NBA Rumors: LeBron James Could Leave The Cavaliers In Free Agency If They Do Not Win The Championship

With the 2016 NBA playoffs set to begin in a few weeks, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers have extremely high expectations. After falling to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals last season, the Cavaliers’ odds to make it back to the finals are the highest among all of the Eastern Conference playoff contenders. While the Cavaliers are going to have a tough task defeating the Warriors or San Antonio Spurs in the finals, LeBron James’ free agency decision may hinge on the team’s ability to win the championship this year.

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, James has been rumored to be a possible candidate to leave his team for the past few months. After returning to the Cavaliers last year, everyone expected James to finish his career in Cleveland. While James may still play his remaining years with the Cavaliers, there is apparently a very real chance that he leaves in the offseason for a team with more potential.

LeBron James' free agency: The latest. https://t.co/X6avdWwfGY pic.twitter.com/avx2Smm2Ln

— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) March 30, 2016

As ESPN reports, the team believes that James will stay in Cleveland, but they understand that him leaving is a possibility.

“The organization is confident James won’t leave again, but officials acknowledge it would be at least a slight possibility if Cleveland flames out. If he stays, James will have the clout to order another reconstruction. People who know James see a 31-year-old facing his basketball mortality — watching a rival in Oakland seize the league and shorten James’ championship window. If LeBron thinks he’s running out of time, this specific group of stars has two months left to prove it can win at the highest level. These Cavs should make the Finals, but can they do more?”

With a record of 54-22, the Cavaliers are a great team. They are likely going to win the Eastern Conference, but they are going to have to face one of the best teams in NBA history in the NBA Finals. Even if the Warriors do not make it out of the Western Conference, the 63-12 Spurs are going to be almost impossible for the Cavaliers to beat in a series. While bigger upsets have happened in the past, the Spurs and Warriors are practically unbeatable on their home courts. The Warriors just had their home winning streak snapped last night, which was the longest in NBA history. The Spurs have not lost a game at home this year.

Assuming the Cavaliers do not win the championship this year, James is going to have a decision to make. Set to turn 32 years old in December, James is going to begin a slow decline. While he is still an elite player and one of the NBA’s best, he is not going to get any better at this point in his career. Since James wants to be viewed as one of the all-time great players, he is going to have to win at least another championship. The Cavaliers will always be competitive with James, but it may not be the best spot for him to win another title.

As Fox Sports reports, James is becoming even more difficult to coach as he gets older.

“While NBA stars typically have some control over their playing time, this blatant disregard for coaching is becoming something of a problem for LeBron. He balked at attempts by his former Heat coach, Erik Spoelstra, to control his playing time, until Pat Riley threw down the hammer in Miami. And before the Cavs made a change from Blatt to Lue, LeBron famously threw a tantrum and took himself out of a game this season, costing Cleveand a technical foul and any appearance of team camaraderie.”

While nothing is confirmed, part of the reason James may have left Miami is because of Spoelstra. While they won two championships together, it never appeared as though James fully trusted Spoelstra as his head coach. Since joining the Cavaliers, James has also had run-ins with former Cavaliers head coach David Blatt and current head coach Tyronn Lue. If the Cavaliers are unable to win the championship this year, James’ apparent unhappiness with the current coaching staff could also trigger him to sign with another team.

LeBron James' free agency plan could make him $110 million https://t.co/0mmb5YFhzj

— RSVPWI? (@wphov1) March 24, 2016

Until LeBron James re-signs with the Cleveland Cavaliers, rumors will likely continue to speculate that he will leave in free agency. Unless the Cavaliers win the championship this season, there is a very real chance that James could be playing in a different city next year.

[Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images]