The Knicks aren’t drawing much attention as a potential landing spot for LeBron James next summer, unlike in 2010, when New York cleared cap space for LeBron and wound up signing Amar’e Stoudemire instead. But Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel believes that if Stoudemire musters a bounce-back season, the Knicks have at least a slight chance of trading his hefty contract and again opening up room for LeBron. It would be a shock if the Knicks found a taker for Stoudemire, whom they owe more money than anyone else on their roster, but considering the Hawks unloaded Joe Johnson last year with nearly $90MM left on his deal, you never know. Here’s more from Winderman:
- Many NBA players in Chris Bosh‘s circumstances would see next summer’s potential free agency as a chance to bolt and become a team’s No. 1 option, but Bosh is comfortable as the third man in the Heat‘s hierarchy. “The thing I like about this, is, of course I’m not the guy, I’m not the number-one option,” Bosh said. “That gives me creativity to be able to take my position and mold it into what I want to do.”
- If the Magic establish a D-League team in Jacksonville or another location close to Orlando, it could make it easier for the Heat to move their affiliate from Sioux Falls to Estero, Fla., where a D-League-caliber arena already exists.
- Michael Beasley‘s casual approach turned off many around the NBA, but he insists he’s taking his current opportunity with the Heat more seriously than when he joined the team as the No. 2 overall pick in 2008, as Winderman notes in a separate piece.