The Golden State Warriors are champions, the draft is over, and another Summer of LeBron has officially begun. LeBron James, with his eight consecutive NBA Finals trips in the balance, will decide to either join a new team -- the Los Angeles Lakers seem most likely -- or stay with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Yet while they're not the frontrunner, the Houston Rockets are, as currently constructed, the team that gives him the best chance of beating the Warriors, who have knocked James off easily to end two consecutive seasons. If LeBron is going to consider Houston, you'll likely know it by Friday, June 29, which is his deadline to decide on the player option for the final year of his contract.
James likely must decline free agency -- taking a $35.6 million salary for next season -- to go to the Rockets as part of a trade. That is exactly what Chris Paul did last season, and it would allow Houston to figure out how to work around a loaded salary cap sheet that would be difficult to work around in free agency.