You're dreaming if you think Cleveland will win 55 games without LeBron (1993-1994). Or if he's played with a prime HOFer.
Hardly. Putting 3 stars on the same team is not necessarily a recipe for success. All of these guys are used to being "the man" on their old teams, but now they're going to have to share the spotlight. Could be a bumpy road.
You're right and he won 4 of those with the Lakers. My brain can't compute all the Laker hate and this new emergent embryonic Miami hate is really throwing me for a loop. I know I will just hate on Stern. Let me find a picture.... Ah, yes....much better! The hate is flowing smoothly and in one direction again.
The Cavs are probably going to dump players and rebuild. So, no the Cavs will not win 55 games. You do have a good point though. The Bulls did have a good team but they would have never won another championship if Jordon didn't come back. You can talk LeBron all you want but even if he signs in Miami and they do win a championship LeBron will not being taking the final shots in the 7the game. If they are going to win probably Wade will make the clutch shots. Even with thre superstars on the same team I doubt they win 6 championships. I think we had this discussion once before about Lebron and Jordon and neither of us are going to change our mind. Jordon is the best NBA player ever and LeBron isn't even the best in his ERA and I have a feeling once Kobe retires someone else will come along. LeBron isn't even close to being in the top 10 players of all time.
In all seriousness, David Stern is front and center to blame for the NBA's "Individuals over Teams" attitude. Really, where's the marketing focus? "LEBRON JAMES and the Cavs". "KOBE BRYANT and the Lakers". "YAO MING and the Rockets". Etc. Don't think that's not by design. As I said earlier in this thread... this whole debacle is just another nail in the coffin for my NBA fandom.
If this happens it's time to go to a hard cap. . . otherwise it'd be Miami parades for the next 10 years. The NBA would lose a ton of fans. Who the hell wants to watch "band aid" Wade, "primadonna" James and "Lapdog" Bosh play the rest of the NBA like the Globetrotters vs the Generals? It'd be like watching a static screen. Nothing would change except who they beat the hell out of that year.
Oh I disagree. There are incredible numbers of bootlicking bandwaggoning sheep out there who LOVE to root for an overwhelming favorite, it makes them feel like they are part of a winner, when in reality it's just a reflection of coat-tail riding by losers who have no ability to emotionally vest themselves in.... anything (read: 95% of Laker and Celtic Fans).
Am I the only who thinks this rumor got out in order to increase interest and viewership for his special tonight? Everyone was just assuming he'll go to Cleveland, so they drop strong hints that he's going to Miami. I still think he ends up in Cleveland, but who knows. I won't watch 'The Decision' on principle either way. This is just stupid, can't wait for it to be over.
Ringless Jordan proved nothing, which is what my comparison was about (1988). For an under-25 career James is leading everyone dude. They're not winning 55 even if Varejao (the second best player after James) plays 48 minutes a game without tiring. You've made a list of silly assumptions. The first that you somehow "know" who will take which clutch shots. Next that you know over the course of the next 5 years that this same person will take the clutch shots or play at LeBron's level, which is unlikely. Wade is old and Bosh is a Big who doesn't have the same creating abilities. Your problem is you're too emotionally invested in your era, and you should look for actual objective ways to measure players.
I agree and I won't be watching it tonight. Probably check on here later tonight to see where LeBron ended up.
This trio probably would be really good for NBA revenue. Marquis teams like the Shaq/Kobe Lakers and Jordan Bulls always help the NBA rise above the noise level of other sports. The more hype, the more draw. You get fans to show up for a Heat game in the Nets arena on Tuesday, and there's a better chance some will come back for a Spurs game on Friday. If Oden does fully recover, though, and blossoms into the once-in-a-generation center he was supposed to be, it'd make for some epic Finals rivalries. It'd be like watching the 2001 Lakers against the 1997 Bulls. Awesome. I look around the league and I don't see another team as currently constructed that has any hope of down the line of beating a LeBron/Wade/Bosh triumvirate.
I love how you started out your post with...."Let's not forget". Then you go onto name 3 people none of us have heard of!
Do you not follow college basketball? De'Sean Butler was the premier player on the West Virginia team who made it to the Final 4, and had been around a while considering he was a junior. Varnado is the NCAA All-Time Career Leader in Blocked Shots breaking Shaq's SEC record and Adonal Foyle's NCAA records. Pittman was a senior and played at Texas, which is a big enough program and had enough other good players come through in the last few years that if you didn't notice him, it's kind of surprising. If you've never heard of these players...then what exactly is it that you do in March?
Sorry, I get so wrapped up in the NBA, I don't follow college much anymore. Back in the day I was a college hoop junkie! But once all these players started going straight from HS or 1 and done, I kinda lost interest.
Lebron planning south beach party... http://www.usmagazine.com/moviestvmusic/news/lebron-james-plans-weekend-party-in-south-beach-201087 I actually enjoyed what Bill Simmons had to say in his column regarding "The LeBrachelor" situation: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/100708 If he chooses anyone other than Cleveland tonight, he'll jump near the top of my most hated athletes. He was already climbing the ranks due to not shaking hands after getting eliminated, trying to confiscate the video of him getting dunked on, referring to himelf as King James, those stupid pregame egotistical shows he makes his teammates endure before every game, all while accomplishing dick in the post-season, and then having this retarded 1-hour special to announce who he's signing with.
I think it would be hilarious if he used a one-hour show to crush Cleveland's dreams. I have no ill will towards Cleveland, per se, I just think that would be really funny. Sure, I'm a bad person. I'm comfortable with that.
I agree... the only thing that would be better is if he chooses Miami and then spends the rest of the hour bashing on the other cities (especially NY). LeBron: I choose.... Miami. Jim Gray: LeBron, why miami? LeBron: Why? The other cities suck. Gray: All of them? LeBron: Yes. Gray: Cleveland? LeBron: Shit hole. Yeah, I grew up in Akron, but I'm bored. You can only bowl or play mini golf so many times. Gray: Chicago? LeBron: I might as well change my name to Jordan and beg to use his number because there's no way I'm ever getting out of his shadow in that city. Gray: New Jersey? LeBron: Could have happened, but Jay-Z wouldn't let me sleep with Beyonce, and that was a deal breaker for me. Gray: New York? LeBron: Would you want to play for that team? The curse of Isiah Thomas still lurks in those halls. Stoudemire is going to tear an ACL next season. Just watch!
