The LeBron James Thread

[BrianFifaFan]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

Sorry man, but when was Kobe a winner when Shaq left?
When he quit on the Lakers in game 7?
When he got spanked out of the 1st round by PHX?
WHen he went on every imaginable radio station crying
calling the owner a liar, bashing the GM, asking them to trade Bynum
asking them to trade him
Saying he'd rather play on Pluto?

See how winning changes perception even if it is far from the truth?
Im sorry but use somebody else to bash on LeBron with, but using Kobe as your example over and over makes your point look real bad.

If not for that trade that netted LA Gasol for freaking Kwame Brown the same thing would be happening in LA now.

I'm not saying those were great moments, be he stayed. He pulled power moves, just like Magic did in getting Paul Westphal fired. Didn't think I was old enough to remeber that, did ya? You're getting on me about my attitude of team over player. Fine. But I'm from the old school. It's special to wear the pinstripes, Laker Gold, play in the Garden, etc. I'll grant I like that players aren't slaves like they were. I'm a union type of guy. But the team is always the history. The legacy is to be upheld, or in in LBJ's case, to be built. I know Kobe had some bumps, but now he knows the value of being a Laker. He gets it. LBJ doesn't understand squat except selfishness. He didn't want to make the team better and build something. All of his statements ended up pointing to him. It's not anything personal. I've not made one comment about wishing him ill will. I just hope that he, at some point, gets it. We're just part of the big pic, not the pic. The Cavs will go on, the Heat will exist at some point without all three of them. Some rings will be won, or not. But the biggest opportunity he had to better his team and better the game passed him by last night. He had a choice, me or the team? He always spoke in one way, last night he went the other.... Sad....

[Cebby]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

Chicago wasn't a big market until JORDAN got there, LeBron could have done the same for Cleveland. Even Shaq said that he loved living in Cleveland and would retain a home there if he ever left.

This is horribly wrong.

[Illustrator76]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

First of all Chicago has alwaaaaays been a big market city. They just didnt have a history of winning before Jordan. Chicago is the 4th(if I'm not mistaked)city in the U.S. how is that not a huge market?

Nobody wants to play in Cleveland. Bosh left about 30 to 40 million dollars when he declined the S&T to play with the Cavs. And this was after all the reports that he was out for the biggest payday available.

But my point is, who even cared/wanted to go there before Jordan? No one! look at the New Orleans Saints, they have been terrible forever, but Drew Brees went there and won them a championship. It can happen. Maybe not right away, but it can happen, you just have to work hard and be patient. Two things LeBron has never really been known for.

[23]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

Gilbert bent over backwards for LeBron, Windy laid that out this morning. Gilbert spoiled him way too much and it came back to bite him in the ***.

And using Kobe as the example of professionalism is hilarious. Neither are professional, they just do it in extreme ways.



Bolding for truth.



I don't think he was taken by surprise, I think he just let his anger that was building since game 5/6 out in one night.

I gotcha.

by the way, I just think the ranting may cost him in the future... he didnt have to go full blast media with it.

[BaselineBakes]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

What about Duncan? He plays in small market San Antonio and he's got four rings. That's not a few. In the NBA, that's plenty of rings.

Of course, I said few and fair between. San Antonio did something great down there no doubt.

None of them failed. They just didn't reach the promised land. The funny thing about sports, only one team wins. I think that LeBron gets that part.

In the world of sports, not that I agree with it or not, but if you don't win it your a failure, you didn't get the job done. How would Lebron's "legacy" look then?

But he compromised himself to chase the ring, took the shortcut. He might win the prize, but history will put the big * on it. Either way, he loses.....

See I don't see why there would be an *, because he's on a great team now? All the Champions of the last 20 years had great teams.

Lakers - Pau Kobe Fish - Shaq - Magic Worthy Kareem
Celtics - KG Paul Ray
Pistons - Sheed Billups Hamilton
SA - Duncan Robinson Avery /Duncan Manu Parker
Chi - Jordan Pippen Rodman
Rockets - Hakeem Drexler (not sure who third fiddle was of top)
Pistons - Isiah Dumars Laimbeer

Did these players take hits for playing with great players? Im sorry but James Jamison Williams doesn't match up. Yea sure he got to the point of being able to team up with Bosh and Wade by taking a different route, but why blame him for taking it? If the oppurtunites there to make a great team now, you can't just leave it on the table.

He should've stayed the course. If he didn't win, that would suck, sure. But he'd know that he ws always true to his stated values.

Lebrons values have always been winning, loyalty came in second here yesterday.

Now it all seems like a show, a sham. The only identity he has to cling to now is that of a gun for hire. He'll never be the face of the Heat, he's finished in Cleveland. Michael will always be the Bulls, Magic and Kobe the Lakers, Bird the Celts. He blew it, plain and simple.

I don't know how you determine the legacy of a given team before they have even taken the court. They have atleast several years toghether now to build something new, something amazing. Too say now that he won't be remembered for winning titles in Miami but instead leaving a small market team behind to have the chance at winning now is slightly premature.

Whats stopping them from building a big brand, team legacy in Miami we'll remember this next decade as the Heat winning alot and Cleveland will be Lebrons early years, dude is only 25.

[TheWorldIsYours]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

Sorry man, but when was Kobe a winner when Shaq left?
When he quit on the Lakers in game 7?
When he got spanked out of the 1st round by PHX?
WHen he went on every imaginable radio station crying
calling the owner a liar, bashing the GM, asking them to trade Bynum
asking them to trade him
Saying he'd rather play on Pluto?

See how winning changes perception even if it is far from the truth?
Im sorry but use somebody else to bash on LeBron with, but using Kobe as your example over and over makes your point look real bad.

If not for that trade that netted LA Gasol for freaking Kwame Brown the same thing would be happening in LA now.

I find it funny that in Lebron James signs with Miami Heat thread, you decide to blast Kobe the whole entire time.

But anyways

When he quit on the Lakers in game 7?

That's kinda funny because I didnt see Kobe stop taking shots or stop trying to make plays. He played outstanding defense and he kept trying to win the whole game, I didnt see Kobe quit at all.

Lebron in game 5 was scared as hell, He would get iso's the entire 3rd and 4th quarter and he didnt even try to drive. He settled for terrible shots.

Maybe I actually respect Kobe for never leaving LA to get titles, same way I respect Jordan.

The main difference between these two is that when Kobe wanted out he had already tasted how it felt like to be champion(3 times). Kobe went through years of losing before he got back to the promise land. Yeah he wanted to be traded but that is because he thought LA wasnt doing anything to help him get back to the Finals.

The Cavalier's have done everything Lebron has told them to do for the past 5 years, and look at where they're at.

[OSUFan_88]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

I gotcha.

by the way, I just think the ranting may cost him in the future... he didnt have to go full blast media with it.

I fully believe that Gilbert will think that is money well spent.

[jmood88]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

Chicago wasn't a big market until JORDAN got there, LeBron could have done the same for Cleveland. Even Shaq said that he loved living in Cleveland and would retain a home there if he ever left.

So Chicago had a population explosion only after Michael Jordan got there?

[Kully]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

But my point is, who even cared/wanted to go there before Jordan? No one! look at the New Orleans Saints, they have been terrible forever, but Drew Brees went there and won them a championship. It can happen. Maybe not right away, but it can happen, you just have to work hard and be patient. Two things LeBron has never really been known for.

I'm not the biggest fan of the NFL, but didn't Brees join NO through free agency? The way people are talking on here they would want him to stay with the Chargers until they won. Not the best example...

[jmood88]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

But my point is, who even cared/wanted to go there before Jordan? No one! look at the New Orleans Saints, they have been terrible forever, but Drew Brees went there and won them a championship. It can happen. Maybe not right away, but it can happen, you just have to work hard and be patient. Two things LeBron has never really been known for.

Football and basketball are two completely different sports with two completely different playoff setups. The fact is, in the NBA, the same teams win all the time. The Cavs weren't going anywhere unless they managed to draw one of the big free agents to Cleveland, which clearly didn't happen.

[OSUFan_88]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

Was it posted? Who cares, needs to be posted again:

[da ThRONe]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

But my point is, who even cared/wanted to go there before Jordan? No one! look at the New Orleans Saints, they have been terrible forever, but Drew Brees went there and won them a championship. It can happen. Maybe not right away, but it can happen, you just have to work hard and be patient. Two things LeBron has never really been known for.

LOL dude your funny. Love the Saints reference though.

He was there 7 years. He was on his second contract.

The Cavs wasnt in position to win a title anytime soon. Every contender in the east got waaaay better other than Cleveland.

[Illustrator76]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

So Chicago had a population explosion only after Michael Jordan got there?

Dude I didn't mean that, I responded later that my point was that no one wanted to play there and their NBA merchandise sales didn't go through the until Jordan got there and started winning those rings. Man, people are just trying to debate/be smart about everything. I'm out of this thread.

LOL dude your funny. Love the Saints reference though.

He was there 7 years. He was on his second contract.

The Cavs wasnt in position to win a title anytime soon. Every contender in the east got waaaay better other than Cleveland.

Don't get what's so funny or what's so bad about the Saints reference. The Cavs resigned guys they shouldn't have at LeBrons request (Big Z, Sideshow Bob) so he is part at fault too. Again, I clarified what I meant. Like I said I'm out, too many people trying to be jokesters and just looking to argue.

[phenom1990]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

How do you know? He got his demands met before he had to look for a place to be traded.

The whole Shaq/Kobe thing leaves me thinking neither one wanted anyone in the same conversation of best player to be on their team unless they got hypnotized by Pimp Wade and his usual pimping ways.

[ehh]

Re: LeBron James Signs With Miami Heat

I was waiting for Woj's article, I knew it'd be entertaining as hell. He gets so crazy with this sorta stuff. This was actually a good article though and not over the top crap for no reason.

LMAO @ ...........

They ended up with that split-screen of the King’s jersey burned live on his infomercial, as this sad, lost robot sat in a leafy suburban gymnasium with children as props and the world watching, those empty eyes masking a lost, dazed LeBron James(notes).

Walton-esq.

Couldn't agree with this more...

“This whole idea that he makes his own decisions, that [bleep] went out the window with this,” one NBA executive said. “Someday, he’s going to look back at this and not believe that he let those kids at LRMR talk him into doing this. This idea that he’s his own man … Come on, he’s a follower. And he’s following all the way to Miami now.”