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California Post Senior NBA Writer Melissa Rohlin Says LeBron James to the Warriors Would Be 'Cinematic"
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00:00Well, let's get a better idea of this whole situation by going out to the River Islands
00:05guest line, because joining us now also on YouTube is senior NBA reporter for the California
00:12Post.
00:13That is Melissa Rowland, has previously worked for Fox Sports, Sports Illustrated, the LA
00:18Times, Bay Area News Group up here, even out in San Antonio.
00:22And she joins us now again on the River Islands guest line.
00:25Dan Dibley, Mark Randy with you, Melissa.
00:28We appreciate your time.
00:30I know you're busy this time of year, as is everybody waiting on the LeBron James decision.
00:36What can you tell us, though, about what LeBron is going through at this point?
00:41Because he's had plenty of time to think about it.
00:43But as far as we know, hasn't come to a decision just yet.
00:48Yeah, I think he has a lot to weigh here.
00:52And there's just no perfect destination where he has everything, where he has his family
00:57close by, where he has what he feels is a real shot to win his fifth ring.
01:03There's a lot of things at play.
01:04There's a lot of things he's weighing.
01:06Each destination comes with its own set of pros and cons.
01:10And I think he feels as though, look, I have given this league 23 years.
01:16I've made this league billions of dollars.
01:18This is my final chapter, and I am going to take my time and decide what's right for me.
01:24Of all the pros, what do you think is the pro-iest, if I can make up a word here
01:31in terms of LeBron?
01:32Like, what's the number one thing that he wants the most out of his destination?
01:38If we knew that, we'd have our answer.
01:42At first, I, you know, when you listen to everything he said at Fanatics Fest, I thought he gave us
01:50a lot of clues into his thinking.
01:51And the one thing he kept talking about wasn't winning rings.
01:55It wasn't feeling a sense of closure on his career.
01:59It wasn't legacy.
02:00He kept talking about his family and how much his family is going to be involved in this decision.
02:06He has an 11-year-old daughter named Zuri.
02:09She's, you know, she grew up in Los Angeles.
02:12She spent eight years here.
02:14He doesn't want to uproot her life.
02:17She plays volleyball.
02:19So I think being close to her and being close to his wife is a huge consideration for him.
02:27Is it the ultimate consideration in the final chapter of his career?
02:30I don't know.
02:31That's for him to decide.
02:33But I think how Zuri feels about this, how Savannah feels about this, really does matter to him.
02:38You wrote in the California Post, I think it was right after LeBron's appearance with Rich Kleiman at the Fanatics
02:46Fest,
02:46all that going out there in New York City last week.
02:49You wrote, quote,
02:50That's why it's hard to imagine James choosing anywhere besides Golden State to finish his career.
02:55And what you're referring to there is exactly what you just were talking about,
02:59the impact that Zuri and his wife Savannah will have on his decision.
03:02Now we're, what, five days removed from that appearance by LeBron?
03:06Do you still feel that same way?
03:08Do you still feel like you'd be surprised if he doesn't choose the Warriors?
03:12I mean, I found something Kendrick Perkins said really interesting as well.
03:18He said that he recently talked to Rich Paul and that he intimated that LeBron's mind had been made up.
03:26But then LeBron's mind had changed.
03:29And I wondered if in that moment his mind had been made up about Golden State
03:34and then, you know, maybe some other factors came into consideration for him
03:38because early on it seemed as though it was very strongly trending for him to come to the Warriors.
03:45And then all of a sudden the talk kind of shifted to the East Coast being the priority
03:50and teams like the Cavs, the Heat, the 76ers are kind of allegedly leading the race.
03:56But I really think if you know LeBron and I've covered him for a long time now,
04:00the family factor does matter a lot to him.
04:03We know that he has flat out said that if he could play alongside any player in the NBA,
04:08it would be Steph Curry.
04:10Draymond Green is one of his best friends in the league.
04:13I talked to them both early in the season.
04:15I did a big feature on how they went from being bitter rivals to best friends.
04:20And the way they spoke about each other left a huge impression for me.
04:24And obviously all these other guys are sending pre-recorded messages to LeBron
04:28and Draymond's traveling with him.
04:30So, look, I think there's a huge argument for LeBron to go to the Warriors.
04:36That's where his family is.
04:38He'd be playing with contemporaries instead of guys who are potentially a lot younger than him
04:42or, you know, who he doesn't know very well.
04:47So it's just a matter of what he prioritizes here.
04:49I mean, for me, looking at this and from everything I know about LeBron,
04:53Golden State seems to be a great fit.
04:55It would be cinematic, you know, regardless of whether they won a championship.
04:59It would just be so much fun for him.
05:01It would be incredible basketball.
05:04If all three of those guys, as well as Jimmy Butler, were healthy and during the postseason,
05:10I mean, would anybody want to play that team?
05:13But who knows?
05:14LeBron may want to put a beautiful storybook ending on his career and choose Cleveland.
05:18Maybe he wants to bring a third championship there and play alongside Giannis in Miami.
05:26Maybe he feels as though he has his best shot at winning a ring in Philadelphia.
05:30I mean, it really depends what his priorities are.
05:32And when you look at all those things, so it's the homecoming in Cleveland.
05:36It's the third ring in Miami.
05:38It's, you know, giving Philadelphia something they haven't had since before you and Grandy
05:42certainly were alive back in 1983 or playing with buddies.
05:47If you can use just your gut guess based on how much you know about LeBron James,
05:52which way would you lean based on those four factors?
05:58You know, I'll tell you this.
06:00It really struck me when LeBron went to Cleveland.
06:05I was there.
06:06I was talking to a bunch of people just around the arena, and they were anticipating him coming
06:12back.
06:13Like, people had bought season tickets for next season in advance just off of the hope
06:17that he'd return.
06:18And these are, like, people who, you know, said that they couldn't even necessarily afford
06:22these tickets, but they were willing to put it on the line on the chance that LeBron
06:26returned to Cleveland.
06:27So he has that type of love there, and that's unparalleled.
06:31And we saw that that love is very much reciprocated.
06:34When they showed a video tribute, we saw him tear up.
06:37So, I mean, that really stood out to me.
06:39And then I also think the Warriors, it just makes so much sense family-wise.
06:44Like, I think it would be really hard at 41 years old to be a part.
06:48I mean, he has insinuated, Rich Paul has insinuated that next season might not be his
06:53final season.
06:54So if we're talking two seasons here, like, would he really want to be on the other coast
06:59from his family for two seasons?
07:00I mean, that's got to weigh a lot.
07:02Miami has draws.
07:03I mean, I think that's why he has stalled the entire NBA right now.
07:08I think he genuinely, there's no perfect answer here.
07:10And it's just going to come down to what his priority is.
07:15Melissa Rowland with us here on the River Islands guest line on 95.7 The Game.
07:19Melissa, senior NBA reporter for the California Post.
07:22How do you think Anthony Davis factors into all this?
07:25Because it feels like what we've been hearing is maybe LeBron would want to come to the Warriors,
07:30but he would really love to come to the Warriors if Anthony Davis was a Golden State Warrior.
07:35You've been around LeBron a lot.
07:36I'm sure down there in L.A. when Anthony Davis was in L.A. as well.
07:41How much credence do you put into that idea that maybe this is get a D and get LeBron or
07:48get nothing if you're the Warriors?
07:51I put a lot of credence into that.
07:53And if I were the Warriors, I know they're struggling with how many picks do they give
07:58up here?
07:58How much of their future do they put on the line in order to go all in on AD, who
08:04is a
08:05great player, but he's obviously been injured the past couple of seasons.
08:10And the oft-indered narrative has followed him his entire career.
08:13And it's a big gamble.
08:14What is he, 33 now?
08:16So, I mean, do they want to go all in on AD to get LeBron, to potentially give LeBron,
08:24to potentially give Steph another chance to win a championship?
08:28And if I'm the Warriors, I think they go for it.
08:31I think you have a team right now that could be so exciting.
08:38If you added AD, if you added LeBron, this could be a very competitive team.
08:45I really don't think anybody would want to face them in the finals.
08:47And then on top of that, you have a chance to make billions of dollars.
08:52I mean, you would be the number one show in the league.
08:54Imagine the amount of tickets you'd sell.
08:56Imagine the endorsement deals.
08:58Imagine the amount of jerseys that would be sold.
09:01I mean, it would just, I think it makes a lot of sense business-wise.
09:05Because, and if AD can stay healthy, I think, like, with everything regarding the whole
09:10Luka trade, obviously his value really dropped on the market.
09:16Compared to Luka, top three player in the league.
09:18Compared to Luka, this trade was stunning.
09:21But let's not forget that when AD's healthy, he's one of the best guys in the NBA.
09:25I mean, he could easily have won a defensive player of the league multiple times.
09:30I think the Warriors should go for it.
09:31I think they should pull the trigger.
09:34And we'll see.
09:35I mean, maybe one of the reasons why LeBron is dragging his feet right now is he's waiting
09:39until August 6th.
09:40He's waiting to see what the Wizards are willing to do.
09:43He's willing to see what happens with AD's potential contract extension.
09:46And, you know, maybe AD will have some trade leverage then.
09:49So there's a lot of things at play here.
09:51So in keeping with what you're saying there, that's 15 more days of, you know,
09:57Grandy and I here absolutely, you know, beating this thing into the ground.
10:01And meanwhile, you've got Adam Silver who's saying, yeah, the schedule, we'd love to go
10:05ahead and get that out.
10:06Is there any sense of external pressure or is LeBron just completely inculcated and in
10:13his own process?
10:15Well, there's a lot of external pressure, but LeBron doesn't care about any of it.
10:19I mean, that's what happens when you're arguably the greatest player of all time and he's willing
10:24to take a minimum deal.
10:26So he holds all the cards.
10:28Adam Silver can say whatever he wants to say.
10:30I mean, the NBA has ground to a halt.
10:33Executives on various teams canceled vacations.
10:37If this whole ordeal has shown anything, it shows how much power LeBron still has.
10:42And that's a ton.
10:44He's still the face of the league.
10:46But that being said, Adam can say whatever he wants to.
10:51Anyone else can try to put pressure on him, but LeBron can take as long as he wants.
10:55He just can.
10:57Melissa Rowland, senior NBA reporter for the California Post with us here on 95.7,
11:02the game Willard and Dibs, Dibs and Grandy with you.
11:04Melissa, from what you've heard, from what you've gathered, have the Wizards given any
11:09indication at all that they would be open to trading Anthony Davis?
11:13And I guess similarly, have they given any indication they'd be willing to give AD the
11:17extension that he will seek, I would imagine, come August 6th?
11:22What do you think his future is in Washington?
11:25All indications from the Wizards have been that they are not interested in trading AD.
11:31However, we'll see what happens.
11:33Things can change on August 6th.
11:35If AD doesn't get the contract extension that he wants, Clutch can start putting a lot of
11:40pressure on Washington.
11:41So we'll see.
11:43We'll see how this develops.
11:44But so far, Washington has not given any indication that they want to trade AD.
11:49And if that doesn't happen and the Warriors don't get AD and LeBron says no AD, no Golden
11:55State, where do you think the most likely landing spot would be then for LeBron on an August
12:016th, kind of a pivot?
12:05That's so tough.
12:06I think...
12:07We ask tough questions here.
12:09That's what we do.
12:10We do.
12:11I think it's going to come down to Cleveland or Miami.
12:13I think he has his best shot at winning his fifth championship in Philadelphia.
12:20That said, I think the narrative there is championship or bust.
12:23If he doesn't win a championship, then that will almost be looked at as a failure.
12:32And why would he choose that narrative when he could go to Cleveland?
12:36And, you know, regardless of what happens there, it's a success.
12:40It's a beautiful story.
12:42He brought the franchise their first and only championship in 2016.
12:44He helped them come back from a three-to-one series deficit in 2016.
12:49Yeah, too soon.
12:50Too soon for that reminder.
12:51But go ahead.
12:52Yeah, sorry, guys.
12:53It's where he was drafted.
12:54It's 40 minutes from his home.
12:55I mean, it would just be a beautiful story regardless.
12:58Same with Miami.
12:59It would be him teaming up with Giannis and them creating this, you know, team that's going
13:04to try to take on the rest of the league, and he has history there.
13:07So I think it's going to probably come down to one of those two teams.
13:11The interesting thing that I think hasn't gotten enough attention that also really struck
13:16me was either March or April.
13:21I guess it must have been March.
13:23We were asking LeBron about his comments that he doesn't like playing in Memphis.
13:30And while talking about that, he said, look, I don't like going home either.
13:37And in that moment, he told us he doesn't like going back to Cleveland during winters.
13:44His obsession is obviously golf.
13:46I mean, does he really want to spend his final two seasons in Cleveland at this point?
13:52I don't know.
13:53In Miami, he obviously has golf going for him.
13:56He has the weather.
13:57He has the history.
13:59So it's just hard to say.
14:02It really comes down to what he prioritizes.
14:04But if you look at what he's actually saying, he said, I don't love going home.
14:10He said, my daughter is calling all the shots here.
14:13Or at least my daughter, I deeply care about how my daughter feels about this situation
14:19is a better way to word it.
14:22So I'm listening to what he's saying.
14:26Yeah, as are we.
14:27And last week, he was saying a whole lot.
14:29That's for sure.
14:30Really quick, before we let you go, Melissa, do you think this is going to be a decision
14:34that lasts until the Anthony Davis window opens up?
14:37Or are we going to get something this week, maybe next week?
14:40What does your intuition tell you?
14:44You know, I was thinking that we had a good chance of getting something after the World Cup
14:50ended this week, but that hasn't happened.
14:52So we will see.
14:54We are on LeBron's time right now.
14:56Only him and Savannah know when he's going to decide or when he's going to announce.
15:03And we are all just on LeBron's clock.
15:06Oh, it reminds me of junior prom, being in my tux and waiting for my date to come down
15:11the stairs, the anticipation.
15:13I mean, I got the boutonniere, the corsage, I guess I had the boutonniere, but you're just
15:18sitting there waiting and you're checking your watch.
15:21It's like, when is he, in this case, going to come down the stairs in that prom dress?
15:26Yep.
15:26We're all waiting.
15:27We're all waiting for LeBron in that prom dress.
15:30LeBron, am I right?
15:31Good one, Dave.
15:32Yeah, thanks.
15:33Good one.
15:33Melissa, we appreciate your time.
15:35I know this is a busy time for you.
15:37Thank you so much for coming on.
15:38You gave us a lot to chew on.
15:40Absolutely.
15:41Thank you, guys.
15:42All right.
15:42That's Melissa Rowland, senior NBA reporter for the California Post, joining us here on
15:47Willard and Dibs with Granny Info Willard.
15:50Yes, and we've got Victor on the board today, and you need to go in during the break and show
15:54him where the whoop is because, I mean, we had about five or six, oh yeah, I've covered
16:01LeBron, and I've talked to LeBron.
16:02When he returned home, I was there.
16:04Yeah.
16:05So many whoop opportunities.
16:06There you go.
16:06There you go.
16:07And I love the fact that you're being respectful of a guest, first-time guest.
16:10Well, that's the point.
16:11Like, if it's Steve Kerr, like, yeah, if it's Bob Myers, like, you bloop them.
16:15Sure.
16:15Because they know the bit.
16:16Somebody who knows the bit.
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