Life Without Lebron

On the eve of possibly the biggest one-hour special on ESPN ever, two of the top three free agents have decided where they are going to play - congratulations Miami Heat.

Now I predicted that Chris Bosh would sign on with to play with a newly resigned Dwyane Wade by the end of free agency, but I didn't think if that happened Lebron James would still be considering Miami purely for the fact that they would have to get rid of somebody so they could sign all three.

But, that is what is shaping up heading into Lebron's big announcement. Chicago seems to be out of the mix, but were able to sign Carlos Boozer, which, being a Duke fan, I'm pretty stoked about. He's not as the same player he was a couple of years ago with Utah, but he can still produce and has the young Derrick Rose to feed the ball to when a shots not available.

This guy will be in a Bulls jersey next year. (Credit Desert News)

I don't think the Clippers were ever really in the hunt. They had a meeting, but that team is so mismanaged that Lebron would have a fool to go there. New Jersey has a LONG shot, and New York isn't much better than that. Really, the sweepstakes for Lebron come down to whether he stays in Cleveland or joins Bosh and Wade in Miami.

So how will each team in the Lebron sweepstakes fare if he passes on their club?

MIAMI HEAT

The Heat will be sitting pretty if Lebron doesn't want 2010's version of the big three. The signing of Chris Bosh gives Wade a big man to work with that he has been missing since Shaq, except Bosh can move faster. Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley are good up and coming players that can add to the experience of Wade and Bosh.

If Lebron doesn't sign, that leaves Miami with a lot more cap room to get more depth on their roster. I think a point guard is needed to help lead the charge down the court. I think Raymond Felton would be a great edition to the team and would be able to help with scoring and defense.

CHICAGO BULLS

The Chicago Bulls were suppose to be the team to beat a few years ago with Ben Gordon, Ben Wallace and Kirk Hinrich. Now, none of those players are even on the team anymore. Ben Gordon got traded to Detroit, Kirk Hinrich is headed to Washington and Ben Wallace signed with the Pistons last year but is a free agent this year.

Instead, Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah have taken the team over and are trying to make a younger more explosive run at the championship. With the addition of Carlos Boozer, the team is better. Luol Deng is still on the team for now, but may be traded. The team still needs a shooting guard to replace Kirk Hinrich and I think JJ Redick would be a good fit. He plays a similar game as Kirk and though he has room for improvement on defense, he is becoming a more all around player.

NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY

These two teams will be fine if Lebron doesn't sign. Sure, if he did they would probably be instant playoff contenders, but they are working toward something without him.

The Knick signed Amare Stoudemire and he will add a lot of explosion for the team. Hopefully he can keep the injures to a minimum like he did this past year. Chris Duhon is going to the Magic, T-Mac, well we don't know anything that is going on with that guy and David Lee will not be heavily recruited by the Nets. If he leaves, then that leaves the Knicks in hot water. Luckily, if Lebron doesn't come, they will have a lot of money to get people to surround Stoudemire with. There have even been talks of getting Carmelo Anthony to team up with the Knicks.

The Nets, after a terrible season, are headed up in the East. Devin Harris is a good point guard and Brook Lopez is a good center. Derrick Favors from Georgia Tech will come around at power forward and I think that David Lee will head to New Jersey/Brooklyn which will provide depth at power forward. They also have money to make some moves to get some help.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

The Cavaliers will be the worst off if Lebron decides to leave. Mo Williams is an OK player at best. Lebron made him better. Shaq is going to leave Cleveland. Boston looks like a good choice for him. Anderson Verajao is a descent player playing with a lot of heart, but he can't carry the team. Zydrunas Ilgauskas is a good center, but he couldn't even beat out an old Shaq. 

So where does Cleveland go with LBJ? Down of course. No best record in the East and probably no playoffs at all. They didn't have any draft picks this year. But, they will have a lot of cap room to make moves and slowly build themselves up. There are a lot of team, like those mentioned above, that free agents will want to go to. The big thing in Cleveland's favor? Players want max contracts before a possible lockout so they have it locked in.

This team will hurt the worse, and I'm not sure if Lebron wants to do that to them.