Kobe Bryant and LeBron James Were In Trade Discussions In 2007
The NBA trade deadline is on February 18th this year and, if it's like every other year, you're going to hear rumors. You're going to hear lots and lots of rumors that, on the surface make a little sense but have no way of actually happening. Will Blake Griffin be traded? Will Kevin Love get traded? Will Demarcus Cousins be traded? The answer to all of those questions is, probably, no. Odds are a role player will be traded to a middle of the road team and nobody remember it in a year or two.
Just google trade rumors and a random year and you'll see strange rumors about any team. Remember all of the years that the Timberwolves wanted to trade Kevin Love at the deadline? Do you remember when the Lakers dragged Pau Gasol's name through the mud year after year? Did any of those trades happen before the deadline? Nope.
Switching gears for a second, tonight at 8:00 ET on ESPN the Lakers face the Cleveland Cavaliers in Kobe's final game in Cleveland. With this being Kobe's final season every time he plays his "final game" against another superstar in City X it's going to be a big sports topic.
Therefore, seemingly out of the blue, it's being reported that in 2007 the Lakers and Cavaliers had trade discussions about trading Kobe Bryant for LeBron James.
According to Brian Windhorst the Lakers made a call to the Cavaliers asking if there was any chance a deal could happen.
According to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the event, the Lakers once contacted the Cavs to investigate whether Cleveland would make James available in a possible Bryant trade.
According to multiple sources, as the Lakers went through their options, a call was placed to the Cavs. The intent of the call, sources said, was clear: Would the Cavs make James available in a potential deal for Bryant?
Those who worked in Cleveland's front office remember it for one reason, it was the only time a team had ever called and made an offer for James. He was considered an ultimate untouchable. Frankly, until that time, so was Bryant.
Remember that in 2007 Kobe was in the middle of his second prime. In the 2006-2007 season Kobe averaged 31.6 PPG, 5.7 RPG and 5.4 APG. If he wasn't the number one player in the league he was a close second. Then, in the 2007-2008 season (the season he would've been traded to the Cavaliers) Kobe finally earned his first and only MVP, averaging 28.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG and 5.4 APG.
Coincidentally in 2007 LeBron was coming off of a NBA Finals appearance against the San Antonio Spurs. Yes, he got his head caved in but getting his team to the Finals at only 22 years old was an accomplishment that nobody could deny. Then, in the 2007-2008 season LeBron led the league in scoring, averaging 30.0 PPG, 7.9 RPG and 7.2 APG. Kobe and LeBron were the #1 and #2 players in the league. This would have been a trade that shocked the world.
The equivalent nowadays may be if the Warriors and Thunder had a discussion about a Steph Curry for Kevin Durant deal. It's juicy to talk about but there's no chance either team does it.
Also, according to Kobe, he would've never approved it.
"I never would've approved it. Never. The trade to go to Cleveland? Never," Bryant told Holmes. "That wasn't one of the teams that was on my list. It was Chicago, San Antonio (or) Phoenix."
Well, that ends that. Can you imagine disgruntled Kobe on the Cavaliers? Do you remember how mad he was when he had mediocre talent on the Lakers? Ask Smush Parker about it. He'll be glad to tell you and that was in Los Angeles, with celebrities and palm trees. Now imagine that same anger and hostility in Cleveland. It would have been a mess.
Even though this trade never would have happened it's fun to imagine what would have happened if it did. Would Kobe have still won the two titles without Shaq? Would LeBron still have gone to Miami in 2010? Would LeBron have gone back to Cleveland at any point and would Kobe have won that MVP in 2008 if he was in Cleveland? Who knows, but its fun to think about.
