With LeBron James yet to reveal where he will play next season, both Heat president Pat Riley and newly acquired superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo admitted they would welcome the four-time NBA champion back to South Beach if the opportunity presents itself.
Miami has spoken with James’ longtime agent, Rich Paul, but like every other team interested in the veteran forward, they’re waiting on his decision.
“I don’t know, I’ll be honest with you,” Riley told ESPN about whether a James-Heat reunion will happen. “Obviously, we’ve had conversations with Rich and they were very good. So if that happens and he wants to come to the ‘305,’ we got a golf course. The weather’s nice. Steve Kerr, same thing down here. And there’s no state tax. So that’s a little better than California.”
Riley’s mention of Warriors coach Steve Kerr came after a fan recently caught Kerr joking that Golden State had already landed James when asked if the Warriors should try to sign him.
While Riley is leaving the door open, Antetokounmpo admitted the thought of teaming up with James is one that excites him.
“If there was a scenario for that to happen, I’d be very, very excited,” Antetokounmpo told ESPN of possibly joining forces with James. “He’s one of the best players to ever play this game, if not the best. [I’d] be able to learn so much from him. 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.
“But I’m just like everybody else — we don’t have all the information. All the information is in LeBron James’ hand and his family’s hands, and 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.”
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