LeBron flies to LA as free agency nears

LeBron James flew back to Los Angeles from a family vacation in the Caribbean. He could be there longer than usual.

Hours before NBA free agency opened with the three-time champion as its most coveted prize, James returned June 30 to Southern California, where he has two homes and a film production company. The Lakers are hoping they can persuade him to sign with them and return them to glory.

Los Angeles is among the teams in the mix to land James after his agent told the Cavaliers on June 29 that he will not exercise his $35.6 million contract option for next season. At 12:01 a.m. July 1, James will be an unrestricted free agent, and agent Rich Paul is expected to contact several teams with the Lakers and Cavs atop his list.

By declining his option, James positioned himself to be able to choose where he’ll play next, and Cleveland remains a strong possibility.

But there are at least three other teams — and maybe an outsider or two — with legitimate shots at landing James, who made it clear following this year’s NBA Finals that he’s still driven to win championships.

While every team dreams of being ruled by King James, only a few have a legit chance of signing him.

Here are the cases — for and against — the leading contenders: season and playoffs. Cleveland has deep salary-cap issues — partially caused by James’ failure to commit long-term — and the Cavs currently lack enough talent to unseat the champion Golden State Warriors.

Gilbert and James mended some fences for his return in 2014, but they remain distant other than a shared commitment to winning. Gilbert has gone above and beyond financial barriers to appease James, but the well could be running dry.

TONY DEJAK — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE LeBron James drives against the Pacers’ Lance Stephenson during Game 7 of their first-round series last season.