The "what if" moment that changed every NBA team forever

Cleveland Cavaliers: What if LeBron James hadn't left for Miami?

In the summer of 2010, superstar LeBron James shocked the NBA world by announcing that he was leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers to head to Miami. At the time, it was a highly controversial move that turned LeBron from being beloved to being hated in Cleveland by many NBA fans, but what if he had stayed in Cleveland? Cleveland had spent themselves into a corner trying to build a contender around LeBron, and his leaving ironically gave them a chance to reset.

They were able to make smart moves like agreeing to take back Baron Davis' bad contract from the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for an unprotected first-round pick. That pick turned into the number one pick in the 2011 NBA draft, which they used on Kyrie Irving. Meanwhile, their own pick became Tristan Thompson, and both players would become key to the Cavaliers' success once LeBron returned.

Additionally, they selected Anthony Bennet and Andrew Wiggins first overall during LeBron's absence and later traded both to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kevin Love. That allowed them to form a big three with Kyrie, LeBron, and Love. Had LeBron stayed, the Cavs would likely have been far worse off in the long term, though it certainly didn't seem that way when he left. Had Kevin Durant not joined the Warriors in 2016, Cleveland could possibly have won another championship or two upon LeBron's return. But LeBron's leaving for Miami was ultimately for the best.