One thing was clear after each conversation — no one …

For the entirety of James’ free agency, which lasted 25 days, The Athletic spoke to dozens of sources across the NBA. To the business associates closest to James. To executives who run the teams angling for his services. To those teams’ coaches. To team executives who were not in the running. To rival agents. One thing was clear after each conversation — no one knew what LeBron was going to do up until Friday. They might have thought they knew from time to time, but it played out as a winding mystery.

For the entirety of James’ free agency, which lasted 25 days, The Athletic spoke to dozens of sources across the NBA. To the business associates closest to James. To executives who run the teams angling for his services. To those teams’ coaches. To team executives who were not in the running. To rival agents. One thing was clear after each conversation — no one knew what LeBron was going to do up until Friday. They might have thought they knew from time to time, but it played out as a winding mystery.

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: One thing was clear after each conversation — no one …