OT - Lebron James

[evolver115]

Wow, people are REALLY getting worked up about this. It's the biggest decision of the biggest year in free agency in the NBA in decades. I really don't understand all the anger. The show drew the highest rating ESPN has ever had for a news show - the highest ever! If people are criticizing them for making too much out of this, the public sure did watch. So clearly the coverage matched public interest.

Lebron James is one of TONS of athletes who have gone to new teams in every sport. And while I wish he'd stayed in Cleveland, I think his motives are actually fairly respectable - he wants to win a title and he wants to play with guys who are very close friends to him. Cleveland had 7 years and couldn't provide that. I think the ownership/mgmt. tried very hard, but old Shaq, Mo Williams, Jamison, etc. and none of it worked. I think Cleveland messed this up by not getting Amare Stoudamire season before last. If they did, I think they'd have won one of the last two Finals and he'd still be in Cleveland now.

I just don't get all the anger and vitriol over it.

It doesn't seem to me that people are questioning his motives of leaving Cleveland, at least in this thread. I see more people questioning why James and ESPN felt it was necessary to deliver the message in the way they did.

It was poorly put together, and seemed very ad hoc and shot from the hip, not to mention... it was a very unorthodox method of getting the message out. It smacks of self-importance and a publicity stunt.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

Wow, people are REALLY getting worked up about this. It's the biggest decision of the biggest year in free agency in the NBA in decades. I really don't understand all the anger. The show drew the highest rating ESPN has ever had for a news show - the highest ever! If people are criticizing them for making too much out of this, the public sure did watch. So clearly the coverage matched public interest.

Lebron James is one of TONS of athletes who have gone to new teams in every sport. And while I wish he'd stayed in Cleveland, I think his motives are actually fairly respectable - he wants to win a title and he wants to play with guys who are very close friends to him. Cleveland had 7 years and couldn't provide that. I think the ownership/mgmt. tried very hard, but old Shaq, Mo Williams, Jamison, etc. and none of it worked. I think Cleveland messed this up by not getting Amare Stoudamire season before last. If they did, I think they'd have won one of the last two Finals and he'd still be in Cleveland now.

I just don't get all the anger and vitriol over it.

Ohio aside, i dont think theres as much anger about him going to a new team as there is about the way he did it all ... The whole marketing machine element is what does it for me and is reason #73 I dont watch basketball ... style over substance wins again

 

[postmaster]

Ohio aside, i dont think theres as much anger about him going to a new team as there is about the way he did it all ... The whole marketing machine element is what does it for me and is reason #73 I dont watch basketball ... style over substance wins again

I would guess ESPN likely begged for this and had it set up.
It might just be me, but I feel that ESPN is killing the whole "Team First" mentality in this country.

It seems college kids are going for the highlight real plays so they might get covered instead of the consistant fundamental play.
Even the pro players seem to be doing this.
I honestly think this is a byproduct of ESPN promoting players.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

I would guess ESPN likely begged for this and had it set up.It might just be me, but I feel that ESPN is killing the whole "Team First" mentality in this country.

It seems college kids are going for the highlight real plays so they might get covered instead of the consistant fundamental play.
Even the pro players seem to be doing this.
I honestly think this is a byproduct of ESPN promoting players.

from what i heard it was Lebrons "camp" that approached espn about "the decision"

I agree with your take and after reading your post and then agreeing with Honus' post that their was a demand for this announcement to be shown on live tv i go back to my post on the deep thought of the day - lol

"We get the stars we deserve, it seems."

 

[elocomotive]

I see more people questioning why James and ESPN felt it was necessary to deliver the message in the way they did.

Whether it was poorly done or not, ESPN got it's highest rating for a news show ever. Lebron James upped his profile and has been the center of the sports world for weeks.

Last I checked, ESPN is not a charity. I wished they covered hockey more and better, but hey, the public doesn't want it as much as the big 3. And the public clearly wanted this.

 

[elocomotive]

Ohio aside, i dont think theres as much anger about him going to a new team as there is about the way he did it all ... The whole marketing machine element is what does it for me and is reason #73 I dont watch basketball ... style over substance wins again

Its the offseason, is it not? What substance could they have?

Lebron was sitting in a gym talking to one reporter with some kids there. It's not like it was a gala event or a white party. I thought it was fairly understated aside from the fact that it was a TV event, which again, was the highest-rated ESPN news broadcast in their history.

I like hockey better, but my general feeling on a lot (not all) of hockey fans is that they have a superiority/inferiority complex about the sport. As I requested in the OP, this is probably not a good thread to post in if you hate the NBA.

 

[elocomotive]

It seems college kids are going for the highlight real plays so they might get covered instead of the consistant fundamental play.
Even the pro players seem to be doing this.
I honestly think this is a byproduct of ESPN promoting players.

Totally agree, which is why I find it odd that so many people are hating on Lebron here. He actually made a decision to play for a team he thought would help him win, even if it may diminish his own star in the eyes of some.

The guy spent two years dodging questions about this FA speculation and always said he was focused on winning with his team and not the future/where he might be. I think that is being lost in the "Special" report that is bothering people so much. For a self-promoting prick, he sure played it cool for a long time.

 

[Destroydacre]

By going to D. Wade's team? Analysts have been saying for weeks his ego was too big to go to "someone else's" team.

Seems to me winning is most important to him, not his ego, since he's happy to share the spotlight.

Don't kid yourself, the Heat is LeBron's team now. If (when IMO) the Heat fail in the playoffs, all fingers will point to LeBron, not Wade.

As I've said before, I can't believe people still watch the NBA it's such a garbage league. It's ruined the sport of basketball. At least college basketball still retains some semblance of the real thing, but the NBA's influence is even starting to trickle down into that a bit. But now it's even worse after this farce. I knew the ratings for this were going to be huge and it just goes to show how stupid the general population in the United States is. Pathetic. God I'm glad I quit wasting my time watching that crap years ago, even if I still have to hear about it all the time.

 

[elocomotive]

(And if you don't care, no need to slander Lebron or the NBA here. I know many of you dislike/loathe/detest the NBA.)

^^

 

[jstewismybastardson]

Its the offseason, is it not? What substance could they have?

Lebron was sitting in a gym talking to one reporter with some kids there. It's not like it was a gala event or a white party. I thought it was fairly understated aside from the fact that it was a TV event, which again, was the highest-rated ESPN news broadcast in their history.

I like hockey better, but my general feeling on a lot (not all) of hockey fans is that they have a superiority/inferiority complex about the sport. As I requested in the OP, this is probably not a good thread to post in if you hate the NBA.

in terms of the "decision" ... the substance Im looking for is "Lebron has signed with the Miami Heat" ... done ... no need for any form of production value, no matter how pitifully executed or supposedly understated it was. This is my opinion and I understand the demand to see this event on live tv existed as witnessed by the ratings

As i said in my first post in this thread ... I didnt read the start of the thread ... sorry if my negative opinion wasnt desired in this thread ... although i dont think i slandered Lebron in a legal sense (lol)

sure I dont like the NBA and that colours my opinion of this Lebron situation ... But Jordan never pulled this crud and his ego was off the charts ... I was just talking the other day with a co-worker that the NBA had me at one point, that I could give you the names of the entire potential first round of draft picks in a year ... but then the worst trade in NBA history happened

VANCOUVER for MEMPHIS

Ill gladly leave this thread now (lol)

 

[elocomotive]

As i said in my first post in this thread ... I didnt read the start of the thread ... sorry if my negative opinion wasnt desired in this thread ... although i dont think i slandered Lebron in a legal sense (lol)

Hahaha. No, not that at all. I just wanted any discussion to be about the issue at hand, not become a "I hate the NBAfest." I didn't think your post was in that vein.

On some level, I get why people don't like the "Special" itself - they see it as self-agrandizing and indulgent. But my question is what is being taken away? What is the actual "harm" here?

We have like 7 ESPN networks, VS., Universal sports, NFL network, local sports networks like Comcast, etc. etc. They have to put programming on and there isn't much happening in sports right now. I get what people don't like about it, but I don't see how it's rising to the level of any real harm and it's a legitimately huge news story that may deeply impact the NBA for the next decade. I guess that is where I divert from the average fan in this forum.

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

The entire Lebron James situation was an absolute joke. The Lebron James Network had a 1 hour show to tell the world that King James doesn't exist. Not that he ever did. Now Lebron is going to Miami to be Pippen for Wade. LMAO!!

 

[HonusWagner66]

Hahaha. No, not that at all. I just wanted any discussion to be about the issue at hand, not become a "I hate the NBAfest." I didn't think your post was in that vein.

On some level, I get why people don't like the "Special" itself - they see it as self-agrandizing and indulgent. But my question is what is being taken away? What is the actual "harm" here?

We have like 7 ESPN networks, VS., Universal sports, NFL network, local sports networks like Comcast, etc. etc. They have to put programming on and there isn't much happening in sports right now. I get what people don't like about it, but I don't see how it's rising to the level of any real harm and it's a legitimately huge news story that may deeply impact the NBA for the next decade. I guess that is where I divert from the average fan in this forum.

There is no harm. We sports fans just like to bitch about things. If LeBron had stayed in Cleveland, there would be a ton of fans saying he doesn't care about winning and is only staying for the money. It's just the way it is.

 

[elocomotive]

All the furor on here made me wonder how this thing came about. Here are the details.

On the plus side, I'm glad to hear this was not Lebron's idea, although it still doesn't matter that much to me.

On the down side, it's kinda irresponsible journalism on ESPN's part to not be in control of the questions that are asked. Although again, Lebron didn't r*pe anyone, he's just picking a team.

 

[elocomotive]

There is no harm. We sports fans just like to bitch about things. If LeBron had stayed in Cleveland, there would be a ton of fans saying he doesn't care about winning and is only staying for the money. It's just the way it is.

Good points.

 

[Darkstone42]

I'm with eloco. I neither liked nor disliked LeBron before this, and I neither like nor dislike him now. I feel no different about him because I'm pretty indifferent about him. And that's how I am with most professional athletes. Unless I meet them, my only connection with them is watching them play. Consequently, whatever LeBron does has no effect on me.

It was interesting to see where he'd go because it really has a profound impact on the shape of upcoming NBA seasons. I loosely followed the saga because of that. But where he went or how he announced it are of no real consequence.

As eloco said, him announcing his decision in the fashion he did isn't all that big of a deal. It was big-deal news and had a big-deal announcement. That's all there is to it. Sure it's a blow to Cleveland fans, but he didn't put down the city or shun the fans, he just said he was going to Miami. I honestly think the situation was way too sensitive for what it was, especially on the part of Cleveland's owner and the Cleveland media.

 

[elocomotive]

I'm with eloco...

I honestly think the situation was way too sensitive for what it was, especially on the part of Cleveland's owner and the Cleveland media.

There's my BFF! hahaha.

Yeah, Dan Gilbert's reaction sounded like a drunken fan who was two pitchers deep, not a responsible and professional owner.

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

How would you feel if your team just dropped in value by 75 to 100 million??

 

[elocomotive]

How would you feel if your team just dropped in value by 75 to 100 million??

How you feel and what you put in a press release are two different things.

He has every right to put pictures of Lebron James at the bottom of his toilets, on his dartboard, curse his name to the heavens, and tell his wife/friends/family he thinks the guy is a disloyal, immature, two-faced troll.

What he puts out there to the public is another matter.

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

Obviously he got carried away but, I really don't blame Gilbert for being pissed off. Every major professional sports team in Cleveland is in the toilet.