LeBron Variety Show & Announcement on Thursday

[Space Bear]

Fox News

NEW YORK -- LeBron James will end one of the most compelling transfer sagas the National Basketball Association has encountered by revealing which team he will play for next season in a one-hour televised broadcast on Thursday, ESPN said on their website Tuesday.

ESPN said representatives of James had contacted the network with a proposal that included donating any sponsorship money from the broadcast to a children's charity.

ESPN said the discussions were still ongoing and the network did not know which team James had agreed to play for, adding that the identity would not be revealed until the broadcast.

The pending announcement about where the two-time Most Valuable Player will end up next season has already become a source of fascination and speculation in the United States, with even President Barack Obama weighing in on where he should go.

James has been approached by at least six teams, including his current franchise, the Cleveland Cavaliers, but has not offered any hints about his future plans, despite starting up his own social networking site and website.

More than 184,000 people signed up to follow James on Twitter after he joined the site on Tuesday but his only tweet was "Hello World, the Real King James is in the Building Finally. My Brother... gas'd me up to jump on board so I'm here. Haaaa."

The website (http://www.lebronjames.com/) of the 25-year-old James offered little more information other than the enticing slogan "Getting Closer" and the promise "you'll be the first to know" for anyone who signs up to receive alerts.

Thursday's announcement looms as one of the most eagerly awaited decisions ever in the NBA as James is one of a handful of marquee free agents who have the potential to dramatically shift the landscape of the league for years to come.

While the talent among the latest crop of free agents is widely considered the deepest ever, James is the front-runner regarded as the one who can swiftly turn any of the league's teams into a title contender.

Since the free agency period opened on July 1, All Star guard Joe Johnson agreed to stay with the Atlanta Hawks, while the New York Knicks successfully lured All-Star forward Amare Stoudemire, who played last season with the Phoenix Suns.

But the greater focus has been on James, Miami's Dwyane Wade and Toronto's Chris Bosh, who have all met with several teams interested in bolstering their rosters, leading to speculation about the possible creation of a "super team" involving all three.

[johnk5150]

They could get four hours out of this easily. Eliminate the cities one by one and have cameras and reporters in bars in each city until Cleveland is announced and show the party.

Lottery style.

[johnk5150]

Wade and Bosh are on ESPN announcing their signing with Miami. Chicago once again loses out to geography, weather and grade A latin infused ass.

[SkyDog112046]

Wade and Bosh are on ESPN announcing their signing with Miami. Chicago once again loses out to geography, weather and grade A latin infused ass.

You can't blame them. If you were 25 years old, a millionaire many times over already, staring at a $100M contract, and were famous - where would you go? Miami has the weather, the beaches, the nightlife, and more beautiful women then you can shake a stick(yeah, that one) at.

[ParaDime77]

The funny part is that LeBron's announcement is not taking place in Cleveland. New Jersey here we come.

[johnk5150]

I'm extinguishing my Lebronnukah candle. He ain't coming to Chicago.
Fucking Jerry Krause screwing over Phil Jackson, MJ and Pip is still biting them in the ass.

[aceshigh]

So, is Lebron going to use this special on Thursday to kick Cleveland in the nuts on national tv?

If he does, that is fucked up!

[Leppardmania]

looks like he's headed to NY.

[johnk5150]

So, is Lebron going to use this special on Thursday to kick Cleveland in the nuts on national tv?

If he does, that is fucked up!

He's resigning with Cleveland tomorrow.

[ParaDime77]

I just don't see it happening. Boozer isn't coming back after receiving death threats from Cleveland fans when he bailed. Bosh signed with his man-crush, D-Wade. Unless there is a 3-way trade with CP-3 coming in there is no chance he's staying in Cleveland unless Tymaster is signed to a max deal

[Garbageman]

Variety show?

Is it "LeBronnie & Marie?"

[grishnak boss]

I CANT WAIT TO SEE OHIO SUFFERING AFTER LEBRONZE DITCHES 'EM

YOU KNOW IT'S BAD WHEN THERE'S A NAME FOR THE PLAYS THAT FUCKED UP YOUR TEAM(S) "THE FUMBLE", "THE SHOT", etcetc

NOW COMES "THE DECISION"

[WhiteHouseSubsAC]

I CANT WAIT TO SEE OHIO SUFFERING AFTER LEBRONZE DITCHES 'EM

YOU KNOW IT'S BAD WHEN THERE'S A NAME FOR THE PLAYS THAT FUCKED UP YOUR TEAM(S) "THE FUMBLE", "THE SHOT", etcetc

NOW COMES "THE DECISION"

"THE RAPE"

[doghead2009]

Wow.. this is getting fucking ridiculous.. theres is absolutley no need for a 1 hr special to announce this shit. . " The Decision"... gimmie a break.. FUCK LEBRON for dragging all his fans and the NBA around just to stroke his ego. and FUCK DWAYNE WADE and BOSH TOO. Those assholes took the NBA hostage all summer with all their bullshit. All this hype just to announce that Lebron is staying in Cleveland... what a crock a shit

[Garbageman]

Sportscenter said he'd announce his choice in the first ten minutes of the show.

I guess that means at the end of the monologue after the musical number.

[nycyankee]

IT'S OFFICIAL. LEBRON IS GOING TO THE HEAT TO JOIN WADE AND BOSH


This really sucks. I have been hoping for 2 yrs that he would join the Knicks and things were looking good earlier on Wednesday, but it has now been announced that he will be a Heat.

The only good thing about this is that the Kobe era Lakers are done winning championships.

[SpecialSauce]

This whole NBA free agency thing was such a load of crap. It had impact on 5 cities max out of 30.

The only Free Agency move in Pro Sports history that deserved a fucking SHOW was when Reggie went to Green Bay because that was a true bombshell. Plus,Reggie was all ears to any team that wanted him so there was real intrigue as to what would happen. It was a foregone conclusion that he would be a Redskin or 49er but not only did he visit the likes of GB and Detroit but one of those teams actually got him.

If Lebron were talking to the Kings,Mavs,Bucks or Hornets we might have something worth watching but this was always about New York,Chicago and Cleveland.

It's pretty amazing to me that Chicago can't even compete in the FA market these days. What does that mean for the Milwaukee's of the NBA?

Everyone acted liked LeBron would have 19 teams after him and there would be this national tour of him meeting GM's and touring arenas and shit......

Free Aggency was fun 15 years ago because guys actually went out to see what was there...to see who was trying to win....to check out cities and whatnot.

Now...guys go where Nike wants them and where their pals are and it usually boils down to NY/Miami/LA.

Snooze.

I hope he holds up a Clippers or TWolves jersey just to fuck with everybody.

[LAglamrocker]

like it matters what city Queen James plays in, he wont win a NBA ring in Kobe's Kingdom!

this guy really needs an hour on ESPN for this, seems like a loser move.

[nycyankee]

like it matters what city Queen James plays in, he wont win a NBA ring in Kobe's Kingdom!

this guy really needs an hour on ESPN for this, seems like a loser move.

That idiot is hurting is brand by going to Miami. He will win a title there but Wade will get most of the credit. No matter how many rings he wins, Wade will always have one more than him. Lebron James had to run to Wade in order to win.

He will regret not signing with NY. He could have had Carmelo in 2011-12 in the big stage. Are there any fans in Miami? It's perhaps the worst pro sports town in America. Nobody gave a fuck when Wade and Shaq won a title.

[ShearMagic]

I'd like this to happen, just to see the reactions on the smelly ass locker room: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/4163 ... e%20Bryant

[Redman77]

Wow.. this is getting fucking ridiculous.. theres is absolutley no need for a 1 hr special to announce this shit. . " The Decision"... gimmie a break.. FUCK LEBRON for dragging all his fans and the NBA around just to stroke his ego. and FUCK DWAYNE WADE and BOSH TOO. Those assholes took the NBA hostage all summer with all their bullshit. All this hype just to announce that Lebron is staying in Cleveland... what a crock a shit

All summer? The free agency period started July 1 and they can't sign until the 8th I believe. I do agree about Queen James' decision to have a special to announce his choice.

[TawnyVonJagger]

like it matters what city Queen James plays in, he wont win a NBA ring in Kobe's Kingdom!

this guy really needs an hour on ESPN for this, seems like a loser move.

He will regret not signing with NY. He could have had Carmelo in 2011-12 in the big stage. Are there any fans in Miami?
It's perhaps the worst pro sports town in America. Nobody gave a fuck when Wade and Shaq won a title.

They ranked 15th in attendance last season, averaged 17,730 a game, if that means anything.
And yes, people gave a fuck when Wade and Shaq won a title. If you took your head out of your myopic NY ass you would know. They couldn't keep Heat swag on the shelves, it was being scooped up so much.
It is true about Miami being the worst pro sports town in America. Lots of fans of different teams here. And a shit ton of bandwagoners.
And fuck the Knicks. They didn't do shit with Ewing, etc. did they?

[Tommy]

Dan Patrick, while ripping ESPN, was wondering whether this shit would beat the Super Bowl in ratings, I kid you not. Um, it's a Thursday in July and the NBA is a pimple on the NFL's ass. What a dumb shit thing to say.

[johnk5150]

Dan Patrick, while ripping ESPN, was wondering whether this shit would beat the Super Bowl in ratings, I kid you not. Um, it's a Thursday in July and the NBA is a pimple on the NFL's ass. What a dumb shit thing to say.

People are going to watch the shit out it. Every single person in Chicago that's called into the score has said they're TIVO-ing it while preparing to be disappointed.

If he picks Miami he will be telling the world he is interest only in having fun with his friends, winning secondary.

And he's a pussy. Signing with the Heat which is Duane Wade's team tells me he's never wanted to be the guy in the clutch. Wade's never had a problem being the "Man" in crunch time and make no mistake, it's Wade's team wheter he signs there or not. The ego interaction will be interesting at the very least.

[doghead2009]

Wow.. this is getting fucking ridiculous.. theres is absolutley no need for a 1 hr special to announce this shit. . " The Decision"... gimmie a break.. FUCK LEBRON for dragging all his fans and the NBA around just to stroke his ego. and FUCK DWAYNE WADE and BOSH TOO. Those assholes took the NBA hostage all summer with all their bullshit. All this hype just to announce that Lebron is staying in Cleveland... what a crock a shit

All summer? The free agency period started July 1 and they can't sign until the 8th I believe. I do agree about Queen James' decision to have a special to announce his choice.

yeah all summer.. Doesn't matter if free agency started july 1st. they've been hyping this shit all summer during the NBA finals and even before.. all this "Summit" talk created by Wade and Bosh to the media about their plans to play together on the same team along with Lebron James..Lebron even went on Larry King to hype up his free agency..plus ESPN has beaten this shit to death for quite a bit already.. Lebron's special only makes it more ridiculous

[doghead2009]

Lebron going to the Heat would be a stupid move for James. 3 all stars with maxed out contracts and a roster full of scrubs does not equal a championship. Lebron would also be giving up his epic "role" as leader of the team as this would be Wade's Team.

Lebron would have been better off with the Bulls. Chicago has the rich history of 6 NBA championships and Michael Jordan's legend for James to live up to. THe Bulls roster is the most complete out of all the teams pursing James. Derrick Rose, Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah, etc. Enough talent to make the Bulls a title contender while still having James as their best player and leader of the team. I'm really surprised Chicago couldn't land any of the big 3, Wade , Bosh, Or James.Chicago could have afforded 2 out of the 3. That was the best scenario for any of the 3 guys to join. Shit thats Wade's hometown and his family, mother, and kids all currently live there. Just goes to show these guys are more concerned about
partying and playing together in Miami than actually winning championships. Sucks for Bulls fans... Lebron or Wade plus Bosh and the
Bulls roster would have been another potential dynasty..

with that said.. I think Lebron stays in Cleveland. That would be the ultimate kick in the nuts to his hometown to announce he was leaving that dump on primetime television for the glitz and glamour of new york or the nightlife in miami. I don't think James has it in him to do that to his hometown on national television. but we shall see

[WhiteHouseSubsAC]

Sources from both Newsday (Alan Hahn) and ESPN (Chris Broussard) say that LeBron is headed to Miami.

[Crazy Levi]

It was a foregone conclusion that he would be a Redskin or 49er but not only did he visit the likes of GB and Detroit but one of those teams actually got him.
.

God told him to go to Green Bay, remember?

[ParaDime77]

This Dream Team shit in Miami is just that, SHIT. 3 guys (Bosh, Wade, James) that cannot get the fucking job done themselves, so they combine forces and try to do it with an absolute pedestrian coach that will not be able to control the dynamic and chemic nightmare having these 3 dudes will entail. I can't wait for the Lakers, Celtics and Magic to straight beat on these cats!

[LAglamrocker]

Queen James has held Cavs fans hostage and will stab them in the back at 6pm!