Sports media personalities are salivating this morning.
LeBron James won his first NBA title last night, and whether you love
him or hate him, everyone has an opinion of him and everyone wants to
share it. I thought this event might shut down Twitter as fans, observers and "experts"
rushed to let the world hear their thoughts. It was the biggest story of
the night and will continue to give those in the business ample
ammunition for some time.
So I suppose if everyone else is chipping in two cents, two more in the jar isn’t going to hurt. I believe I’m in a rare group of feelings when it comes to the all-encompassing whirlwind that is LeBron James. I don’t love him or hate him; constantly view his character through a magnifying glass; or shun/praise every move he makes. I appreciate his ability and what it means to the game of basketball. And isn’t that really what matters most?
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| AP Photo |
So I suppose if everyone else is chipping in two cents, two more in the jar isn’t going to hurt. I believe I’m in a rare group of feelings when it comes to the all-encompassing whirlwind that is LeBron James. I don’t love him or hate him; constantly view his character through a magnifying glass; or shun/praise every move he makes. I appreciate his ability and what it means to the game of basketball. And isn’t that really what matters most?
I don’t care if he went out after the game or what book he is reading --
although I’m guessing ‘how to succeed’ books are now off the list. “The
Decision” was a PR nightmare and the Heat introduction that gave us
such memorable quotes as “not five, not six …” was probably not the best
way to handle the situation. LeBron and the rest of the team put a
mountain of weight on their shoulders before the ball was even tipped
that first season, and that was a consequence they had to live with.
It’s a magically dangerous, technologically savvy world we live in. Every second of a superstar athlete’s life is critiqued, and the actions in the previous paragraph were enough for some people to write him off as an arrogant jerk who had yet to achieve the only prize that truly mattered in the eyes of the public. If you want to get through the rest of LeBron’s career, don’t compare him to Michael Jordan. Just don’t. Jordan’s career is over, and we’ve had years now to reflect and analyze (not like we really need to). Plus he played in a different era, one that didn’t have the power of the Internet and social networking. But you know what, ignore what you just read, because we’re not even comparing them.
LeBron is polarizing -- he broke the heart of a city, and although I’ve never seen his agent and PR team, I’m sure at least one of this is balding from the aftermath of June 2010 -- but do you know what else he is? He’s really good at basketball. Watching him play, the thought keeps popping into your mind that he is on a level where if he doesn’t want to be stopped, he won’t be. He shouldn’t be so fast for as strong and big as he is, and he shouldn’t be able to make some of the ridiculous, in-traffic, circus-style shots he makes.
There’s no one in the league that has the combined ability to create a shot, score, rebound, pass and block more than LeBron James. And whether you love or hate him, you watch him every night to see what he’s going to do.
As someone who appreciates the sport and art of basketball, all that really matters is what LeBron does on the court, and I can appreciate that.
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