Then, I watched LeBron’s Cavs fall year after year. During the first few years, it was acceptable as he barely had the supporting cast. However, it became depressing when he started to cave under pressure. However, I remained a fan even if LeBron killed basketball in Cleveland with his stinker of a performance in Games 5 and 6 of the 2010 Boston-Cleveland series. To be honest, I was even open to the idea of him leaving Cleveland. After all, the Cavs sucked in giving him the correct help (good job, Jeff. You will alienate both the Cleveland fans and the pro-LeBron fans in this writeup). Come on, let’s be honest. How are you going to get a championship ring with a team that had the wrong pieces for the future? Also, it was LeBron’s right to choose the team he will sign for.
Then, ‘The Decision’ happened.
I would have remained a LeBron fan if he chose Chicago or New York. However, his idea of colluding with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to form a triumvirate in a fair-weather fan-infested city (add the Miami fans to the mix of people who would love to kick you in the ass, Jeff) was not cool. ‘The Decision’ was the icing on top of the horrible cake. I understood the idea behind that goddamned TV show. LeBron wanted to stir controversy to improve his brand image. For better or for worse, it actually added that much-needed publicity for him. He became a polarizing figure – something some superstars needed for their popularity to rise. The problem was, he pretty much shattered the “ideal basketball titan” I envisioned him to be. He bragged about giving Miami not one, not two… but eight NBA championships. He lost class by hating the haters in Twitter instead of shutting them up with his gameplay. LeBron broke up with Cleveland as if they did not give him the much-needed adoration in the past years (Cleveland treated LeBron badly in his departure but what were they supposed to do after that heartbreaking ‘The Decision?’) He was not the LeBron That I Used To Know anymore.
I know, I know… maybe, LeBron was really like this to begin with. I should not be fixating an image around him then. However, LeBron killed all sense of what made it fun to root for sports as a fan. He revolutionized basketball with the collusion and that made me hate him. I disliked him the same as I disliked Wade and Bosh.
When LeBron choked in last year’s Finals, it gave all who hated him for what he did last year some sort of vindication. You cannot easily win championships just by teaming up. You cannot win it all if you disregard team chemistry (there were two alpha dogs in Miami then).
However, a lot of us know deep inside our hearts that this Miami team will win it some other day. The talent and experience is just too much to handle.
When the playoffs rolled, anti-Heat fans like me were given teasers of a Miami breakdown (or as Simmons calls it, “a LeBrondown”). They went down 1-2 to Indiana after losing Chris Bosh to injury. They were one loss away from elimination and humiliation against the Celtics.
With the way Miami was down, you have to imagine that there was immense pressure on LeBron James’ shoulders. His co-star, Dwyane Wade is having an off year due to injuries. Chris Bosh returned but they still lost depressingly to the Celtics in the Game 5 of that series.
Then, LeBron did the unimaginable. He brushed off the choker image by posting clutch performances in Games 6 and 7 to finish his much-hated rivals, the Boston Celtics. Yes, it did not require an endgame performance but it was still a clutch performance. The final two games of a long series is the longer version of the final eight minutes of a crucial playoff game. As a LeBron hater, it totally sucked. It was like “why the hell did he came through all these years at this moment? Why not when he was still in Cleveland?” As a basketball fan, I have to admit that I appreciated his effort. It cemented his alpha dog status in Miami and he delivered a classic performance that all future basketball players should look up to.
When Miami met Oklahoma City in the NBA Finals, it was dubbed as “The Team That Colluded” versus “The Team that was brought together by the traditional method.” Of course, I was rooting hard for the latter. It would have been super funny if Miami get beaten by first timers. I also liked Oklahoma City’s die-hard fans who cheer as if it is there is no tomorrow. And of course, the main reason I despised the Heat was because of their idea of teaming up/taking the easy way out. OKC was the exact opposite of that.
Unfortunately for us who rooted for OKC in the Finals, LeBron James upped his performance further. Most of the calls went Miami’s way but blaming calls is always a lame excuse. Miami earned the title by playing the right game. Their role players came through when needed. They rotated the ball seamlessly. Have you seen how LeBron posted up and passed to the open shooter? What about his unstoppable drives down the middle? Heck, he even delivered in the clutch. The 2012 NBA Finals seemed like LeBron fully utilizing his talents and capitalizing on his strengths I liked about him before.
But then, why now?
I guess LeBron had to ride this journey in order for him to realize how he could be transcendent when it mattered the most. He always had the skills. However, he was too revered even when he was starting in the NBA. Remember the times when pundits were calling him as the second coming of Michael Jordan? He was receiving so much love from media and the fans then. Thanks to Cleveland’s front office for giving LeBron a crappy team, even the media could provide him excuses. We have not even talked about his Yes Men yet. LeBron was so loved in Cleveland that was why Dan Gilbert, the Cavs owner, was so bitter when LeBron ditched them for Miami.
Another possible concern then was, LeBron was too focused on his brand. He seemed more focused on doing controversial stuff (i.e., flirting to become a Knick, stating he wants to join the Slam Dunk contest, and “The Decision”) rather than improving his game. Brian Windhorst explained it the best on an ESPN podcast when he mentioned that LeBron was more focused on his free agency in his last year in Cleveland that he forgot to review what went wrong in their ultimate choke against the Celtics.
By the time LeBron switched sides, he incurred more pressure than he expected. Fans blamed him for being insensitive in ‘The Decision.’ He was called Queen James and he received several hate messages. What worsened was his reaction to those. He made the infamous “mental note” tweet to his haters. Instead of striving harder to get better, I think he used a lot of energy taking up pressure. By the 2011 Finals, he did not have the right mental state. It also did not help that he was having an alpha dog struggle with Dwyane Wade (and he was performing so much better than LeBron).
But you know what, the adversity was the much needed push that LeBron needed. It gave him focus and the sense of urgency.
2012 was the culmination of LeBron’s journey. According to Windhorst, LeBron focused most of his time studying what went wrong in the NBA Finals during the offseason. He did improve his post-up skills. Dwyane Wade’s injury also helped LeBron automatically assume the alpha dog role (which should actually be his due to his talent. If you are arguing that Wade is more of a leader, you must remember that LeBron was also a good leader back in his Cleveland days).
Bosh’s injury was a huge blessing in disguise for Miami. Both LeBron and Wade had to switch to the extra gear as soon as possible. By the time Bosh returned, they were hard to beat. Lastly, LeBron got to face his biggest bullies – the Boston Celtics. By Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, I can imagine him saying “That’s it, I’ve had enough!”
Thus, we get to witness LeBron’s transcendent Finals performance.
Bzadqdjqjfljflqf
Congratulations to LeBron and the Miami Heat for getting their much-coveted championship ring. They fully deserved it. I may be frustrated, but I expected them to win this year as I predicted it via Twitter a few months back (better chemistry after a year under their belt and they got Shane Battier). As a fan, this championship turnout sucked – I am having a horrible year in sports as my Patriots lost to the Giants; Duke Blue Devils got upset in the first round. As a basketball fan, I appreciated Miami’s sterling performance.
It sucks that I get to write about LeBron’s fumbles (2009/2010) when I was still his fan. It sucks more that I have to praise his performance when I am now a hater. I have no choice. This is the truth.
Either way, I will still continue to root against the Heat. There will be a lot of bandwagon jumpers, but I will not be one of them. I did not doubt LeBron’s or Wade’s skills. I might have made fun of them because they totally choked in last year’s Finals, but I always expected them to come through. After all, they are still superstars.
But at the end of the day, they were still the same bunch of players – wusses – who colluded. They took the easy way out. Not only that, they influenced the league into thinking the same way. Now, it is not a fair field anymore. Players just want to play for the powerhouses more than ever. Just look at Ray Allen. He grew up dreaming of wearing the Celtics jersey. Now, he ditched Boston for lesser money to join the Heat. And of course, we have Dwight Howard who has been a PR disaster this year. He is killing basketball in Orlando and he even got his coach and general manager to leave their jobs. Gone are the days when players stay loyal to their team. LeBron may have regretted ‘The Decision,’ but the ripple effect that their team-up has done, is making it less fun to root for the small-market teams.
This might be a losing effort, but for the love of basketball… Beat the Heat!
No comments:
Post a Comment