What if LeBron James was on the Cavs right now?

LeBron James is the greatest player in the history of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and it isn’t particularly close. He may be the greatest player in the history of the NBA as well. He has been to nine of the last 11 NBA Finals, and even at age 37 is still clearly a top-10 player in the league and having another awesome season.

He is also on a team that is going nowhere. The Los Angeles Lakers are 27-33, ninth in the Western Conference with a point differential to match. Their playoff odds are fizzling out before their eyes. Despite the clear roster issues and the urgency LeBron feels to compete for a title every year, the Lakers stood pat at the NBA Trade Deadline.

James responded with a ruthless media campaign of passive-aggressive comments, interviews and threats. That’s his preferred method of telling his front office what he wants, so he can maintain plausible deniability if his requests turn sour. His umbrage at the Lakers’ front office may even lead to a trade demand this summer, as ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported.

LeBron James is dropping hints that he may rejoin the Cavs before he retires. What if LeBron James was traded to the Cavs right now?

What if the offseason wasn’t the breaking point, but the NBA Trade Deadline? What if James had gone to the Lakers a month ago and said “I’m going back to Cleveland. Trade me now.” Perhaps the Lakers push back, or perhaps they fold. Either way, let’s theorize about “if” that deal happened.

First, the trade package involved could have had two basic structures: Kevin Love, or the combination of Ricky Rubio and Lauri Markkanen. LeBron is making $41.2 million this season, so the Cavs would need to come somewhat close to matching that number, although the Lakers surely wouldn’t mind shedding some salary in the process.

Let’s say the Cavs sent a package of Markkanen, Collin Sexton, Ricky Rubio’s expiring contract and two first-round picks to the Lakers for LeBron James, Kent Bazemore and DeAndre Jordan. That balances the rosters and pulls about $5 million off of the Lakers’ tax bill. The picks would likely be a ways off, to maximize the upside for the Lakers once James finally retires.

That seems like too much for a young up-and-coming team to give up for a 37 year-old, but it also seems like too little for a perennial All-NBA player like LeBron. So perhaps it’s something close to a fair deal.

What would the starting lineup and rotation look like in such a scenario? LeBron James has been maximized as more of a big over the back half of his career, but he prefers to start alongside two other bigs. That fits perfectly with the Cavs, who retain their All-Star center in Jarrett Allen and Rookie of the Year favorite in Evan Mobley. Yet starting Isaac Okoro as the other wing would be a spacing nightmare, so Cedi Osman gets bumped into the starting lineup.

Starters: Darius Garland, Cedi Osman, LeBron James, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen

Right away LeBron would step in as the secondary ball-handler this team has missed since Ricky Rubio went down, and he and Darius Garland can play off of each other much as LeBron and Kyrie Irving did during the Cavs’ title run. James screening for Garland would be a deadly combo, with Mobley and Osman in the corners and Allen in the dunker spot.

Defensively this frontcourt would be lethal; who is scoring on LeBron James (even at 37 he is a strong and intelligent defender), Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen? While Garland and Osman make a shaky defensive duo, knowing they have such backline protection will help them out.

The pairing everyone would want to see if James and old teammate Kevin Love, and they would be as lethal as ever in a two-man game. Love popping out to the 3-point line as James rumbles into the paint seems unguardable. The Cavs could mix-and-match a variety of lineups with James, one of the league’s most versatile players. J.B. Bickerstaff could form “pods” of players to develop their chemistry down the stretch; Garland, Okoro and Allen together, with James, Mobley and Love together, bridging the minutes between the start and end of each half.

There are a number of very strong teams in the Eastern Conference, but adding LeBron James would likely make the Cavs the favorites to win the conference. The Cavs would have extreme offensive firepower to go with their solid defensive bones. We haven’t even mentioned Dean Wade or Lamar Stevens, both of whom are solid role players with tough defensive instincts.

If the Cavs were to win the East, then they may very well find themselves facing Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors on the other side. While this outcome didn’t happen, it’s not the most implausible path to take. No one thought those two teams would ever have a chance to renew their rivalry in the NBA Finals anytime soon.

LeBron James remains a Los Angeles Laker, and likely this indirect posturing in the media was simply a shot across the bow of a team he intends to remain with. Even so, his bond to the city of Cleveland is strong, as All-Star Weekend only re-emphasized. It’s not crazy to think he may want to return.

If he does, it will probably be in the summer of 2023, when the Cavs could somewhat easily get to max cap space. At that point, their core will be two years older and ready to contend. James, though, would be 38 going on 39; would the Cavs really want to invest in him then?

In this scenario they invest much sooner, maximizing the end of his prime to try and win another title for The Land. James loves it in Cleveland and is loved by this town. What if he came home one more time?