LeBron James and Michael Vick: Which Superstar Does Society Respect More?

On a night where the Philadelphia Eagles and their star quarterback Michael Vick play the Houston Texans on the NFL Network's Thursday Night Football, many sports fans will instead watch an early season NBA game.

An interesting question to ponder for today; is Michael Vick, a man who was convicted of an awful crime, more respected in society than Lebron James, a person who has not broken the law, only broken the hearts of an entire Ohio region?

With all the criticism Lebron has taken (brought upon himself to be honest) this year, people have now portrayed him as public enemy number one in the world of sports.

Vick has had a tremendous season on the field, making a case for the NFL MVP award.

But his best job of the season has been done off the field. Vick has stayed away from trouble, and continues to perform the service to various organizations required as part of his punishment for his involvement in a dogfighting ring.

How quickly we forget someone's horrendous actions when the next guy comes along who makes us angry. Granted Vick's legal process was started over a year before Lebron's free agency became an issue, people haven't forgotten what Michael did.

Tonight, Lebron James and his Miami Heat teammates are about to play in the most volatile arena any of them have ever seen tonight in the Quicken Loans Arena, home of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Thursday night on national television (TNT), the Heat will visit the Cleveland Cavaliers in arguably the most anticipated regular season matchup ever. 

Time has not healed the wounds that the majority of the Cleveland fans endured in the summer while watching Lebron's free agent special, "The Decision." That night in July is still fresh in the minds of Cleveland's citizens.

No matter the outcome tonight, Lebron and the Heat cannot take anything positive from the game.

If Miami loses, Cleveland will rejoice and remind everyone they have a nearly identical record. If Miami wins big, the people of Cleveland will take their hatred for Lebron to new heights.

The Miami Heat have had every game they've played analyzed like a playoff game, but they were expecting not to have as many losses broken down at this point of the season. 

The Heat are 1-7 vs. teams with a winning record, two of those losses coming to the Boston Celtics. All of their losses to the NBA's elite are quite similar for a number of reasons. 

Each team (including Dallas, Utah, Orlando, New Orleans) has an elite point guard and are committed to playing defense for 48 minutes. This may not be a problem vs. the Cavaliers tonight, but Cleveland has a roster loaded with athleticism.

The Heat have not revealed their travel plans for tonight game, and this tells us the team has a genuine concern for the safety of its players.

The Cleveland police department has announced it will not permit anti-Lebron t-shirts at the Quicken Loans Arena during the game.

The Cavaliers have done extensive research on popular anti-Lebron clothing to get an idea of what to expect from the fans Thursday, according to Yahoo Sports.

No one really knows what to expect when the Heat and James are introduced to the crowd, but will anyone be surprised if the crowd gets really out of hand? 

When a player who is adored by his team and its city leaves in an ugly fashion, the return game is usually filled with boos and a wave of curse words from fans.

But Lebron's situation is different. He not only left on his team and city that loved him, he left his hometown team.

People fail to realize this is the main reason for the hatred. It's one thing to turn your back on a franchise that's been loyal to you, but it's much worse to put your hometown team in a bad situation.

Lebron must be afraid of what he's going to face when he sees his former fans for the first time. I know I would be. 

Rarely do you walk into a building where over 10,000 people hate you. I realize there are many hated players in the NBA, but this type of displeasure is very unique to Lebron.

It's not often one of the most important/exciting games of the season is played in December, but this game is clearly an event worth watching, and not only for the first few minutes, but the entire game. 

Two men who have angered millions of people, will both play important games tonight, for entirely different reasons.

Michael Vick is starting to regain fans with his brilliant play on football field and a respectful life off of it, Lebron James should start doing the same.