Craig Carton SHOCKS Knicks Fans: "I'd Take LeBron James!"

**Craig Carton** (0:00)
Jerry in Chester, New York, it says here. Jerry, good afternoon. How are you, Cookie?

**Chris McMonigle** (0:06)
I just want to make sure I'm calling the right station. It sounds like I'm here with Martha Stewart and Rachel Ray from All These Pies.

**Craig Carton** (0:10)
It's July 4th!

**Chris McMonigle** (0:12)
And we're talking July 4th things.

**Chris McMonigle** (0:13)
I know, I know, but enough of the pies.

**Chris McMonigle** (0:17)
No.

**Chris McMonigle** (0:17)
Craig, I love you. But I have to have Craig Big Mac come over and smack you because me and you hate LeBron James. Correct. Who's thinking that you would want him to come here?

**Craig Carton** (0:26)
No, I don't want him to come here.

**Chris McMonigle** (0:28)
What's going on? You have to be open to it. Why would you think we want this guy to come here?

**Craig Carton** (0:31)
I hate LeBron James with the passion of a thousand sons, but I love the Knicks.

**Chris McMonigle** (0:36)
Why would you even think of it?

**Craig Carton** (0:37)
I'll tell you why. I'll tell you why. I hate to say this, but I told you I'd never lie to you. I want to be very clear about this.
I hate LeBron James. Excuse me, I'm going to rephrase that. I love the New York Knicks more than I hate LeBron James. I want to make sure it's very, very clear. LeBron James, in my opinion, if he's really trying to chase that fifth championship ring, which, again, puts him in even rarer company when it comes to championships, especially of this era, right? Then the reality is that I don't think going to Golden State gets him that. So what team in the East gives him the best opportunity to win a championship, right? I think there's three teams that obviously come to mind.
And I think it's the Sixers now because they just got Jaylen Brown and that backcourt is ridiculous now and Edge Combs are a rising superstar in the league.

**Chris McMonigle** (1:32)
And if Embiid could ever stay healthy, it's a really good team.

**Craig Carton** (1:34)
Yeah, and you only need Embiid to play in the postseason to be honest.

**Chris McMonigle** (1:36)
True.

**Craig Carton** (1:36)
If you're the Sixers, just get in and you're good.

**Chris McMonigle** (1:38)
Just get in and you're good.

**Craig Carton** (1:39)
It's obviously our Knicks who are the defending champs. We're the best team in the East right now.
And you could pick maybe amongst a few other teams to be the third team. Maybe Boston, maybe Detroit. I don't think Cleveland's one of those teams.

**Chris McMonigle** (1:50)
What do you think about Toronto now with Kawhi?

**Craig Carton** (1:52)
I don't think Toronto has a prayer. Nor is he ever going to go play in Toronto that's off the table. Whether he had a girlfriend there or not, that's the allegation. It doesn't matter to me, right?

**Chris McMonigle** (2:01)
Right.

**Craig Carton** (2:01)
Here's the reality though.
I want the Knicks to win another one. I no longer need LeBron James to win a championship, as you said two hours ago. That changes the dynamic.

**Chris McMonigle** (2:12)
It does.

**Craig Carton** (2:12)
And I want to be clear. Do I want LeBron James? No, I do not.
But, from a basketball standpoint specifically, if he's willing to take the veteran minimum, which apparently he told people, or Clutch Sports, his agency, told people in the right situation, the money will not be the issue. Okay, the Knicks are clearly that situation. And while I don't want to be a part of his circus or his retirement tour, from a basketball standpoint, here's something none of us can argue. The Knicks would be a better team with him.

**Chris McMonigle** (2:54)
It's inarguable.

**Craig Carton** (2:55)
Because let's play it out.
If you have, you know the starting five. All right, you got Josh Hart, Mikhail Bridges, Jay LeBron, and OG and Cat. Okay, so let's just say those are our starting five. Let's keep it that way, right? If LeBron James is on your bench, you're not a better team? Of course you are.
Right? So, as a guy who has spent his career hating on LeBron James, quite famously, and he hates me back, and I'm good with it, all right? I can't argue from a basketball standpoint, and yes, we have to tolerate the circus that comes with it, but I also know fans, and fans are like sheep, and I can tell you as much as we have hated LeBron James, and we hate his guts because he said no to us in his prime when we needed him desperately to turn the franchise around. Now the shoe's caught on the other foot. He has a Figezi Championship in LA, so that's eight years of basketball in LA. There was no dominance. They missed the playoffs or didn't get past the first round in five of those eight years. That's not good. So he wants to end on a good note. We do more for him now than he does for us. I like that relationship.