Miami Heat's Pursuit of Championship Requires LeBron to Conquer Fear of Failure

Before going into depth about LeBron James' mental makeup, allow me to first acknowledge that I'm a tried-and-true pessimist.

So, despite the fact that I have a Master's in clinical psychology, just call me Murphy for now.

See, here's the thing.

In sports, the blessing of having unlimited potential comes with the curse of enduring unlimited scrutiny.

Which means essentially one thing when it comes to LeBron James. The word "good" simply does not exist. 

There is either great or terrible.

Why does this matter?

Because we are not imagining he has a fear of failure. And this isn't just another byproduct of that scrutiny.  He DOES. Which means people should strongly reconsider thinking of Miami as the favorite.

And for all the conversation you hear on TV or share amongst your friends between now and the NBA Finals, none of it will matter. 

When the stage is at its largest and the spotlight at its brightest, LeBron James is a completely different player.

Someone who grew up raised in a world where "perfect" means good and "anything less" means bad.

Look, there is a scientific link between perfectionism and narcissism that stems from a strong need for external validation.

And LeBron James has shown enough signs throughout the course of his career for us to simply ignore that a psychological issue is clearly present.

He is a narcissist. Yes, sure, there is a slippery slope between celebrity and narcissism, but he refers to himself in the third person for goodness sake. He made the foolish decision of being part of The Decision. There is no denying he is a narcissist.

In other words, strike one.

He is a perfectionist.

Think about when you first heard about LeBron James. It wasn't when he was in high school, like Kobe and all the other high school prodigies. You heard about LeBron when he was a baby and he was being called everything from awesome to the "King." Its blatantly obvious that he grew up in a world where expectations were completely exaggerated for him.

Strike two.

Finally, if you need proof that LeBron James so desperately relies on external validation, go on YouTube and look for that commercial he did last year. You know the one. Where he was asking fans and all the critics what they expected of him.

He all but confirmed that he is a slave to public opinion.

Strike three.

Only the Miami Heat are not out. Yet. 

I will say this though.

I learned my lesson last year when Miami lost the championship. 

It wasn't because their bench vacillated from being inconsistent to nonexistent.

It wasn't because they lacked size in the middle.

It wasn't because their PG play was erratic.

It wasn't because Chris Bosh made you wonder if he's ever heard of Spike TV.

It wasn't because Erik Spoelstra only has one mode in his emotional repertoire when things are falling apart, and that look of calmness actually disguises his sense of relief in deciding to wear a diaper. 

And you know what? It wasn't because of Dirk or the Dallas Mavericks. (Sorry, Mark!)

It was because LeBron wilted under the pressure.

And even though it's become an afterthought that the Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder are destined to face each other this time next month, the biggest mistake anyone could make is thinking Miami is the favorite to win.

If that were the case, someone who is the second coming of Oscar Robertson would have won one by his ninth season.

See, in four weeks from now, the biggest storyline of this controversy-riddled season will capture every headline to the point that you'd think we were in WW III.

LeBron v. Durant.

Sadly, though, the bigger matchup will be LeBron v. LeBron. 

One that, if history is any indication, does not bode well for Miami.