LeBron James, Cavaliers reunion would not have been possible if Heat beat Spurs in 2014: Report

The San Antonio Spurs dominated the Miami Heat, 4-1 in the best-of-seven series of the 2014 NBA Finals. If the result was the opposite and the Heat won that NBA title, it was likely that LeBron James would have stayed with the Florida franchise, according to a recent report.

After the Heat lost to the Spurs, James jilted Miami to return home to the Cleveland Cavaliers, which he led to a championship last year. But according to Brian Windhorst and Dave McMenamin via Real GM, the superstar forward leaving the Heat would not have happened if they beat the Spurs that year, via an excerpt from their book, “Return of the King: LeBron James, The Cleveland Cavaliers and The Greatest Comeback in NBA History.”

The pair of NBA writers claimed that James followed the Cavs’ progress and rebuilding while he was still playing for the Heat. It adds that the “pull of returning home” to Cleveland was a major factor in James’ decision to leave the Heat for his hometown Cavs.

James was drafted first overall by the Cavaliers in the 2003 NBA Draft. He played there until 2013 before announcing in the infamous “The Decision” show the following offseason that he wants to “take his talent to South Beach” and play with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami.

James had a successful stint in Miami leading the team to a pair of NBA championships, in 2012 and 2013. In his second year back with the Cavaliers, he gave Cleveland their first franchise title in 2016 beating the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals after trailing by 3-1 in the best-of-seven series. James and the Cavaliers were the first and only team to comeback from a 3-1 disadvantage in the championship series.

According to an Amazon.com preview, the book “Return of the King: LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Greatest Comeback in NBA History” features an inside story on James’ decision to return to Cleveland plus other details of the transactions that helped made it happen.

This includes the Cavs’ acquisition of Kevin Love, who went to Cleveland via a trade for No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins. Other stories also exposed were the firing of David Blatt as head coach plus other controversies during James’ return to his hometown team.

The Cavaliers completed the historical 3-1 comeback against the Warriors last year. But if the Spurs did not dominate the Heat in the 2014 NBA Finals, Cleveland would never have had LeBron James back playing for their team. The Cavs should thank Kawhi Leonard and company for paving the way for a James’ comeback to Ohio.