NBA Finals 2011: LeBron James Must Learn to Embrace the Big Moments

The Dallas Mavericks completed their first ever NBA championship run last night. They finished off the heavily favored and highly renowned Miami Heat and the big three in Miami with a 105-95 victory in Game 6. 

What should be remembered from this edition of the NBA Finals is the outstanding team play (both offensively and defensively) and the never-say-die spirit displayed on a nightly basis from the Dallas Mavericks. 

We should remember Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Jason Kidd and Shawn Marion—among others—responding to every Heat run with strong counter punches in the form of sniper-like precision shooting, dedicated defense and determined rebounding.

Unfortunately, what most people will remember is the collapse of the ultra-talented Miami Heat and the disappearing act of the world’s most gifted player—LeBron James.

There have been, and will continue to be, masses of critics sounding off on blogs, podcasts, sports talk radio and sports articles over-analyzing the sub-par performance of LeBron James in this finals series. 

The numbers don’t really tell the story of what happened to LeBron in these finals—17 points, nearly eight rebounds and eight assists per game are, while not to LeBron’s standards, still a very respectable all-around performance. 

That is why it isn’t about the stats, specifically scoring. It’s about how LeBron handles these moments on the biggest stage.

From the time one begins playing organized sports, be it T-ball or soccer, youth wrestling or youth basketball, there are winners and losers at the end of each contest.  No matter what skill set is required to play that sport, one common denominator always separates the best players from the rest—competitiveness. 

Great competitors understand that there will be a winner and a loser. These types of competitors don’t fear losing, they don’t fear making a mistake or failing when it matters most. The great competitors keep coming at their opponent with grit and unwavering determination, play after play, until the final whistle sounds.

To me it’s a simple fix for LeBron, and one that must come from within. He must learn to embrace adversity and overcome it by learning to embrace the competition, learning to immerse himself within every fiber of the moment—embrace each game, every practice, each film session, each meeting.

In other words, enjoy the biggest stage, don’t shy away from it.

Jason Kidd, who has been through his share of accomplishments and failures throughout his long Hall-of-Fame career, talked immediately after the game about how much he enjoyed the journey.

That journey begins with the offseason, and continues on to training camp, an 82-game regular season, a two-month playoff stretch and finally culminates with one team raising the ultimate trophy.

It is this journey that LeBron needs to start enjoying. What he needs to realize is that as each season passes, he is one year closer to not playing the game he has proclaimed to love. 

Kidd, because he is literally at the end of his career, was reflective. He appreciates being able to play the game, competing, being with his teammates and coaches, and of course, winning the ultimate prize. 

I believe that for LeBron to achieve his ultimate dream he needs to enjoy every moment of being the best basketball player on the planet while he still is.

As shown by Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant, Dwayne Wade and Dirk Nowitzki—the crown as the game’s best player is constantly being coveted and stays with one guy for only so long. 

The good news for LeBron fans everywhere is that he has another seven to 10 prime years left. He can easily cast away the memories of his first two finals by becoming the competitor we all want him to be.

We yearn to see the most talented players in their respective sports also put in the most work and compete with a never-say-die spirit that propels them to victory. We love to see great athletes overcome adversity through hard work, dedication and determination.

Becoming a great competitor is both learned and innate—it comes from within and from the experiences gathered through life.    

For Michael Jordan, much of his competitive fire came from being cut from his high school's sophomore basketball team. LeBron has, since junior high, been the best player in his peer group. 

LeBron didn’t have to find that inner competitive fire in high school because he has always been the most talented guy on the court.   

We are watching perhaps the greatest professional athlete to ever play any sport (talent wise) grow up in front of us.   

For most professional athletes, they are able to find their competitive nature and learn how to react in big games by playing in front of a few hundred fans at the local high school. 

For LeBron, he has been in the spotlight his whole life. His every word, action, and play has been analyzed, critiqued, talked and written about. 

This fact isn’t going to change, so LeBron needs to learn to relish and enjoy being the most prominent athlete on the planet—while it lasts.  He must love every fiber of the grind of the season and especially the biggest moments in the biggest games.

If he can learn to appreciate what he has—the talent, the teammates, the competition and the journey that is each new season—LeBron will surely climb the mountain to the top.

And we will all be witnesses to it.