It's now official. Lebron James has re-signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The deal isn't that much of a surprise, as James never intended to leave Ohio. The NBA's best player to date never talked with any other team after he opted out of his last contract, and he intends to pursue his dream to give the Cavs an NBA title, so he is not headed anywhere else.
The new pact that James signed is worth $47 million, of which $23 million is guaranteed.
Just like his old contract, James will have the option to opt out again next year. Apparently, the contract's structure provides James with more flexibility, with the expected salary increases that will take place in the coming years.
James had actually held out on re-signing and waited for the Cavs to re-sign Tristan Thompson. But as it turned out, James went ahead and re-signed ahead of the Cavs power forward.
James had indicated before that he had wanted the same crew back next year. Kevin Love, who also opted out, had already come to terms with the Cavs. Love agreed to a five-year deal worth $113 million.
Other players reportedly given qualifying offers include Iman Shumpert and Matthew Delladedova. Shumpert had already re-signed with the Cavs, agreeing to a four-year deal worth $40 million.
The Cavs are once again looking formidable, with most of the core players coming back. Timofey Mozgov was the first player confirmed to come back after the Cavs exercised their team option on the Russian center.
J.R. Smith is unlikely to return with his large contract, though word has it that the Cavs are in talks to possibly acquire Joe Johnson from the Brooklyn Nets.
It seems that the Cavs are exploring a possible trade for the All Star forward, and the most likely player to be dealt is Brendan Haywood. However, Haywood's worth may not be enough to offset the large contract price of Johnson at $24.9 million, so the Cavs could add another player or consider Anderson Varejao as trade bait.
For now, all these are rumors and the alleged deal is still up in the air.
