LeBron James Heat Contract Terminated; What's Next?

Miami Heat star player, LeBron James, opted to terminate his contract early with the team and chose free agency, a move which, according to the Heat, is something they already anticipated and expected.

Reuters reported that this move does not necessarily mean that he is leaving the Heat.

"We fully expected LeBron to opt-out and exercise his free agent rights, so this does not come as a surprise," read the statement of Heat president Pat Riley who learned of James' decision on Tuesday.

Riley noted that the team looks forward to sitting down with LeBron and his representatives about the future.

Reuters said that James' decision created an intrigue with his furture plans. The same report noted that James' opting to choose free agency gives him a wide range of options which includes negotiations with the Heat or transferring to another team. 

The Miami Heat star told Reuters in an interview last week that he wanted to have flexibility as a professional. "That's in any sport, for a football player, a baseball player, a basketball player, to have flexibility and be able to control your future or your present," he added.

James' wife, Savannah, stirred rumors concerning her husband's plans when she posted a photo on Instagram of a map of Ohio with "Akron" written across it and a red star to denote the area of the couple's hometown. The player's family later said in an interview that they just got excited with coming home after the NBA games.

USA Today enumerated the options of James aside from him coming back to the Heat.

The report said that if the Chicago Bulls will be able to get Carmelo Anthony, James can also join the same team but the Bulls need to eliminate some of its contracts to give space for the player.

Another option for him is to go to the Houston Rockets and join Dwight Howard and James Harden to get a great offense and defense for the team.

Returning for the Cleveland Cavaliers would, according to USA Today, erase the bad feelings when he departed from the team four years ago. But the same report noted that the Cavs are not yet championship ready especially with first year coach David Blatt.

If Kobe Bryant is willing to share the ball with James, the Los Angeles Lakers is also a possible landing team for the player.