The Woes Of The Superstar Athlete

"Many Pacquiao is the best fighter of all time! He's got a better chin than Ray Leonard!"

"Lebron is way ahead of kobe and these other guys in the NBA. Hell, he's right up there with Jordan!"

Just two of the oft-abused praises pushed upon perenial superstars.

I specifically chose King James and the Mexicutioner for a reason: They are both athletes arguably at the very top of their sports who are drowned in praise that sometimes produces more critics than fans. Ever wonder why there are so many people who aren't into the idea of Lebron? Or why Manny (aside from issues of late) has had so much criticism thrown his way?

Let's start with basketball's newest household name, Lebron James. In this young man lies the talent we as sports fans have no choice but to praise. A 6'8" frame made of solid rock that covers the length of a court faster than you or I could sign a document. A scorer and powerful finisher by nature, James is the knight in glistening armor the Cavaliers have been praying for. 

Lebron is, right along with Kobe Bryant, one of the most dominant players in the game of basketball. But why is it that he has so many critics (including myself, at one point) basing judgements on aspects of his game that he has fine-tuned over the years? Simple: because the rest of the world (you can quote me) loves him. It has become a status quo to adore James. Even in China, where his jersey clearly out-sells that of native Yao Ming, James is recognized as prodigy of basketball.

The thing is that at the same time that there is the avid number of people who fall under the umbrella of "it's cool to like Lebron", there is also a mass number of those who don't identify with him simply because he is so popular. Now, I am most certainly not placing the blame entirely on the fans. In fact, most of the blame for Lebron's downfall with some fans goes to the media.

I'm willing to bet that James would still be in the Forbes 50 richest if he stopped playing basketball altogether. The fact is, he would STILL be making money off of hype-mongers and name-sakers. If he decided to retire tomorrow, he could make a cool sum in the tens of millions just in the sale of a "Lebron's career" DVD set. For a guy who hasn't even hit 27 yet, that's damned impressive. All of this spawns from a collection of media who love showering promising athletes in hype and praise until it seems like he can do no wrong. That is when he critics come along. Could you imagine if Lebron's highlights and excapades on the court were approached like those of lesser names like Bosh, Pierce, or even Turkoglu? We would ALL be fans of "the most underrated player to have ever played the game". Case in point. LB's the 2nd best player in the NBA. But Jordan? Let's not go there...

Then there's the world's fascination with Pacquiao. Manny, as of now, is probably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Crashing weight classes, demolishing quality boxers, and showing us all what we've been waiting on since Mayweather stopped fighting so much. The issue is that people are comparing this man to the great "Sugar" Ray Leonard? Leonard? Really? Among the fastes, hardest-hitting multi-weights in history? I don't think so. Olympic bouts where he won gold, grueling victories Hagler, Hearns, Duran, and the original Mayweather and this guy is in no topical competition with Manny. Manny's a wonderful fighter who really brings out the sweet in the "sweet science". Fundamentally, he's stone-solid. 

Now, those outrageous praises (along with the Mayweather bullcrap recently) have put the Mexicutioner in an awkward purgatory of lovers and haters. The haters, though, are just critics who are simply apprehensive about falling in love with an iconic fighter, who seems like he's getting too much credit. The same is with Lebron. Both are arguably the best in their respect sports, but the media and fans are isolating them to that middle ground that's tougher than hell to escape.