The King Must Earn His Crown

Beyond the hype, commercials and t-shirts, the first two games of the Cavaliers-Celtics series tells us a great deal.

The biggest truth the games reveal— that Kobe is King. Yes, LeBron owns the hardware for being MVP for the last two seasons. Yet, the Gold Ball belongs to Kobe. As a matter of fact, Kobe owns four of those, with one being his outright.

LeBron still has many years to go. One day, he truly may be the best player in the game. For now though, the crown belongs in LA.

Cavaliers fans will chalk this article up to player hating— it's not. I disliked Kobe, before LeBron ever played an NBA minute. Kobe convinced me he was a great player. LeBron still has a few things to prove.

Irrespective of the ESPN and Nike hype, basketball remains a team sport. One man, no matter how good, will not beat a good team. One thing we do know, great players make good teams great. Not because of the great player's ability, but because that player makes those around him great. This concept has a name, it's called leadership.

Being Jordan's teammate wasn't the easiest role, just ask BJ Armstrong. Kobe had run-ins with players throughout his time as a Laker. We witnessed— no pun intended, Kevin Garnett rip “Big Baby” Davis during a game.

We never hear rumors of LeBron blasting players in the locker room or practice. In today's media hyped environment, it's difficult to believe that if an incident occurred, it would not have been leaked. Sometimes leaders have to make tough decisions. As the unquestioned leader of the Cavaliers, LeBron now has to make some unpopular decisions.

Big games require players to step up. Mo Williams, Antwan Jamison and Shaq have not lived up to the moment. LeBron needs to make sure that happens. All the other greats did this when their teams failed to answer the bell.

Here in lies the challenge for LeBron. He must learn how to get more from the players around him. Beyond Mo Williams' dunk, he has been pretty much a non-factor. Williams went 1 for 8 in last night's game. We all know Shaq has no real purpose with the Cavaliers, other than waiting for a conference finals match-up with Dwight Howard (which probably won't happen).

Jamison has to be more assertive down the stretch. Danny Ferry brought him to Cleveland to provide James help in the clutch. Did anyone even notice Jamison in the last four minutes of last night's game against the Celtics?

Yes, LeBron might posses more talent than any of us has ever seen in the history of the NBA. But talent alone will not get it done.

Basketball relies on a team concept. A team relies on its leader. It takes more than a crown, to be the real King.