Attention Cleveland: LeBron James is Not a Villain

Sports fans never cease to amaze me.

Instead of Cleveland Cavalier fans remembering everything great LeBron James did for their dismal team when he came into the NBA in 2003, they turned on him quicker than he could say South Beach.

They declared him the biggest sports villain since Art Modell.

There is nothing LeBron did that was as classless as Modell ripping a team away from a dedicated city.

James is the only reason the Cavaliers have been relevant in the sports world for the past seven years. In case you have forgotten let me remind you just how good the Cavs were before they were fortunate enough to win the NBA lottery in 2003.

Cleveland ranked dead last in attendance for the 2002-2003 season, which was the year before they drafted James. This year, they were second in the league behind the Chicago Bulls and have been in the top five every season after LeBron’s arrival with the exception of his rookie year.

The Cavaliers had one playoff appearance from 1996-2003. They had not won a playoff series since 1992 when they beat the New Jersey Nets.

They have made the playoffs for five consecutive seasons and have won a series every year.

However, true greatness is measured in championships.

The Cavs have never won and NBA championship or even an Eastern Conference title for that matter. They won the Central Division just one time in the history of the franchise.

Since 2005, LeBron carried the team to two Central Division titles, the best record in the NBA for back to back years, and the team’s first ever NBA Finals appearance in 2007.

If you don’t think LeBron put these teams on his back and carried them you are insane.

The only reason the Cavs made the NBA Finals was because James scored the final 25 points in Game Five of the conference finals against the Pistons. This included all 18 of the Cavaliers points in overtime.

The point I am trying to make is that before LeBron’s arrival, this was one of the worst franchises in the NBA. He made them a contender year in and year out.

The organization and fans should be thanking James for everything he did for them.

Many fans and media members criticized Lebron’s decision to hold a one hour special on ESPN to announce his decision and plunge the sword into the heart of his hometown. He was also criticized by ESPN's Skip Bayless for making teams recruit him and for holding his meetings in Cleveland.

Well let’s step back and think for a second.

Let’s say LeBron’s people call ESPN to say he is holding a press conference at 9 PM on Thursday, but won’t say who he will play for until the press conference. Are you going to tell me ESPN wasn’t going to stop everything they were broadcasting, which would have been the second hour of World Cup Soccer analysis, and cover LeBron’s announcement for the next hour?

But, since it was dubbed a “special,” it was James getting on TV just to feed his ego and rip the soul right out of every faithful Cavs fan in Cleveland, Ohio. The media created this whole circus around figuring out where James was going to play. He just played along with them.

Skip, there is nothing wrong with James holding his meetings in Cleveland or having teams try and recruit him. He was being a smart businessman by considering all of his options before making the biggest decision of his life.

Why should LeBron have to travel all around the country to listen to these presentations? The teams want him. They should be the ones traveling to his home and pitch their franchise. I do not see anything wrong about having these meetings or where they were held.

Can you really blame LeBron for going to Miami where he will more than likely win multiple championships in the coming seasons? James was not going to win a championship in Cleveland until they put another great player around him.

Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman when he won his titles. Kobe Bryant had Shaquille O’Neal in the prime of his career when he won his first three titles. Derek Fisher was also one of the main reasons they won those titles with his clutch shooting in the playoffs. The last two titles Kobe has won he has had one of the most underrated NBA players in Pau Gasol.

Who has LeBron had around him in Cleveland?

Nobody!

The Cavs never put anyone around him that could help him win a title.

They had Ben Wallace for a while. Let’s be honest, he never had a good year after leaving Detroit.

Shaq signed with them this year. Unfortunately, he is not the same Shaq that won three titles alongside Kobe in Los Angeles.

Mo Williams has been a nice surprise, but he is not even close to being on Pippen’s level.

Anderson Varejao has turned into a decent post player, but he cannot match up with Gasol, Garnett, or Dwight Howard.

No one in their right mind can blame LeBron for leaving.

I won’t even pretend to understand the heartbreak Cleveland sports fans have gone through. This is yet another tough moment for the city.

However, instead of tearing down the great player that brought your franchise to levels which were once laughable to even consider, you should be wishing him well in Miami and thanking him for the greatest seven years of Cavalier basketball.

LeBron may not be Cleveland’s sports hero anymore, but he is most certainly not one of its villainous figures.