by Marcel Mutoni / @ marcel_mutoni
For LeBron James, this summer will be about resting his battered body, honing in on various aspects of his game, handling several business interests, and not worrying about free agency after next season.
The Miami Heat will be going for a three-peat in 2014, but could be headed for major changes thereafter.
LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh can all opt out of their current deals next summer, and James says the prospect of the Big Three sticking around South Beach for years to come is more than a tad intriguing, though he’s not yet ready to stress about it.
Per the Miami Herald:
Asked if something unexpected would have to happen for James to want to leave the Heat next summer, he said: “I don’t know. I’m not really thinking about that right now. Our focus is how we’re going to get better this year with all these other teams getting better, to keep that trophy here.”
But when asked whether he has thought of sticking it out with Wade, Bosh, team president Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra for years to come, he said: “That’s the goal. That’s the ultimate finish. We all hope that can happen, obviously, to be able to have success with two guys and with Riles and Spo. This is what we came here for. That would be the ultimate. But I don’t know. Life changes, things happen, and you have to be prepared for that. But this is what we all want to be here for. And that’s to be able to compete for a championship every year. If we can do that, then it would be awesome.”
LeBron James says that he plans to return next season a better player, though he’s not sure just yet what aspect of his game he needs to improve.
As for the summer of 2014, LeBron knows that nothing can compare to the circus three years ago that came to be known as The Decision:
“I’ve been in this position before,” James said. “I’ve heard it before. It can’t get any worse than my season before I became a free agent in 2010.”
