Leave King James Alone

What has gotten into everyone with the LeBron bashing? Why does a single act of disgust change King James' image from media darling to media scapegoat?

At the conclusion of game six of the eastern conference finals against the Magic, LeBron James walked off the court in shame. It was his worst performance of the series, on a night when he shot 8-for-20 from the field. He did, however, manage to score 25 points while dishing out seven assists and grabbing seven rebounds.

So what's the big deal about being such a competitor that he didn't shake a few hands? No one asked Dwight Howard if his feelings were hurt because he didn't get a bear hug from LeBron after winning the eastern conference.

In the long run, the Magic were the ones that were shunned by LBJ, and they didn't seem to mind too much. They were too busy celebrating their victory and thinking about the Lakers while Lebron James and the Cavaliers were in the locker room sulking over their defeat.

In all fairness to the Cavaliers, Lebron James' biggest faux pas was shunning the media and leaving his teammates hanging. He is supposed to be the leader of the team and answer the tough questions instead of leaving his teammates hung out to dry.

In this era of around-the-clock sports programming, every single misstep is being broadcasted over any means possible. Youtube has now been utilized as a way to bash professional athletes over anything. LeBron James has done everything right since entering the league as a teenager and now he has shown his humanity.

No one should blame James for walking off the court in disgust. After all, this was supposed to be the year of the Cavaliers. His team had just ended the season with the best record in the NBA, only to follow with an eight-game sweep of their first two playoff matchups.

He, like many others, thought the team should coast to a Lakers matchup in the NBA finals. Even Nike and VitaminWater have sparked a Lebron James-Kobe Bryant matchup conversation. The city of Cleveland thought they would finally end a championship drought that seems to have—and continues to—lasted an eternity.

So why do we expect LeBron James to shake hands with the winning opponent after his dreams have been dashed once again through the failures of his teammates?

He has done everything asked of him throughout the regular season and the playoffs. Blame Mike Brown and GM Danny Ferry for this act of unsportsmanship. They are the ones who have put this team together and game planned, only to put LeBron James in the awkward situation of having to shake the hands of the Orlando Magic.

In 2007, King James congratulated Tim Duncan after they won the NBA Championship against his Cavaliers in a clean sweep. However, that gesture has long been forgotten.

The media must stop over-criticizing LeBron and start complaining about how Danny Ferry must put together a more talented and deeper squad to help No. 23 win his first NBA Championship and end the Cleveland drought.

Not everyone can do the right thing 24/7. Lebron James must take the high ground now and learn from this tiny little bump in the road.