With the question of LeBron James’s free agency destination settled once and for all—he is for sure headed to the Lakers and the Knicks and the Nuggets this summer—the other hopeful teams around the NBA have got to be feeling like their chances of also landing LeBron are shrinking by the hour. One of those hopefuls was LeBron’s hometown team, the Cleveland Cavaliers. But that was before paparazzi asked head coach Tyronn Lue about LeBron’s looming decision as he walked out of a West Hollywood restaurant, and his sagging shoulders gave the frank and definitive answer his lips couldn’t bring themselves to speak:
There can be only one interpretation of Lue’s slumping, defeated posture upon hearing the words “LeBron” and “James”: LeBron is absolutely, definitely leaving Cleveland, never to return. It’s a stone cold lock.