributor, and analyst for GrindCityMedia at Grizzlies.com.
00:10He covered the heat down here for many years.
00:12He covered LeBron for ESPN during the Big Three era with ESPN's Heat Index.
00:19And he is a longtime friend of the program, and we always enjoy talking to him.
00:25Hello, Mike.
00:26Hey, what's going on, guys?
00:28It's always a pleasure being on with you guys, man.
00:30Hopefully the summer's going well for everyone.
00:32Can you believe in the year 2026, LeBron James still captivates the basketball universe in this fashion?
00:42You know what?
00:43I can't believe it.
00:44And, you know, I never would have thought that he would still be, you know, sort of galvanizing everyone's time
00:51at this point, you know, at this stage and at this age of his career.
00:55You know, I told him, you know, he came in and it was one of the games I was at
00:58and, you know, we were broadcasting.
01:01And I talked to him in the warm-up line, and I was like, man, we were supposed to be
01:06done with this 10 years ago, and you're still out here making all of us work.
01:11And, you know, he felt like he got a kick out of that, man.
01:14And, you know, for him to be 41 going on 42, you know, still being able to, you know, hold
01:20the league up in a lot of ways and have a handful of teams, you know, pausing their summer vacation
01:25plans until they figure out what he wants to do.
01:27It speaks to his brand.
01:29It speaks to who he is.
01:30It speaks to the career that he's put together.
01:32And, you know, he gets to end it on his own, you know, on his own terms and more power
01:37to him in that way.
01:38I know a lot of athletes wish that they can end their careers on the terms like LeBron is ending
01:43his.
01:44And, Mike, is there a time frame?
01:46Like Rich Paul came out and said he's earned, you know, he deserves to take his time, which I 100
01:50% agree.
01:51He's the face of the league for two decades.
01:53But is there a hard time that he needs to make this decision?
01:59You know what?
02:00I don't think it is.
02:01I mean, we're running into the time, and you guys have seen the reports.
02:04Like, you know, Adam Silver has come out in Las Vegas, you know, or New York during the Fanatics Fest
02:10and talked about the NBA scheduling partners, the broadcast partners need to know so they can finalize the schedule.
02:16Bottom line is this.
02:18No matter what, man, Miami, Philadelphia, Golden State, and Cleveland are going to all have a maximum amount of nationally
02:24broadcast games.
02:25What the problem is, is that how do you prioritize the jockeying for Christmas Day games, opening night games, and
02:34that kind of thing?
02:34And that's where, you know, these, you know, LeBron's decision is holding things up from that standpoint.
02:40But other than that, man, the league goes dark pretty much after summer league.
02:44Like, you know, summer league ended this past weekend.
02:47And then from now until, you know, the schedule release, the league goes dark, and most of August is dark.
02:53It's the one month where, you know, vacations and front office guys are out of the country.
02:58You know, players take a little bit of a break in terms of their offseason trainings.
03:02And so you want to have that wrapped up.
03:04There's no reason why LeBron should not have this wrapped up by now.
03:07Yes, he deserves to take his time, but there's not any more pieces of information that he would need to
03:14know before he makes his decision.
03:15Anything he needs to know he's already known right now is just a matter of he wants to do it
03:20on his own time.
03:21And I get that.
03:22But also, if I'm a team where I feel like I might be on the outs, you know, there are
03:27other free agents out there who need to figure out what their next steps are.
03:30You know, DeMar DeRozan is out there.
03:31Some other guys are out there.
03:33And if you want to show up one of those pieces and you feel like maybe it's not prudent to
03:37wait for LeBron, then you got to make that move.
03:39But the teams that he has waiting right now, all teams that he has relationships with or previous engagements with,
03:47and they're not going to do anything until he gives them an indication.
03:50What is the best move for LeBron in your mind, whether it's the basketball fit, whether it's the lifestyle fit?
03:58If you were LeBron James, what would you be looking to do right now with the teams that you mentioned
04:05are interested?
04:06Yeah, you know, to me, and again, LeBron has a different set of criteria than any of us all know,
04:13right?
04:13We can believe in what Rich Paul is saying.
04:16We can believe in the tea leaves that LeBron is dropping and all of those kind of things.
04:20But the truth of the matter is LeBron has his own pecking order, right?
04:24But if I'm looking at it from the outside, looking in, which is what we all are, to me, I
04:29would say Golden State.
04:30And the reason why I would say Golden State is not because he's going to chase a ring, right?
04:35Like, I think he has, you know, he has four rings.
04:38Steph Curry has four.
04:40They both want to go pursue five.
04:41I think if you say, okay, look, if I'm going to win a chance, if I'm not going to define
04:46this next move by whether I win a championship or not, what else matters to me?
04:51Playing with someone I've always wanted to play with, being in an environment where I know the coach respects veterans,
04:57and he's not going to push us in practice when we need to take breaks.
05:02He's not going to require, he's going to treat us like grown men.
05:04He knows how to manage egos.
05:06I think Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors have proven that they can do that.
05:10If I want to stay on the West Coast and I want my family to be able to commute to
05:15my games in an hour,
05:17I think Golden State gives them that from that standpoint.
05:19And whether they're going to go out there and have this Olympic dream team type feeling about them with LeBron,
05:27Steph Curry, Draymond Green, you know, and those guys,
05:30I think that they can have their own storyline.
05:32They're going to be the most relevant team in the NBA, regardless of whether they win, lose, or whatever.
05:36And they're going to be must-watch TV and the most polarizing team in the country.
05:40They're going to be, to the NBA, what the Dallas Cowboys are to the NFL.
05:44You either love them or you hate them, but you're going to watch them, and you're going to read about
05:48them and hear about them every single day.
05:49And I think that gives him a little bit of an extra incentive to do it there.
05:54That's why it would make sense from that standpoint.
05:57But other than that, man, it's his choice.
05:59I like all of the options, but I think Golden State would be the one that would give him something
06:03that he hasn't experienced before.
06:04Mike just talked me into the Warriors.
06:06The way he laid it out there, he just talked me into the Warriors.
06:09Is that where you're saying he would be the best choice, or is that where you're saying you think he's
06:18actually going to end up?
06:21I'm saying, you know what?
06:22I would say both.
06:23I would say both.
06:25You know what I mean?
06:26I wouldn't bet on what LeBron is going to do, right?
06:28Like, my life changed when he made that first decision, right?
06:32Like, my life changed when he made that second decision.
06:35I mean, literally, it changed, right, both times, because his decision impacted, you know, my employment.
06:41It impacted my opportunities, and, you know, I'm grateful for that.
06:46So if I had to – I mean, I would say yes to both of those – the ways you
06:50presented it.
06:50I think it's probably the best fit, but I also think it's what he's ultimately going to do.
06:55But I'm willing to be wrong on it, man.
06:57And, you know, I would love – I've already heard from Heat people, like, literal, like, people who work for
07:02the Heat that said,
07:04if he comes back to Miami, man, we got to figure out a way to get you back down there,
07:07to get the band back together.
07:10I would love that.
07:11That would be fun.
07:12We would love that as well.
07:13Man, I think – yeah, I think Golden State just checks off a box that if you're 22 years into
07:19your career, what's going to make you happy?
07:21And I think Golden State has a little bit more of what makes them happy from that standpoint.
07:26Now, if we're talking basketball fit and more specifics, then, yeah, there are a couple other teams that might, you
07:31know, might make more sense.
07:32But the complete picture is why I say Golden State.
07:36But the better team would be Miami if it's Philly's out of it, because Philly has a better roster.
07:41Now, with Edgecombe, now they got Brown, Maxie, Joel Embiid.
07:46But the better – like, to play with those two trees in the middle in Miami, wouldn't that be very
07:52advantageous for LeBron?
07:55Absolutely.
07:56Absolutely, Shining.
07:57And the reason why – like, I would – to me, Philly would be the most sense.
08:03It would be the easiest path to a potential title to me from the teams that have been publicly mentioned.
08:08But it also gives LeBron the least amount of credit for adding to that, right?
08:12Like, that team is going to be in the Eastern Conference Finals, at least, with or without him.
08:15They probably can get to the NBA Finals with or without him.
08:19And he's, at best, the third best option on any given night.
08:23Like, that team is already ready, set.
08:25They don't need him.
08:27And he won't – like, he won't have the same kind of impact in Philly that he could have in
08:32Miami.
08:33In Miami, Miami would absolutely need him.
08:36The ball would be in his hands.
08:37He would be pretty much – you would almost need him to be the LeBron in the role that he
08:42had when he was with Miami the first time.
08:44Now, can he do that?
08:46Can he sustain that over an 82-game season?
08:48That remains to be seen.
08:50But he would be more important as a fit in Miami than he would be anywhere else.
08:55Anywhere else.
08:56And that includes Cleveland.
08:57I think Cleveland is sort of Philly-like in terms of, you know, yeah, you can plug him in that
09:02small forward.
09:03He has four all-stars around him for the most part.
09:06And then they can see if they can get there.
09:08Do you trust James Harden in that sense as the ball, you know, in the fourth quarter?
09:12No.
09:12You know, you get past the coaching.
09:14You know, that coaching staff is kind of erratic.
09:17So, I don't think he has that in Cleveland.
09:19So, Miami, he knows what he has.
09:21And Miami knows what it will have in him.
09:23So, from a basketball standpoint, I agree with a lot of my guys down there in Miami.
09:27That would be the most essential fit for him and for the team is probably Miami from that sense.
09:32How long do you think he plays for, Mike?
09:34Because a lot of people are assuming that this will be his last season or this will be his last
09:41contract.
09:41And maybe.
09:42I don't know.
09:43I feel like LeBron could play, like Hawkins said this a couple times, he could play one or two seasons
09:49in Miami or wherever, right?
09:50Philly or Golden State.
09:51And then go do the retirement season in Cleveland.
09:55Like, why are we capping LeBron, who has proven father time wrong 30 billion times already, to one or two
10:02more seasons?
10:04I think whatever he signs is going to be a two-year deal.
10:07Just because I think he wants to give himself the option on the second year, right?
10:12Like, I think he wants to empower himself again from that standpoint.
10:16If the thing ended the way it did in L.A., the one thing I think he would regret is
10:21that it pretty much ended on L.A.'s terms, more so than it ended on LeBron's terms.
10:26L.A. clearly said, we're ready to pivot.
10:28They didn't go out publicly and embarrass him or anything, but they maneuvered behind the scenes and with their roster
10:34as if, all right, we're beyond LeBron.
10:37And no team has ever made LeBron feel like that.
10:40So, whatever he signs this next time, I believe it'll be a two-year deal just so he can have
10:45his finger on the pulse of what's going to happen after this one year.
10:49And if it's a disaster or it doesn't meet expectations, then he'll opt out and become a free agent again.
10:54Then he'll be able to do it the way he wants to do it.
10:56But I do think this is a two-year window for him.
10:59You know, at a certain point, I think he'll get bored with having to get his body ready for an
11:0482-game, eight-month grind.
11:05At a certain point, it's like Forrest Gump.
11:08He said this himself.
11:08So, he's like, when I'm done, I want to feel like Forrest Gump.
11:12It's like, okay, I don't want to run anymore.
11:14Like, I ran out of room to run.
11:16I don't want to run anymore.
11:17It's not because I can't.
11:18It's because I just don't want to do it anymore.
11:19I want to do something else.
11:20And I think that's how he'll end it.
11:22Let's say that he don't add LeBron and they go into next season.
11:26They've got Bam.
11:27They've got Giannis.
11:28They've got Andrew Wiggins.
11:30They've got Davion Mitchell, Tim Hardaway Jr., Bobby Portis.
11:34We can go down the list.
11:35Where are they in the pantheon of the Eastern Conference?
11:40I would say they're four.
11:43I would put them solidly at four.
11:45And that's with Giannis being completely motivated.
11:48That's with this Heat team, you know, getting past the injuries and being locked in.
11:55I think, you know, Giannis is going to have a lot to prove.
11:58I think Bam now is going to have an absolute lot to prove, you know, and I do think there
12:03are one or two more players away.
12:05I would love to see them get another shooter.
12:07And it could be somebody, Tim Hardaway was a great addition.
12:10But if they get another, a Buddy Hill, I know they're not going to be able to get, you
12:14know, a Chris Middleton because he's locked in with Washington now.
12:17Klay Thompson, who knows what's going to happen with him.
12:20They need another veteran shooter that cannot, they need somebody to be in that Mike Miller,
12:24Ray Allen type role.
12:26And if they can get one more of those guys and maybe one more point guard, you know,
12:31and I know LeBron will have the ball in his hands if he's there.
12:33If he's not, they're definitely going to need another facilitator beyond Davion and Bam
12:38to be able to run the offense and push the pace that they need to push.
12:42So they're still one or two pieces away, but I say they're solidly top four in the East.
12:46And that gives you home court advantage in the first round.
12:48And the East is much deeper now.
12:50So it's going to be a slow press to get beyond that.
12:53What about, uh, well, Hawk hates him, but what about Bradley Beal?
12:57I do not hate Bradley Beal.
12:59You do hate Bradley Beal.
13:01I hate the conversation.
13:02We've had this G damn conversation about Bradley Beal for 10 years, Mike.
13:08We got to move on with our lives.
13:10Shoot, create.
13:11He just, he just described Bradley Beal.
13:13Bring me DeMar DeRozan.
13:16Yeah.
13:16You know what?
13:17DeMar, I love DeMar DeRozan.
13:18I love him as a player.
13:19I love him as a professional and, you know, I've had a chance to talk to him, particularly
13:24since he's written his book about the mental, you know, mental illness and mental health.
13:28Um, his dad and his dad was at Grambling State University right before I got to Grambling
13:33State University.
13:34So, you know, we've had a chance to catch up on a lot of things.
13:36I would love for DeMar DeRozan to be an addition to Miami more so if LeBron isn't there than
13:42if he is there.
13:43If LeBron is there, then yes, I could say, go get Bradley Beal.
13:47Go get one of these shooters, go get Buddy Hill, Bradley Beal, or whoever, you know what
13:50I mean, to kind of, uh, finish that off from that standpoint.
13:54But yeah, I mean, Bradley is a guy that, you know, he got hurt last year.
13:56He showed some signs early with the Clippers, but then he got hurt and then he was back
14:00on the shelf again.
14:01He won't be asked to do much, but I can see him in every sense of the fashion, you know,
14:06bringing a Ray Allen-esque type, hey, catch and shoot and be ready to score and be ready
14:11to facilitate when I need to in that role if he's willing to take minimum money to do it.
14:15I don't think any of this is going to matter in the long run because the Bulls have Caleb
14:19Wilson and Monarch Buzelas and Josh Giddey, and I don't think anyone is going to, you know,
14:26sleep on the Bulls at your own peril because Caleb Wilson might be the MVP of the league,
14:31not just rookie of the year.
14:32I'm talking about MVP.
14:34What are you laughing at?
14:35You didn't watch him in summer league?
14:37Man, in summer league.
14:40Hey, Channing, is Hawk drinking that ripple again, man?
14:44Mad Dog 2020 Banana Red.
14:50I'll take a ripple reference any day of the week, man.
14:53I love that.
14:55All right.
14:55Mike Wallace, Grizzlies.com.
14:57What do you got, Salon?
14:58Really quickly, because we haven't talked to you, Mike, were people in Memphis upset about
15:02John Morant, the trade, like everybody cool with what ended up happening?
15:05Oh, they had to be so ready for that.
15:07Yeah, it was 50-50, man.
15:10I think a lot of people just got tired of, and see, here's the thing.
15:13People will back John Morant no matter what, and in Memphis, he was the first superstar
15:18here, first signature shoe athlete, so there was going to be a lot of loyalty, a lot of
15:22blonde loyalty.
15:23I think what people, a lot of people in Memphis came to was that, dude, we can ride with you,
15:28but you got to play, man.
15:30You can't be coming to games dressed like we're coming to games, you know what I'm saying?
15:34Like, we got to see you in your uniform, right?
15:36You can't be sitting in the best seats.
15:38We got to see you on the floor, and Ja's availability is what was the final straw.
15:42He just couldn't be available, whether it was the team saying, hey, let's shut you down
15:46so we can maximize our traffic, or whether it was Ja saying, I don't want to play in this
15:51system or with this coach or whatever, so I'm going to mess around and hold on to this
15:56injury a little longer than I need to.
15:58It was just time to turn the page, and they turned the page, and now, you know, they didn't
16:02get much for them, but at the end of the day, it didn't cost them to get off of them
16:06either,
16:06so, you know, Ja has a chance in Portland.
16:08We'll see what that means out there.
16:10The Grizzlies have hit the reset button, so they're going to be starting back from the
16:13bottom again and get to build themselves back up, and we'll see how long that takes.
16:17That's all right.
16:18That'll give you more time to watch the heat and the Bulls battle it out for one and two in
16:22the East.
16:23Mike Wallace, follow him on social media.
16:26My Mike check on Twitter, and you can read his work and see his coverage at grizzlies.com
16:33for Grind City Media.
16:34We always appreciate the time that you give us, Mike.
16:38All right, man, and if LeBron does choose Miami, man, listen, I might be looking for some real
16:42estate.
16:43Now, listen, come on down.
16:45I got the ripple flowing.
16:46I know y'all both got rooms.
16:48Y'all all got rooms, man.
16:49Y'all all got rooms available for me.
16:51Oh, Mike, you want to stay at the crib.
16:52I was going to tell you, my wife's a realtor, but you, yeah, you can stay in the back.
16:58Proud has got that pivot money.
17:00He's got that pivot money.
17:01You know, I got to warn you, Mike.
17:03There's going to be a six-year-old that comes and pokes you in the eye about 6 a.m.
17:06every morning.
17:09Been there, done that.
17:12We'll see you, Mike.
17:14All right, fellas.
17:15There you go.
17:15Mike Wallace from Grind City Media.
17:17Gave me something to think about with Golden State because the way that he laid it out
17:20was, like, almost, like, beautiful, poetic.
17:25All of a sudden, I wanted to see it.
17:27I was like, oh, man.
17:30I hate it.
17:31Now it's sneaking another name in there.
17:34Gave us something to think about.
17:35Gave us something to think about.
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