People are making a very big deal about LeBron James joining established superstars in Miami in an attempt to dominate the NBA and win multiple championships. People are not only upset he had a 1-hour prime time special which broke the hearts of Cleveland fans, but that superstars like Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson didn't leave their teams to win championships, so why is LeBron doing it? I've never been a LeBron fan so to speak, just a fan of his talent and I root for the Hawks, but I really don't understand the big fuss.
There was no reason for him to stay in Cleveland. Just because he grew up there doesn't mean he needs to stay there his whole career. He never demanded a trade, he honored his contract and did the best he could. He made the now ungrateful owner a ton of money, and pumped money into the pathetic city of Cleveland. And the reality is he would've stayed except Chris Bosh didn't want to play in Cleveland because the city sucks.
The main reason he left is because he wants to win 7 NBA titles, or more if Kobe Bryant gets more. He didn't want to only get one with Cleveland, he wants more rings than Jordan...that is the bottom line. Is that the wrong approach? Probably, it's greedy and lacks humility. I would be critical if he was a vocal Christian and was demonstrating these qualities, but he's not, he's an NBA player and those qualities don't matter here. He wants to go down as the best ever, and in my estimation there is a good chance that he will. At first I thought he should have gone to Chicago because they have a great nucleus and in Miami it would be 3 great players and a bunch of scrubs, but Miami has assembled a great team and if they don't win it all 4 of the next 6 years I will be surprised. After his contract is up I think he will leave Dwayne Wade and head back to Cleveland or go to New York (Knicks or Nets) and have 7-8 years to win 2-3 more championships. That way he'll do it on his own and have more rings than Wade.
Another group of people upset with this move are the ones that say past superstars didn't do this. Well, they didn't have to. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird were drafted by the two winning-est franchises in the NBA and they surrounded them with great players. They were able to win early and often in their careers and never had to leave their original teams. Michael Jordan, who is probably the best ever was fortunate that the Bulls had the #5 overall pick in 1987 to draft Scottie Pippen. Most people compare LeBron to Jordan because after all, that is who he is chasing, but LeBron didn't have anyone in Cleveland who could hold a candle to Pippen. I've heard that Pippen was a role player, well he was much more than that. He is without a doubt the greatest sidekick in sports history because he recognized Jordan was better and let him have the team while he played a great supporting role. When Jordan played baseball, Pippen led the Bulls to a record that was only 3 games less than the previous season, finished 3rd in the MVP voting, and took the Knicks (who went to the Finals) to 7 games. That is not something a role player does. So the Jordan & Pippen combo is equivalent to Shaq & Kobe in my opinion, two GREAT players on the same team.
And while those players never left their teams, there were many other players during the same era who should have done what Lebron did if they wanted to win it all. Patrick Ewing only made it to the Finals when Jordan was not playing ('94 & '99), Karl Malone could never get past Jordan (even with John Stockton), Hakeem Olajuwon won two rings - the year Jordan was gone, and the year he played the final month of the season (he would never have won it if Jordan hadn't left). Charles Barkley, Reggie Miller, the list goes on. Those players could have left their team to join other superstars and create a great team...but they didn't, and now they wish they had rings but criticize Lebron for making a different choice even though he was a FREE agent.
And then there is another group of people who are mad at LeBron & ESPN for televising his 1-hour "The Decision". Well, that is stupid because practically every sports fan watched it. Not only that, but Jim Grey was on a radio show I was listening to that morning and he said the whole thing was his idea! And all the proceeds went to charity! And it's not like LeBron took away from anything ESPN was going to show at 9PM on a Thursday night in the middle of the summer. There was nothing on TV, July is the worst sports month, which is most of the reason why ESPN talked about LeBron non-stop anyway. That is why they go down to Mississippi and watch Brett Favre every summer, there is nothing going on in July except baseball! I don't blame LeBron or ESPN, it wasn't that big of a deal, it was compelling TV on a otherwise boring Thursday night in the middle of the summer. Was the whole thing a shove in Cleveland's face? No, because on July 1st LeBron James was no longer employed by the Cavaliers.
In my opinion LeBron put money ($3-4 mil a year) and ego (playing on D-Wade's team) aside for the chance to be on a championship team. He should be praised for that instead of being called a traitor and a lackey. Chris Paul is the one who should be getting all the criticism, he is under contract but is demanding a trade, LeBron honored his contract. I'm not too happy about the mega teams because the Hawks pretty much have no chance unless there's a rash of injuries which doesn't make its way to Atlanta. But I don't understand all the hatred towards Bron Bron, it should make for an exciting season and I will be rooting against the Heat without a doubt.
JB
No comments:
Post a Comment