LeBron setting stage for a jump to Bulls?
Is LeBron James setting the stage for a jump to the Bulls as a free agent next summer?
During a postgame interview with TNT sideline reporter Craig Sager on Thursday, James announced that he’ll give up wearing the No. 23 next season in honor of Michael Jordan.
“I think no guy in the NBA should ever wear 23,” James said after a win at Miami. "He can't get the NBA logo, much respect to Jerry West. So I think his number shouldn't be worn by any player in the NBA.
“What he did for this game ... he laid down the stepping stones for everybody to come up through the ranks. I'm going to change my number next year because that's how much respect I've got for a guy like that.”
Of course, if James decides to sign with the Bulls in 2010, that would be one place where he couldn’t wear No. 23, since it’s already been retired for Jordan.
Miami retired No. 23 for Jordan, even though he never played for the Heat. Jordan watched Thursday’s LeBron-Dwyane Wade showdown in Miami from a courtside seat.
“I grew up idolizing Michael Jordan,” James added. “To see him come here, support D-Wade and support me, it's humbling. It's humbling that the greatest basketball player would take time out of his day to come watch us play.”
In recent weeks, the New York Post’s Peter Vecsey and Sam Smith have each floated the idea of James giving strong consideration to joining the Bulls. Most people assumed if James ever left Cleveland and his nearby hometown of Akron, he would want to expand his sports marketing empire in New York.
Then again, no player in a team sport earned more away from the game than Jordan did in Chicago. James also said winning is more important than money and the Bulls could offer him a nice set of teammates in Derrick Rose, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah.
At the end of Thursday’s interview, James suggested he’ll switch to No. 6, his Olympic number, next season. Then Sager asked which uniform he’ll be wearing.
"We'll see,” James answered.
really reaching for a story eh?
Forget LeBron; forget Wade; forget Bosh. Let's worry about the Bulls this year. The Bulls lose Ben Gordon, save a ton of money, then do nothing going into this season to counter the Gordon loss. They lose Thomas; Rose is injured and his performance lacks even the explosiveness that he had on occasion last year; Deng looks like the rotation, bench player that he is. This team stinks from top to bottom, and the front office needs to be accountable. The hoopla on Rose last year was blown out of proportion; the kid Jennings in Milwaukee makes last year's lottery pick look dismal by comparison. I want to know when the fans at the United Center break out the brown bags and start to show their justifiable contempt for this franchise. And, it would be nice if the sports media start to cover this team objectively and report how bad things are.
They didn't get rid of Gordon so they could replace him with the garbage that was out there this year. You cannot win a championship with Ben Gordon as your 2-guard. Screw this year. It's all about next off season. If they don't get Lebron, Wade, or Bosh, then you're REALLY wrong. If they get someone decent, then they broke even.