The King of....?

Here is my buddy's view on the whole Lebron James situation. When you read this, keep in mind he is a die hard Browns, Indians, and Cavaliers fan. He is one who likes/liked LBJ... it starts with the title he gave it, and then writes about how he feels about Lebron...Enjoy!

Why LeBron James is the biggest disappointment in professional sports

Let me just start by saying that two years ago, I disagreed with Skip Bayless on almost everything that he said concerning LeBron James. My how things have changed. This whole situation has been building up for the last two years, so I figure that I might as well say it.

LeBron James, GET THE HELL OUT OF CLEVELAND.

When LBJ came into the league as an 18 year old phenom from Akron, he was expected to resurrect the city of Cleveland from the furthest depths of sports failure. He was even called "the Chosen One", which is a ridiculous coronation for a kid who had proved nothing at that point of his career. And he has still not proven that he has deserved all the attention that he has gotten. For all the endorsements, the publicity, the individual awards, he has still not won a championship. And I'm not saying that LeBron is a failure because he didn't win a championship in Cleveland; its all about the way he handled himself within the last two seasons. It has everything to do with his attitude toward his team, his city, and most of all, his attitude about himself.

For a long time, even as recently as last year, I considered LBJ to be a great leader. And I still believe that he was for the first five years of his career. They had no buisness taking the Pistons or Celtics to seven games in 2006 and 2008 or going to the NBA Finals in 2007. But he made his teammates better. Unfortunately, that is no longer the case. When he disappeared in those last three games vs Boston, I finally realized that a truly great leader would not have quit on his team. Ever. Unlike Dwayne Wade, who won 47 games this year with Michael Beasley as his next best player, LeBron did nothing to make his team better when it really mattered. He also would not put a stop to the questions about his upcoming free agency, which any good leader would have done in order to keep his teammates focused.

The attitude LeBron had toward the city of Cleveland has been awful. Dan Gilbert gave him the best facilities, a ton of money, and a GM who, despite what people may think, did an overall damn good job. So what does he do? He puts his fans and the Cavaliers through the circus because he cares more about his recruitment than about keeping the best interests of the team who has been so good to him for seven years in mind. This man is supposedly so loyal to his only team and his hometown area, but he can't keep his free agency experience quiet and simple. Not to mention that he has pretty much held the city hostage while pointing a gun to it's head.

Which leads me to my biggest reason the LeBron is such a huge disappointment. He has let his ego get completely out of control. Forgive me if I rant on and on about this one.

First off, he allows reporters to ask questions about when he would become a free agent. TWO YEARS AGO. Does that seem normal to any of you? Then he makes teams come to Cleveland to woo him because he wants to be "courted" by certain teams. LeBron James, you are a bigger tease than just about any college female. I feel like I have been watching some crappy dating show instead of ESPN for the past week. Not only that, he ASKS ESPN for a one hour special to announce his decision. Seriously? He just wants the whole world to have their eyes on him. He is definitely "The King", not because he has won anything significant, but because he is just as needy as one. If you asked him, I bet LeBron would tell you that he was given a "divine right". What happened to the humble kid from just down the road in Akron? The only thing that Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Larry Bird, Dwyane Wade or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ever wanted attention for was winning. LBJ has become too worried about being a global icon and not enough about becoming a champion. Oh don't worry LeBron, you will become globally known. But if anyone else who cares about basketball can see through you, about 95% of them will hate you.

Which leads me to my conclusion. I don't know about anybody reading this note, but I do know that I have completely lost respect for LeBron James. According to speculation (and a good buddy of mine), he is almost guaranteed heading to Miami to play with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Well, thats just fine with me. I don't care how many championships he wins in his career, whether it is one or five. He will always be a selfish disappointing loser in my book because he lost what no one with his fame and fortune can afford to lose: his humility.

So LeBron, enjoy wherever it is you are going. I just hope now that its not Cleveland. While the city does desperately need a championship, it also deserves a true sports hero. Myself personally, I can wait as long as it takes for one to show up.