LeBron James Rumors: LBJ is Losing Respect in Decision-Making Process

LeBron James has always had an ego, an obnoxious one at that. But his performance during the first week of free-agency has taken it up a notch.

James visits teams that originally expressed interest in signing him: the New Jersey Nets, the New York Knicks, the Chicago Bulls, the Los Angeles Clippers, and, finally, his former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

That’s all well and good. It’s what a free-agent is supposed to do.

He has remained quiet as to where he will end up. That is obviously very smart. It hasn’t stopped everyone from speculating where he will go, however; some think they know which team he has decided.

There is an application on ESPN.com where you can play a lottery of sorts to guess which team he will choose.

Their columnist, Chris Broussard, who broke the Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade to Miami story, has changed his stance daily.

There is a LeBron Tracker on ESPN , too, where you can keep up to date on all the speculation surrounding His Highness. And that’s not all.

While Wade and Bosh both went on SportsCenter to inform the world they would be heading to Miami, Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant quietly said on his Twitter account that he has signed a 5-year extension. His decision was expected, but he did so in an unselfish and nonchalant manner.

After breaking the news, he professed his love for Oklahoma City, a relatively small market with an up-and-coming team. He even attended their Summer League game and raved about their incoming and current talent. He went about it the right way.

James won’t just let the news break on where he is going; he needs to be in the limelight. He wants to do it his way, a way that could upstage Bosh and Wade’s.

And this is? Coming to an agreement with ESPN to make his choice during a one-hour special Thursday night, of course. How much more self-centered can he get?

He’s a pompous, egotistical attention-whore, and those who didn’t know this before now do.

James has “The Chosen One” tattooed on his back. He gloats, belittles opponents by posing and staging playful team photos, and has proclaimed he wants to be a billionaire.

During the American League Division Series between the Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees in 2007, he wore a Yankees cap, letting everyone know which of the two teams he was a fan of.

He has built so much suspense. The Bulls, Cavaliers, Nets, Heat, and Knicks are all waiting for his decision. And his camp has kept everything on the down-low. Or so it is thought.

Rumors were swirling on the Internet today that James has indeed chosen the Knicks. Players for other teams said on their twitter accounts they were certain that this was true.

To keep people on their heels until his prime-time show titled “The Decision” airs, James’ crew could have leaked the rumor.

Even if it wasn’t and is just players toying with the NBA fan-base, James clearly has lost a great deal of respect during this whole process. The show exemplifies how he is. He never went to college so could this be his chance to choose a hat like heralded high school athletes are?

I can see it now: hats lined in a row; suspenseful music in the background; a hesitant look on his face; players, fans, coaches, and members of the interested teams’ front offices sweating profusely, praying on their edge of their seats, hoping the self-proclaimed King will pick their dire team.

James is a great player. He’s a triple-double machine and is on his way to putting together a Hall of Fame career. He is indeed the cream of the free-agent crop.

The problem is he knows all of this. And it’s going to his head. He thinks he’s God’s gift to the world.

In the end, he can speak in a very professional tone, thanking teams for their interest, but he can’t erase his image. After all, putting aside all of the statistics and stardom, he hasn’t won a title in seven years.

He spent those seven years in Cleveland: a team, a city, a state that would crumble if he left. Why create all of this hoopla just to say he’s re-signing?

But here’s the other side of that: why would LeBron go on national television for an hour and embarrass his hometown of Akron by signing elsewhere?

Cleveland wants him, and I think a big part of him wants to stay, but he doesn’t deserve them. He doesn’t deserve Chicago, either. Those two teams would have the pieces around him to succeed long-term, especially the Bulls, a team that just signed All-Star forward Carlos Boozer.

But where will he end up? He would fit with the Knicks or Heat perfectly. Even with him, New York would feature a $100 million dollar forward , Amar’e Stoudemire , who has a history of serious knee problems, and a sparse group of inexperienced players.

Signing James would hamstring them financially and hurt their chances of bringing in satisfactory surrounding talent. It would diminish their already-thin roster. It’s not a team, even with him, that would win anytime soon.

Then there’s the Heat. The same negative scenarios apply. Sure he would be playing with Bosh and Wade, but there would only be one ball split between the three.

And, though the trio has the makings of a dream team, only two other players are under contract: forward Michael Beasley, whom they dread, and point guard Mario Chalmers, whom they are trying to trade as well.

James deserves either of those teams. Sure, he would be in a big market with the Knicks. He would make millions upon millions of dollars on top of his mega-salary.

But what if Stoudemire’s knee blows out? Toney Douglas , Wilson Chandler , Eddy Curry , and Andy Rautins aren’t players that are going to get a ring on his finger in Stoudemire’s stead.

And with the Heat he wouldn’t be the guy, and he would soon find out that would be the case. So, go to the Knicks or Heat, James.

Cleveland will hate him. NBA fans everywhere will label him a money-grabber—a businessman, not a player. Nothing more than a talented ego.