Why the NBA King is the World's Prince Charming

It's fourth and two with three seconds left. Brady Quinn comes out of the huddle looking at the defense. Then he audibles another play at the line of scrimmage. Down, set, hike. Quinn turns around and gives the ball to Lebron James and he dives over the goal line. Browns win, Browns win.

Wait a minute, Lebron James scores the go ahead touchdown. Yes, that's right LeBron James. After watching the Eastern Conference Finals I have been convinced that LeBron James is the best running back in Cleveland. Maybe there is some truth to that State Farm commercial after all. 

LeBron James now receives treatment from the officials that lives up to his basketball moniker "King." Yes, all the superstars get preferential treatment but Lebron  got more calls than 911. In the NBA Finals Kobe Bryant did not get half the superstar calls Lebron got which leaves me to believe that maybe he is King.

James dribbles at the top of the key and calls out an isolation play against Mikael Pietrus. He drives right into the lane and stumbles to the floor. The whistle sounds and the ref calls a foul. Blocking foul on Pietrus that is.

Then Pietrus looks at the ref disbelief as he lies on the floor with his head pinned between the padding on the bottom the basketball goal and a photographers leg.

Next time down the court James decides to dribble drive left. This time he beats Pietrus to the lane only to meet Dwight Howard. Dwight jumps straight up in the air as James hits him. The whistle sounds again. Another foul, this time on Howard. Dwight then ask the ref what he did wrong and the replies that Dwight breathed on him to hard.

It's no secret that the NBA officiating was horrible this post season, however, Game Three of the Eastern Conference Finals was an absolute joke. That was a game that said to the average sports fan that the NBA is fixed.

It really made me think that the NBA refs that night had on Cavalier jerseys on under their own uniform. LeBron's calls were so one sided that it was a topic on ESPN's First Take the following day.                           

In my opinion James has earned some of these phantom calls but many of them are too premature right now in his career. Michael Jordan did not get many of these calls until he won a title.

Remember the Detroit Pistons famed Jordan Rules were in full effect until the Bulls beat them in playoffs. So what is it about LeBron? Why has LeBron fever spread faster than the Swine Flu?

You cannot deny his combination of size, strength, and speed. He is the one of the most gifted athletes in professional sports not just basketball. Many, including myself are enamored with his video game cheat code ability.

His game is simply that good. LeBron has a higher ceiling than anyone ever to play in the NBA and that does include MJ. If you don't agree, well you're a hater or Skip Bayless.

However, right now that guy in L.A. reigns supreme. You know that guy that has four rings and counting. Lebron has even admitted that Kobe has been the man in the NBA for some time now.

Still the Black Mamba seems to have lost some luster in the presence of LeBron. They finished one and two in the MVP race this year, but their reputations among the media are now polar opposites. 

Between the charismatic smile, Vitamin Water commercials, and those damn Nike puppets Lebron has become a marketing juggernaut for the NBA. In return the NBA is protecting its investment at all cost.

Even if it means protecting him from his own team. If you were not smart enough, you would have thought that the Cavaliers exit from the playoffs had nothing to do with Lebron James.

Even while the Cavaliers were down 3-1 to the Orlando Magic it was about Lebron. All you could see on ESPN, NBA TV and other media outlets was his Game Two buzzer beater.

Then when the Caveliers lost, Mo Williams and Delonte West shouldered much of the blame.The Cavaliers did not help James enough. I agree that Cleveland needs more firepower but you win as a team and lose as a team.

In his moment of defeat where was the King. The King did not shake any hands nor did the King talk to the media. He left his teammates to answer tough questions. For the first time in his young promising career he faced real basketball adversity and he did not measure up like the king that we have proclaimed him to be.

Yes, the incident has been overblown but it did happen. Isaiah Thomas is still remembered for his post game departue when he did not shake hands with the Bulls after the Pistons were eliminated.

Nevertheless the media saved him. Lebron was separated from a bad team. A team that won 66 games, a team the swept the first two rounds in playoffs, a team with the NBA Coach of the Year. That being said the blame carousel is now at Coach Mike Brown's feet.

No one has said that Cleveland as a team lost big leads throughout the Eastern Conference Finals. No one has said that Cleveland as a team were simply outmatched against the Orlando Magic, Lebron included.

I believe its safe to say that when the Lakers lose that the blame points at Kobe Bryant. That was the case last year in the Finals. We heard about his inability to lead without the Shaq. We heard about how the Lakers are to soft to be NBA Champions, Kobe included.

Then I think to myself well the Cavaliers got swept in the NBA Finals the year before. But it was all good because Lebron was hosting the ESPY Awards the following month. No harm, no foul.               

While he is a juggernaut on and off the court, he has some postseason work to do on the court. Before we crown LeBron James the next whatever let him win a championship first.

Nonetheless, I believe when he wins one title he will transcend the game and then get G.O.A.T respect over that other guy who won six rings with the Chicago Bulls. After all he is already the King. HOLLA.