LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade have until late on June 29 to tell the Miami Heat if they are opting out.
If you expect them to make a decision before then, well, you probably expected “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights” was going to be a good sequel to the original. (And the original wasn’t great, just don’t tell your wife/girlfriend that.) The big three are going to talk to their agents, talk to their families, they will watch trades unfold around the draft, they will talk to each other, and finally they will talk to Pat Riley. Then they will make a call.
At his exit interview on Tuesday, LeBron refused to talk about the future. Here are the highlights as tweeted by Ira Winderman and Shandel Richardson of the Sun Sentinel.
LeBron, on free agency, "I'm not at that point right now. When I get there, I'll be ready to talk about it."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) June 17, 2014
LeBron, on Wade and Bosh, "I think there's a conversation that will be had between the three of us."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) June 17, 2014
Obviously LeBron has thought about this, it’s just that over the years, he has gotten good at dodging questions he doesn’t want to answer.
Chris Bosh sounded much more like he doesn’t want to go anywhere and the idea that the trio would break up is news to him. But that they have some things financially to talk about.
Bosh on Miami: "It's a great place. My family is here and I love working here. If you love your job, that's what most important."
— Shandel Richardson (@ShandelRich) June 17, 2014
Bosh, on possible salary givebacks from the Big Three, "Everything's a possibility. That's why they negotiate."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) June 17, 2014
Of Big 3 planning to make it work with additions, Bosh, "I think whatever it takes to just keep competing, I'm sure Riley has a plan."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) June 17, 2014
Bosh sounds like vote among Big 3 already is at least 1-0 for staying together, "We like it here. We've got a pretty good thing going here."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) June 17, 2014
Dwyane Wade did not speak to the media Tuesday.
Heat management has known for years that eventually they have to rework the roster, that just bringing in veteran minimum guys would not be enough at some point. The Spurs emphatically showed that time is now.
For LeBron, a guy in the legacy-building part of his career, the question is who does he trust to build a contender around him? Better yet, does he trust anyone more than Pat Riley? Probably not. Plus if he bolts Miami — no matter how he handles it — he will take some of the public relations hits he took after leaving Cleveland and “The Decision” all over again.
It’s hard to imagine him leaving if he feels Miami is committed to winning — he just doesn’t want to give back money so Mickey Arison saves tax money.
But we will see. LeBron may look at this situation and draw a different conclusion. Whatever he decides, don’t expect to know until the 29th or close to it.