Kendrick Perkins, a former teammate of LeBron James, believes “The King” is primed to return to the Miami Heat to play his 24th NBA season.
On Monday’s episode of ESPN’s “NBA Today”, Perkins said that he had heard during last week’s Fanatics Fest that the Heat were atop James’ preferred destinations, having surpassed the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers.
“I heard that Miami is at the top of the list,” Perkins said.
“…. If Miami wants some real motion, Giannis already done his press conference so he’s there. He has to pick up the damn phone. That’s what LeBron James wants.”
While it’s unknown if Giannis Antetokounmpo has pitched directly to LeBron James, but the “Greek Freak” did try to recruit the four-time NBA champion during an interview with ESPN last week.
Giannis’ Pitch to LeBron James
“If there was a scenario for that to happen, I’d be very, very excited; he’s one of the best players to ever play this game, if not the best,” Antetokounmpo said of James potentially joining him and Bam Adebayo in a Miami Heat uniform.
“I’d be able to learn so much from him,” he continued. “Obviously, brings such a championship experience to the team right from day one. I think he’s still one of the best players in the [game today], if not top 25 [at 41 years old]. You don’t see signs of him slowing down at all. You saw in the playoffs how effective and good he was for the Lakers….he’s going to make the best decision for him.
“The history has shown that he’s always made good decisions for his career. And I hope if he thinks that the Miami Heat’s a good decision for him, I would love for him to be here.”
For what it’s worth, the Heat have surpassed the Cavaliers as the new betting favorites to land James in free agency.
LeBron James Future Hangs in Balance
As of Monday evening, James has yet to make a definitive decision on his next team, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
“Everyone in the NBA is waiting on LeBron’s decision, his choice for now,” Charania told “NBA Today” on Monday.
“I spoke to Rich Paul, his longtime agent, this morning and Rich Paul made it clear that the choice is LeBron James’ right now; it’s up to him on a choice of which team he wants to play for.”
“There is no decision, no choice yet, no timetable on a choice as of yet,” the insider added.
However, Marc Stein reported Sunday that James is expected to make his decision this week, nearly four weeks into his free agency period.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Miami Heat Get Major LeBron James Update From Teammate Turned Insider appeared first on HEAVY.