Miami Heat: Why Fans Need Not Worry About LeBron Leaving

With all the buzz surrounding Jeremy Lin, one would think that LeBron James was safe from overreacting media types. One would be wrong, unfortunately.

LeBron started his latest brush fire by answering a simple question:

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Asked if he could play for the Cavs again, James initially paused before giving his answer.

"I don't know. I think it would be great," he said. "It would be fun to play in front of these fans again. I had a lot fun times in my seven years here. You can't predict the future, and hopefully I continue to stay healthy. I'm here as a Miami Heat player, and I'm happy where I am now, but I don't rule that out in no sense.

"And if I decide to come back, hopefully the fans will accept me."

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Taken out of context, I can see why this would be misconstrued as "flirting" on LeBron's part, or "laying the groundwork" for a return to Cleveland, as if he really needed two years' lead time to smooth things over if he really wanted to come back. As usual, however, there is context for his ill-fated response.

Consider this: why was LeBron talking about this in the first place? If unprompted, then the silly speculation surrounding his motives would have plenty of legs. It was not unprompted, however, the quote is a response to a query from a reporter, one likely generated by the speculative article Fox Sports' Sam Amico penned several weeks ago. In essence, it is becoming a self-fulfilled prophecy, of sorts.

What was LeBron supposed to do? I suppose he could have politely declined to answer the question, quashing the story then and there. Look closely at his words and you will see something else: remorse. It is not overt, but LeBron's motives seem clear to me. He feels badly about the way he left Cleveland. His words seem conciliatory much more than calculated.

LeBron later tried to dam the torrent, but the damage was done in the public's eye. Suddenly, LeBron was pitting for a return to Cleveland.

Why would LeBron even be thinking about leaving Miami right now? The Heat are playing their best basketball of the Heatles era, going 15-3 over their last 18 and throttling opponents during their historic back-to-back-to-back run. They have only begun working toward the multiple championships they promised during the ill-advised arena party after "The Decision." LeBron moved his family down to South Florida, and he plays on a team with one of his best friends. Miami is one of the best organizations in basketball, by many accounts.

Is it so hard to believe that a man has matured and genuinely wants to make amends, however, feebly attempted? Do we need to place an ulterior motive behind every word LeBron says? Is it so far-fetched that he could simply be extending an olive branch because, as Ethan Skolnick of the Palm Beach Post put it to me, "[He] still feels badly about [the] way things ended here. That's the whole deal."

Heat fans have nothing to worry about. Right now, this is a silly story conjured by talking heads who need drama.