LeBron James: Did He Make a Mistake Joining the Miami Heat?

When LeBron James signed with the Miami Heat before the start of the 2010-11 season, he drew an enormous amount of criticism for his decision.

Some wanted him to remain with the hometown Cleveland Cavaliers, others wanted to see him in New York with the Knicks and a small group of hopefuls were holding out that he'd sign with the Bulls.

Instead, James surprised just about everyone by signing in South Beach to join forces with Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat.

But was it the right move for his career?

That's still to be determined.

He probably shouldn't have announced his choice via The Decision, and James certainly could've avoided the hip-hop concert that was his "welcome party" to the club, but regardless of his choices to indulge in both events, we haven't seen enough from him on his new team to make a well-informed decision about whether or not Miami was the right choice.

James' signing with the Heat was viewed by his harshest critics as a chink out of the armor in his legacy, but is that really a fair argument?

A legacy is typically defined by winning, and that's something that James failed to do at any juncture during his tenure in Cleveland.

James was a free agent for the first time in his professional career before the campaign got underway, and that was uncharted waters for LeBron to navigate.

Billed as the top high school talent in the world before his NBA debut, James never went through the recruitment process. He never had the choice to choose where he was going to play.

For once, LeBron wanted to have a say in his future. Isn't that something that we all want in our personal lives?

It's easy to join the anti-LeBron parade and do the finger-pointing in order to play the blame game, but that doesn't make it the right move by any stretch of the imagination.

So while some are quick to say that he should've signed with another team instead of joining forces with Wade and Bosh in Miami, it may still prove to be the right move for his career.

If James can secure two or three titles before his current contract expires with the Heat, how many people will still question his decision to ask for a little help from his friends?

Let's just wait a little longer before we attempt to pass judgement over LeBron's choice of team.

James could have had his own team had he signed with another club where he'd be the unquestioned leader.

But would he have the same type of success that he seems to be on his way toward in Miami?

When he was the man in Cleveland, it didn't exactly work out. Now, he's going another route in an effort to win a championship.

It's not fair to blame him for wanting to win a ring in the quickest manner possible in an effort to establish a real legacy.

That's exactly what we've been calling for him to do.