Why Lebron James is an A**hole

Lebron James: Egomaniac of the Decade.

  1. If he really wanted to be in Cleveland – to win a championship – he could have done exactly what Dwayne Wade did to stay in Miami. Wade went out of his way to recruit talent (James and Bosh), to build the team he wanted, and to ensure that his team—his town—would stay competitive for years to come. What did James do? Nothing. He sat on his a** and rode the gravy train that was free agency as long as he could. He toyed with the Cleveland fans, telling them they were front runners, ignored Dan Gilbert’s calls and texts, and secretly met with Wade and Bosh to plan their future. On top of all of this, he waited so long to make his decision, that Cleveland’s FA options are greatly limited for the remainder of the summer.
  2. He made a spectacle of something that was so important to so many people. In seven years I’ve never understood Cleveland’s obsession with Lebron James. I never understood how you could possibly love one player so much. Regardless of whether the love was justified or not—unconditional or not—Lebron owed them better then what he gave them last night. To not tell your team, your fans, and your hometown of your decision until you appear on national TV is cruel and unusual. He couldn’t have even sent an email to Dan Gilbert telling him of his decision; he had to make them view their rejection on live TV with the rest of the country. I guarantee Cleveland would not be quite as angry if James had simply announced his decision in a typical, un-chauvinistic manner.
  3. He gave up on Cleveland before he had even left. You would have to be lying to yourself to say Lebron didn’t give up on his team during the playoffs this year. He simply did not care about this team anymore and had set his sights on something “bigger and better” before the playoffs were even over. Did they have the talent to beat LA? I don’t know, but they certainly had the talent to be in the finals. It’s ignorant to say Lebron had no talent around him and that he had to single handedly carry the team. That is simply not true. Yes they expected him to be a superstar, to be Jordan, but he certainly had the tools around him to win. The fact that he couldn’t win, that he gave up, and moved to a different city with a “better” team just shows he doesn’t have the commitment, drive, or passion of Jordan or Kobe.
  4. He moved to Miami not soley to win championships, but to pet his ego and improve his image. Maybe Lebron realized he couldn’t handle the pressure of being the Jordan of Ohio, maybe he began to doubt just how good he actually is, or maybe he just got tired of trying so damn hard? No matter what the reason, James moved to a city where he now has two scapegoats for anything that goes wrong. He can be the Miami “superstar” without having all the pressure of being the “number one” guy on the team. He has Wade and Bosh to carry him when he fails. He has found a nearly full proof way to protect himself from criticism and to ensure that he doesn’t “spoil” the fans of Miami the way he did in Cleveland.
  5. Lebron James entered this league saying he wanted to be the first billionaire athlete in this country. We should have known from that day that basketball wouldn’t be about winning for James, it would just be one piece of the Lebron James Label. People defending James will point out that he took a lesser contract to be in Miami—that his decision isn’t about the “money”, but that’s absolute nonsense. It’s ALWAYS about the money. With a new team, new town, and new number comes a plethora of new, fresher, and better endorsement deals. James has ensured that he will be a wealthy man; that all the “bonus” money he receives outside of basketball will far surpass the extra 20-30 million he would have made in Cleveland.

To everyone who thinks Miami is well on their way to championship I have one word for you: Chemistry.

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There are 2 comments

  1. Chris Ross

    This was a great article, I very much enjoyed the read! Cleveland fans are really unhappy that Lebron chose to go to Miami but I think they are taking this too much to heart. Lebron is a very good player that hasn’t one a championship and feels that he can win one in Miami rather than Cleveland. He doesn’t owe anything to the Cavs because for the most part he played his hardest throughout his time in Cleveland. I have never liked and never will like Lebron but I feel that all the criticism that he is getting is unfair. Also, you think you could check out my blog cuz I would love to hear your opinion on my thoughts. http://chrisross91.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/suck-it-up-cleveland/

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