How Cleveland Cavaliers fans should feel about a LeBron – KD pairing

It would really be something to see Kevin Durant, the player who potentially ended LeBron James’ hometown story with the Cleveland Cavaliers, joining James next year on the Los Angeles Lakers.

LeBron and the Cleveland Cavaliers have had a great 11-year run, with four Finals appearances and as memorable an NBA championship as one could have asked for. However, a partnership with KD? That would bring a whole new chapter to the LeBron James story, one that would be as polarizing as it gets. According to Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson, “Kevin Durant will be a LA Laker next year.”

From there, it wasn’t 100 percent set-in-stone that the KD-LeBron pairing would happen, but it has definitely made its rounds throughout the NBA Twitterverse. Here’s what else Robinson had to say on the matter.

Now, if it were up to me, I wouldn’t be blaming James for trying to get Durant on board with him in LA. Durant is the second-best player in the NBA, and the two together could be unstoppable. As Robinson alluded to in the first tweet, Durant could eventually be the face of the franchise on the Lakers. James would have one of the best all-around scorers (and shooters) of all-time taking the pressure off him to do all he currently does for his teams.

The Lakers, as currently constructed project as an interesting team to watch, but will probably have a tough time in the Western Conference Playoffs. They have a number of playmakers on their roster, sure, but they don’t have enough proven floor spacers to feasibly get through the West next year.

That’s where their cap space next summer comes in. James and Durant could both realistically be thanking Luol Deng for a long time for what he sacrificed for LA in relation to his recent buyout, as was reported by ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Adrian Wojnarowski.

From a Cleveland fan’s perspective, I can get why somebody would be bitter. Durant joining a 73-win Warriors squad right after they narrowly lost to the Cavs (and after Durant lost in seven games to them the series before) wasn’t the easiest pill to swallow at the time. There have been cupcake shirts, snake emojis, the whole nine yards in regards to what KD did in joining Golden State.

However, can somebody really be all that pissed at LeBron (who is going into his 16th season) for wanting to get one of the best scorers of all-time on his team to lighten the work load? Durant is fresh off probably his two most efficient seasons and two NBA Finals MVP’s, and he’s also become one of the NBA’s most versatile defenders. He posted 26.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.8 blocks per game last season.

To me, it would be a no-brainer for James and Durant both. Durant signed a two-year contract this offseason, but that contract has a player option going into next season. He would be wise to opt out of that with the salary cap for teams going up from approximately $101 million to $109 million, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

Durant wanting to be the face of arguably the NBA’s most iconic franchise is not really surprising, and playing with LeBron would be fun, along with seeing if he could take down the Warriors.

All in all, from a Cleveland fan’s perspective, it’s understandable for someone to really be opposed to this possibility (or at least say they are). Here’s the way I see it in response to that group, though.

Would you really be mad if KD and LeBron teamed up on the Cleveland Cavaliers? I’m going to go out on a limb here and say ABSOLUTELY NOT. Be happy for LeBron if he gets more rings.

Yeah, the NBA has more player mobility now, but get with it, people. Hypothetical superstar tandems are fun.

I don’t like the current Warriors make-up, but it’s not their fault that other teams didn’t sign Durant, and it’s not their fault that other teams passed on Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.

Now if Stephen Curry eventually joined LeBron and KD on the Lakers, I’m with ya. That would suck.