Bill Simmons had a 3 hour chat last Friday where he discussed EVERYTHING. Hats off to the Sports Guy, dude is a workhorse and always produces a quality product. My only beef with the Simmons is that he's a little biased against New York. Somewhat expected from a Boston fan, but its tough to have a such a loud national voice that has an anti-New York slant. Its not as pronounced these days with the Knicks being so irrelevant, but back when he decided to develop the Ewing Theory while failing to mention that Patrick was on the back end of his career it was more in your face. Today its more of a passive aggressive, but the guy knows Hoops, so below is a summary of the parts of his chat that touched on 2010 and LeBron and our take on each question:

Dave (Philly) Bill, with a gun to your head right now...who's the 2009-2010 NBA Champ?

Bill Simmons (12:04 PM) The Cavs. That team has an answer for everything - they can go fast, slow, big, small, doesn't matter. The only guy who can stop them is Mike Brown. And don't put it past him

This is noteworthy as we've maintained that it will be difficult for LeBron to leave if the Cavs win it all. Its also important to see how little respect there is for Mike Brown. Coach Brown just rides the wave, he doesn't innovate or challenge his players, this is the one "on the court" area where New York holds a distinct advantage over Cleveland.

joe (chicago) Look into your crystal ball and sort out where the big free agents are going this summer!

Bill Simmons (12:08 PM) If I had to guess at gunpoint: LeBron and Bosh (Chicago); Wade and Amare (Miami); David Lee, Joe Johnson (New York); Rudy Gay (Clippers).
Bill Simmons (12:10 PM) Forgot about Boozer: We'll give him to Dallas in a sign and trade for Dampier's contract that can be waived and other goodies.

I hear every Knick fan grumbling after reading that. All this and we basically stay the same, but add Joe Johnson! Not even Bosh? This is a worst case scenario and we know Lee won't get max money, so there would be a third player as well. That being said, this is the result of Simmons being high on the Chicago angle right now, don't put too much stock in it.

Drew (Wichita, KS) What did you think of Wojokasldf;dhgf;adl column about LeBron, Wade, and Bosh coming together in NYC?

Bill Simmons (12:17 PM) He ignored 2 big points. First, you can't have LeBron and Wade on the same team - it would be like the 2010 All Star Game all over again. No team has ever won a title that didn't know who The Man was on the team. it wouldn't work. I don't think Wade would take a back seat and neither would LeBron obviously. More importantly, to expect these guys to give up that much money to play together is just not realistic. Athletes don't leave that kind of money on the table.
Bill Simmons (12:18 PM) The only scenario in which the Knicks (or anyone) could get 3 guys is if it were 3 Nike guys. For instance, Bosh-LeBron-Joe Johnson could work - they'd take less money but Nike could agree to build a $100 million compaign around "The New Big Three" and make up the difference that way. Yes, that would be legal.

Don't underestimate how much all these guys really like each other and think about their legacies. If these guys think they can win multiple titles by coming together and think the marketing that can flow from that will pay the difference of the money they sacrifice in salary, its an option. Not a likely option, but an option nonetheless.

Tiller's Ulcer (Dallas) In Dallas, there are local reporters who claim that Cuban/Donnie purposely structured Dampier's contract to use for this Summer (believable). What my friends and I debate though, is there any shot of the big 4 FA's just DEMANDING to play in Dallas w/ Kidd and Dirk, and the Mavs using Damp and Caron as sign and trade? As in, can a 3 year run in Dallas be appealing enough for those guys?

Bill Simmons (12:22 PM) Dallas is the sleeping giant this summer. Big city, Cuban, no state tax, Damp's contract for sign and trade purposes (for instance, if LeBron decided, I AM PLAYING IN DALLAS, Dallas could offer Damp's contract, Butler, $3 million and the French rookie.
Bill Simmons (12:24 PM) One other LeBron/Dallas wrinkle: They could play 6-8 regular season games and a couple of playoff games in the football stadium. Cuban mentioned this 2 days after the All Star Game... didnt mention LeBron specifically, just something about 'enticing free agents' that way. Hmmmmm.

Not a likely possibility, but the 6 to 8 games at the Cowboy's stadium is an amazing device to lure a guy who is all about marketing himself. Then again, so is the owner of a Cable Television Company and the potential to have your own channel 24/7. Maybe Jim Dolan's ownership finally pays off here...

Jeff (Philly) Why isn't the no state tax brought up more often. Do NBA players have to pay taxes in every state they play in prorated, or does Miami, Houston and Dallas have an after tax salary cap extension?

Bill Simmons (12:27 PM) It's a great question. For instance, let's say Dallas and Cleve did that sign and trade that I just mentioned. LeBron could make 6 years at the max... only he'd be making it in Texas. That's his biggest money bonanza by far. And Dallas is the only team that has real sign and trade assets. The ability to waive Dampier's contract before the start of the season is a major major asset.

I happen to agree on this. Maybe agents do a poor job of explaining this to their clients, but I've always thought this should be a bigger factor in where players sign as well.

Mike (San Diego) You realize that Cavs fans saw your idea of what they'd get back for LeBron and threw up in their mouth a little, right? I'd call that a big pot of poop gumbo!

Bill Simmons (12:31 PM) But if LeBron says, "Look, I am going to Dallas and that's how this is going to play out," what can Cleveland do? Everyone keeps forgetting that LeBron will decide where he plays this summer - cap space doesn't matter. if he wants to play in Boston, then it will be Boston. Dallas, it's Dallas. Lakers, it's the Lakers. Doesn't matter. He is holding the cards.

This is just simply false. If LeBron announces he's gone and needs/demands Cleveland's help he'll risk tarnishing his image irreparably.

In response to Odds on where LeBron lands.
Bill Simmons (12:35 PM) Ok... Cavs (5-2)... Bulls (5-2)... Knicks (7-2)... Mavs (5-1)... Clips (10-1)... Nets (12-1)... Rockets (25-1)... Lakers (25-1)... Celtics (100-1).

Current Vegas Odds say Cavs or 1 to 4, Knicks nearly 2 to 1, Nets at 30 to 1, Pistons at 50 to 1 and the remaining field at 5 to 1.

Matt K (NJ) Did you think the Knicks deadline moves were effective or short-sighted? (Throw in token unprovoked shot at Kareem because we are talking about the NBA)

Bill Simmons (12:40 PM) Kareem is a ninny. Look, the Knicks did what they had to do - their fans are on board, they needed to play the "illusion of regret" card and that's what needed to happen. The only thing that confused me was that Houston was the only suitor for Jefferies' contract. Where was Memphis? Where was Minnesota? Where were the OKC Hijackers? Plus, it's not like Jefferies sucks - he's a very good defensive player.

Great Point! How were there not more teams willing to take on a possible rotation player at a bloated salary for 1 year in order to gain a top 10 pick with NBA size, a better draft pick in 2011 and 2012 first rounder. That just doesn't make any sense.

Wes (Boston) If you owned the Celtics, what would be the first change you'd make?

Bill Simmons (12:53 PM) I would plant 20 pounds of pot iN Rasheed Wallace's trunk, then make an anonymous tip to the police.

Any Knick fans interested in the same plan for Eddy Curry????

Rob (Boston) How would you define sports hell?

Bill Simmons (12:57 PM) Cleveland if they lose the 2010 title and then LeBron leaves. I actually think we might see fire and brimstone if that happens.

No argument, that city and franchise is in A LOT of trouble if he goes

Josh (Milwaukee) You and ESPN pretty much worship the ground LeBron walks on. You gotta admit this guy still has work to do. His free throw percentage is dropping again, he can't hit 3's (yet continues to take them over over in big situations) and his one-on-one defense is overrated. Melo killed him last week. No way LBJ wins a title without another STAR.

Bill Simmons (1:09 PM) Read more of Josh's LeBron's take at www.nitpick.com.
Bill Simmons (1:11 PM) BTW, LeBron has a chance to become the first player ever to win "Player of the Month" for all six regular season months. He's averaging 32.3 PPG, 10.7 APG, 6.9 RPG and shooting 50% in February. You think we should be underplaying this?

There are too many situations where LeBron gets by on raw talent. However, that talent is in a different stratosphere and is increasing every single day, as evidenced by the stats Simmons lists.

Regan (Princeton) Wade is a Nike guy.

Bill Simmons (1:25 PM) You're right. He switched last summer, I forgot. So yes, that's the only way Wade-LeBron-Bosh could happen - they take less money from NYK, but Nike makes up for it with a $100 million mega-campaign centered around them being the new superheroes of Gotham or something. Personally, I think Nike would be better off spending that money on my adopted son Kevin Durant.

All Nike guys, hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...

TJ (Austin) Does CLE survive if they win it this year and Lebron still decides to leave?

Bill Simmons (2:15 PM) That might be the most fascinating of the scenarios. The entire city of Cleveland would make the face that Affleck makes at the end of Good Will Hunting when he realizes that Damon left, only it would quickly turn into anger and hostility and get ugly.

It would be incredibly difficult for LeBron to win a championship and leave. He wouldn't be able to present himself as someone who values winning over everything else. There is that school of thought that says if LeBron is able to win this year, he will then be able to leave Cleveland with a clear conscience, essentially he accomplished his goal in Cleveland and can now move on comfortably. One other thing everyone forgets is that LeBron can leave Cleveland, sign a 6 year deal with New York and then return to Cleveland at the age of 31! They may not want to turn on him in hopes that he'll return someday.

Ryan (Cleveland) What are your thoughts on the future of JJ Hickson. His talent is still a little raw, but is making huge progress in limited minutes in Cleveland.

Bill Simmons (2:20 PM) It pisses me off that the Wizards didn't insist on getting him in the Jamison deal and Ernie Grunfeld should be disbarred as a GM for it. In fact, keeping Hickson was Cleveland's ONLY chance to keep LeBron - now, they can potentially sign and trade him with other stuff to Toronto for Bosh or Phoenix for Amare. Pisses me off. That was as bad as Chris Wallace hooking up LA with Gasol.

How did Grunfeld not get Hickson? Especially when you consider that they had a "wink, wink" deal to have Big Z bought out and returned.

Lou (NYC) What is your worst-case scenario for the Knicks this offseason?

Bill Simmons (2:40 PM) Amare and Rudy Gay.

Let's stop thinking about worst cases...

Doug (Hoboken) You ranked Carmelo #1 player you would want taking the last show for your team on Cowherds show... why though wouldnt you just want LeBron to drive to the basket instead, NOBODY can guard him in the NBA

Bill Simmons (2:46 PM) But that's the problem... LBJ settles for 20-footers and threes a little too much right now. He can get to the rim every single time.

To be clear, he'd want LeBron to take the last shot, so long as he went to the hoop more often - semantics here.

That's the last reference to LeBron or 2010 in the chat, we'll see if the Sports Guy proves to be prophetic come July 1, 2010...