Nine Convenient (But False) Arguments Employed by LeBron James Apologists
Look, I'll be the first to admit, it's hard to stay unbiased when discussing the whole "I'm taking my talents to South Beach" thing, regardless of which side of the debate you're on.
I personally don't like the decision or the ramifications one bit (and I'm disliking the man more and more), but I must admit that the people who agree with me often have some pretty bad arguments.
And yet that's nothing compared to the people who defend the decision (a demographic made up entirely of Miamians, a few Akronites and a planet full of superficial fans who'd rather watch an All-Star dunk-fest than a hard-fought Game 7).
While everyone's opinion is their right, the problem is most of these people try to leverage their point with arguments that frankly are an insult to my intelligence.
Certainly, there may be a few valid arguments that could be made in defense of LeBron James' decision and his future legacy. You will not, however, find them here.
1. "He Wasn’t Going to Win with Cleveland."
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This one takes the cake. Convenient logic at its finest. People talk as if they were a perennial 5-8 seed struggling for years to win a Playoff series, conveniently forgetting that they were a mainstay atop the East when he left.
The fact that they had yet to make it completely over the hump is a testament to teams like Boston and Orlando, not some sign that this is a doomed ballclub. They even had a decent window for years to come.
The last two years were the most disappointing, because they had plans on meeting up with the Lakers in the Finals, and were derailed both times.
One year due to an unexpectedly tough opponent (it happens), and the other year from the most suspicious “off night” in NBA history.
Somewhere in there, LeBron lovers decided that qualifies as a completely hopeless situation, and fully justifies defection.
While I personally don’t mind his leaving Cleveland, it drives me crazy that people use this argument all the time and nobody ever calls them out. It’s complete and utter conjecture.
What you mean to say is “He wasn’t guaranteed to win with Cleveland.”
2. "The Cavs Never Cared About LeBron.”
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Am I the only one wondering how “caring” Pat Riley will be in the long run?
Seriously, if LeBron was accusing Dan Gilbert and the Cavaliers of only liking him for his skills, then he doesn’t fully grasp the concept of lucrative employment.
I have a boss who signs my checks, and that process has absolutely nothing nothing to do with “who I am deep down” but rather the work I do. It’s a job, not a marriage.
If he was suggesting that the team didn’t make him a real part of the franchise, then he is just clinically insane. I defy anyone to name another team that ever gave one player so much influence within the franchise as the Cavs did LeBron (please say “Jordan” so I can say ”Krause”).
Pains were taken and moves were made left and right trying to please him and surround him with quality players (Larry Hughes and Mo Williams were top free agents when the Cavs first signed either without the benefit of hindsight).
Sure, he only got this treatment because of what he does for the team, but how is that different from any other team again? If LeBron was just a really nice guy with a 6-inch vertical leap, do you think he’d have it this good?
Same with the fans. They don’t “love you more” in Miami, Bron, they’re just happy you’re dunking for them, not on them.
3. "All the Greats Needed Some Help."
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Bad logic is the kind of logic that makes a person mention Dennis Rodman and Toni Kukoc as an argument in support of mega-stacking. When and on what planet Kukoc was ever considered an All-Star is beyond me, and Rodman couldn’t even spell “offense.”
They were role players in a system that maximized their effectiveness. Plus guys like Pippen, Worthy, McHale and all the other legendary “sidekicks” were drafted and developed by their teams, as opposed to garnering superstar status elsewhere before ganging up on one uber-squad.
To put Miami in perspective, picture the 1980’s Celtics, only instead of Bird, Parish and McHale, imagine Bird, joined via free agency by MJ and Hakeem Olajuwon. Or the Showtime Lakers, only instead of Byron and Worthy, picture Magic running the break with MJ and Dominique.
LeBron apparently doesn’t feel safe without overwhelming odds on his side. There’s a difference between needing help, and needing all the help in the world.
Addendum (16-Feb):
I should point out that I'm not too fond of the Lakers or the Pau Gasol "deal" either.
4. "A Ring Is a Ring."
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The above would be true if and only if LeBron had chosen a career as a pawnbroker. However, as a professional athlete engaged in active competition, nothing could be further from the truth. NBA rings are not just worth the gold they’re made of; their value is in the bragging rights that come with them.
There are levels of accomplishment in sports, and the respect that comes with comes in equally various degrees.
Winning is desirable because it earns you the respect of everyone watching. But what people (and players) are forgetting more and more is that it’s not just the winning by itself, but the accomplishments it entails along the way.
Back in the day, you won a championship by rising to the occasion, putting yourself on the line every game and emerging victorious through fire and grit.
The bragging rights came from the battle you had been through (and perhaps the frustration that preceded it) because not just anybody could do what you had just done.
Meanwhile, I can name approximately 300 NBA players of varying talent levels who, given the right circumstances, could also position themselves for a ring simply by signing with a group of All-Stars.
I would expect this from Eddie House or an aging Charles Barkley, not a reigning 2-time MVP just entering his prime.
LeBron fans (and even a few "serious" journalists) have been saying that he will redeem himself if (they actually say if with a straight face) he wins a title in Miami, but with a team like this around him, one title is meh.
There is absolutely nothing impressive about winning in a can’t-lose situation. I’d be just as impressed watching Kimbo Slice take down Rihanna.
5. "Boston’s Big Three Is No Better."
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You could make the argument that Boston first ushered in the idea of three franchise players being put on a single team. But then again, you could sort of say that about Houston in the late 90’s, but the latter was made up of players in their twilight years.
Even with Boston, you had guys who were already getting on in years (Garnett, for example, was in his 13th season), and none of the players on either of these Big Threes could be called an MVP candidate anymore.
Even if you overlook the age factor, the point here is that Boston had to go out and manufacture those two mega-deals, and the other teams involved didn’t just get stripped of their stars outright.
Minnesota got Al Jefferson, among others, in a bloated package for KG. Seattle got Jeff Green and a bevy of role players.
So on the one hand, you had three aging stars winding up together after some major trades, and on the other you have one star and two MVP-types, all barely in their primes, retreating into each other’s arms the second they become free agents.
Is it me or is there something weak about the latter scenario?
6. "He Should Be Commended For Taking Less Money."
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Yes, the quasi-billionaire is showing great personal resolve by turning down one-tenth or so of his astronomical max contract.
Plus, consider the fact that he’s probably netting the same income after the pay cut, due to the fact that there is no state tax in Florida.
Plus the endorsement deals… Of course, you know the shilling pays better than the basketballing does.
Yes, LeBron is taking a sharp blow to his wallet, all in the name of winning, which of course is the noblest and most auspicious pursuit there is in sports.
Ahem. Let’s just tell it like it is: LeBron took an imaginary pay cut he’ll never notice in order to complete the sweetest deal in the history of free agency. Tough choice. Somebody get this man a medal.
7. "He’s Just Controlling His Destiny."
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Take a look at the body language in “The Decision” and tell me that looks like someone who’s sure of himself. Even if you ignore that, the whole “controlling his destiny” argument is imaginary.
He was already controlling his destiny by simply exercising his right to free agency; there’s no possible way he could have made a decision in the first place without that control. The actual choice he made with it doesn’t change that.
So whether he had gone to Miami, New York, Chicago, Jersey, L.A. or wherever he’d still be controlling his destiny. And nobody outside Cleveland is mad at him simply for leaving the Cavs, by the way.
Most people were genuinely intrigued by the thought of him in a new uniform, and I still maintain he should have gone to New York, but that’s just me.
The whole argument suggests that people are denying his right to change teams, and I don’t know anybody with a brain who would do that unless they were prepared to mount a case against free agency in general within the same conversation.
So what I'm saying is can the "control" argument already.
8. "Of Course He’s a Competitor; Look at His Numbers!"
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Ah yes, the stats. What are they, after all, except a numerical index of awesomeness? Who’s better, the guy averaging 10 or 20 points per game?
Stats are the currency with which a player buys legitimacy (and earning power) in any sport, especially basketball where there are so many to be compiled and gawked at.
Wins, losses, points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, double-doubles, triple-doubles, percentages of all kinds, PERs, and metrics you never even heard of, are all pointed to as evidence of why exactly your favorite player is the proverbial (stuff). And yes, they are heavily featured in all-time discussions as well.
So how on God’s green earth could anyone, in the face of such overwhelming and irrefutable proof, possibly deny LeBron James is the greatest thing since the cotton gin?
Because there is a difference between being being gifted and being great. True, normally the former leads to the latter. And LeBron is the most athletically gifted player perhaps ever.
This is why people have always been talking about when, not if, LeBron will win a ring: because they assumed he would accomplish with his immense gifts what players before him had with theirs, namely to achieve greatness, making memorable things happen. LeBron now seems a little easily frustrated to really deliver on that rare level. It's not a knock on his incredible athletic skills, it's a question on his mental toughness that's unanswered at best.
It feels more like he just wants to rack up numbers (I call it stat-sturbation) while finding loopholes around the whole “do great things” thing at the contract table. LeBron is proof that a gifted athlete can make going through the motions look amazing.
And in the end he can point to his numbers (while wearing a shirt also reminding you to check them) with complete confidence that there is no numeric measure for competitiveness, mental toughness or sportsmanship in the record books.
9. "He’s Putting His Ego Aside."
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I'll give Dwyane Wade credit for this any day, but in retrospect, I think it’s safe to say LeBron’s ego isn’t going anywhere. If anything, he’s just pushed his ego even more prominently in the forefront.
Sure, he’s giving up a couple of points per game, but it’s not like he was ever in any jeopardy of being judged negatively for that.
It’s clear, between the TV special, the intro party, the comments and so on that LeBron has the 24/7 Me channel on inside his head.
Now don’t get me wrong, we all have to look out for No. 1, but there are limits and he seems to neither know them nor acknowledge their existence.
The little voice in his head is telling him to do any and everything to get the many, many championships that are owed to him for being so damn awesome, and since the universe didn’t seem to be getting with the program, he needed to do something drastic.
It’s probably telling him that he’s the victim (i.e. justified) the way he spoils everybody with his play and gets cruelly judged in return, and that he'll show us all very soon.
All he needs to do is share the spotlight a little (a necessary evil) and shut out the world (already a skill).
But again, his on-court “sacrifice” (much like the financial one) is an illusion because it’s barely felt and arguably comes with a sure-shot payoff in the near future.
Imagine if you could pay $100 for a chance to win a new house by hitting it with your shoe, and people commended you on your financial risk-taking.
Conclusion
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Now while I'm fully aware this slideshow may smack of my bias against the Miami Heat, the purpose is not to push my opinion, but to debunk some very annoying assumptions made by some even more annoying people.
Now that I know that there is at least one Web page out there capable of doing so, I can feel a little more at peace with the current state of the NBA.
I didn't write this to start another debate, but to tell all who apply that if they want to argue in favor of something, they can't try to sneak half-truths and conjecture past people as their only arguments.
If I ever hear a good reason as to why I should think anything of this "team" and this "MVP" any more, I will gladly concede.
But I can guarantee you I will never swallow any of these nine arguments for a second, and at the risk of preaching, neither should you.
Thanks for reading.
