Everything LeBron James says is being dissected as his free agency approaches. Looks like Houston may already be out of the running. Apparently LeBron isn’t very fond of Houston as a city. 

Marla Ridenour on ESPNLA 710:

On where else he could play:

“I heard this from his own lips when we were in Houston this season, he does not like Houston as a city. That would require him moving to a place that he’s not crazy about.”

On the possibility of staying with the Cavs:

I would say amongst the media, most of us are pessimistic about him staying. Every time he’s talked about this, this season, and on the final night of the season, he mentioned family first. His wife’s family is all from the Akron area, part of that makes you think he wants his kids to be around that side of the family. That’s the part that Cavs fans are hanging on to, praying that that becomes a deciding factor. 

There’s also some issues with salaries working out. The Rockets have almost no flexibility to sign James and re-sign Chris Paul to their max salaries, and neither player has said they would take a pay cut. So there’s that too.