LeBron James' business partner Maverick Carter has insisted that leaving the Miami Heat was the player's own decision and no one forced him to sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The four-time NBA's Most Valuable Player (MVP) recently reunited with the Cavaliers on a two-year deal, after his four-year stint with the Heat.
"This was a decision that LeBron made in his heart," Carter told to ESPN. "We didn't push him to do it. We don't push him to do anything. If he asks our opinion or what did we think about the pros and the cons, we help him think through it. We don't push him.
"LeBron is a 29-year-old man with lots of money, got a wife, two kids, one on the way. He makes his own decisions. He doesn't need anyone pushing him any way, and a guy like that, you're not going to push him either way.
"We'll help him think through things and help him see through things, but he makes his own decision in his heart. Because, ultimately, he has to live with it. I'm not the one who has to show up and play games for any team."
Carter said that even if Miami would have won the NBA Championship against the San Antonio Spurs, he was not sure that James would have stayed with the Heat.
"Logic says how could he not," Carter said. "You've got to go for four. But who knows. The decision about Cleveland was bigger than basketball. It was in his heart."
He also revealed that James told about his decision of leaving Miami to long-time friend and former teammate Dwyane Wade before making a formal announcement.
Carter insisted that his business partner has nothing against Miami and the franchisee helped him in becoming a better player during his stay at the American Airlines Arena. The 10-time NBA All-Star won two championships and was also named the MVP twice with the Heat.
"The Heat run a first-class organization," Carter said. "They have one of the best organizations in all of sports. Just being around that organization, I think LeBron learned a ton about what it takes to be a championship organization and how it works."
In a statement to Sports Illustrated James termed Miami his second home and thanked the team for helping him during his stay in Florida.
"These past four years helped raise me into who I am," James said in the statement. "I became a better player and a better man. I learned from a franchise that had been where I wanted to go. I will always think of Miami as my second home."
With James back with his home-franchisee, the Cavaliers are now aiming to challenge for the NBA title and are also looking to add more firepower by signing Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to reports.
