Where'd You Go LeBron?

Oh LeBron, where on Earth did you go?

I want to like you, I want to love you, but you’re making it oh so hard for me.

Yes, the Dallas Mavericks won the NBA Championship and should certainly be given the credit for that. But you’re fooling yourself if you believe that’s the biggest story in these finals. The fall of the Miami Heat, and more importantly the epic collapse of the self-appointed Chosen One will be what are forever remembered.

So I’ll fuel the fire because to be honest, I don’t want to talk about the Mavs. They’re a fantastic team led by the best European to ever play in the NBA and deserve the title. While it’s easy to root against the Heat, it seems pretty damn hard to root against the Mavs. They all seem like nice guys, the kind of guys you want to date your sister (excluding Stevenson, although he quickly became my favorite I’m A Thug For No Reason And Plan On Showing It player).

So let’s talk LeBron. A player who even the haters have to admit has more raw potential than any player in the league right now. A player who has been scrutinized or praised more than any ever to play in the Association. A player who if he wanted it, could be the best ever.

But there in lies the problem, maybe LeBron doesn’t want it.

It’s an idea that fans can’t understand. Why would anybody with that much ability not constantly push themselves to be the best ever? We can’t figure it out because if we had that ability, we would do everything to be the best. As fans, we want to see players live up to their potential because we want to be able to say we saw the best player of all time. It’s why we want Tiger to win so badly or Pujols to continue to hit such unreal numbers. We’re selfish and we can’t ever understand that athletes may not want it like fans do.

Maybe LeBron is perfectly fine with his life. He enjoys his million dollar paychecks, his lush Miami house and cars and doesn’t have the desire to be one of the best ever. We figured out he isn’t Jordan, but now we might be figuring out he isn’t Kobe, Bird, Magic or Duncan either. Oh, add Dirk to that list too.



I do believe LeBron will win a title, but when he does will he show any serious emotion? He didn’t last night after a loss; instead he just insulted everyone less wealthy as him. A good friend of mine always complains when he sees LeBron get hype with the crowd or act tough with an opponent because he thinks it’s an act. He feels LeBron thinks: “oh man MJ would act tough here so I should too.” He wants to be liked so he puts on an act that he wants this title so bad, when in reality he may not.

He showed in Cleveland how easily he could stop caring about a team. It was readily apparent to anyone watching that he was not involved in that game against Boston and was ready to leave the city. But I think the difference in this series was he was legitimately frightened by the stage. He was caught up in a never-ending game of Hot Potato and couldn’t get the ball out of his hands quick enough. So what exactly happened?

Well I’m not ruling out that Rashard Lewis was banging his girlfriend, but I’m more leaning towards the chewing out he received from DWade in Game 3. LeBron has never been coached in his life. He did anything he wanted in high school and then basically ran the team in Cleveland. Spoelstra hasn’t shown the dominance needed so James continued to do as he pleased. Then suddenly the Finals came and James figured out how different it really was. Wade had been there before and knew how flip the switch to play Finals ball. Unfortunately, James didn’t so Wade simply ripped him apart on national television for a solid eight seconds. I think this really shook James because now he was playing for himself and the fear of letting Wade down. Now everything he did was in fear that Wade might get mad at him, so instead of trying to play and help out Wade, he completely subdued himself and became the ultimate passive player. He did nothing to prove himself as the best, while Wade continued to show he would do anything to win.

LeBron ended the speculation of him and MJ, an argument I was trying to fuel for his career. But I think it’s important what everybody said at the beginning of the season: “The Heat need one season to get it together, and then they’ll be the best.” We all knew it in July, but then we fell into the trap in February when they’re we’re playing so well. We thought well maybe they can do this their first year, maybe they are this good.

They need help. They could use a physical player to protect Bosh as well as more consistent point. A healthy Haslem will help as well as a hopefully better Mike Miller. The team will improve, but unfortunately LeBron’s reputation will not.

Unfortunately for James he’s starting to inch closer to the list of Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Dominque Williams, Karl Malone and Elgin Baylor and further away from the list of Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Bill Russell and Magic Johnson.

Shaq to Celtics? And NBA Schedule

The Big Diesel will be planting his overweight self in some new paint this year after a disappointing spell in Cleveland. ESPN is reporting he will sign with the Boston Celtics. The former NBA MVP is nothing special on the offensive side of the ball anymore, averaging 12 points and 6.7 rebounds, but can still be used as a big man there to rough up some guards and protect the paint. I personally think this is a smart signing by the Celtics because they need a big man after losing Perkins for over half the season with a knee injury. Don't expect Shaq to get much more than 20 points a game and I'd be surprised if he even averaged that high of points next season, but it's filling a need for the Celtics and isn't a terrible signing.



In more interesting news, a couple of the really interesting games were released today and shockingly, the Heat are involved in the NBA opener. It's not a bad game: Heat vs. Celtics. Some may say the Heat should open in Cleveland for great ratings, but I think that is a horrible idea for 2 reasons: 1) there will obviously be some type of violence and 2) it would be a terrible game after the opening 30 seconds. The Heat vs the reigning Eastern Conference Champion Boston Celtics will be a great match up.


Once again, the presents on Christmas Day will suck compared to the beautiful schedule of NBA games. We start with the Bulls vs. Knicks, Celtics vs. Magic, Heat vs. Lakers (shocking I know), Best team in the world (Nuggets) vs Thunder, and we finish with the Blazers vs. the Warriors.

The season doesn't start until October 26 so we unfortunately have a while to wait but I'm counting down the days.

Bold Prediction? The Heat don't win the NBA Championship, let alone the Eastern Conference title. Lakers make it 3 in a row.

Macho Man LeBron James

I came across this video the other night and couldn't help but laugh my ass off. Not only do the conversations follow exactly the shit LBJ is going through, it is really fucking funny.

What the Hell is David Stern Wearing?

David Stern fined Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert $100,000 for his letter to Cleveland fans that he posted on the team's website after LeBron James announced he was signing with Miami. The letter was pretty hilarious and I'll share excerpts below the video. I really wish I had the power to just tell people they had to give me $100,000 whenever I wanted. Life would be so much easier and more fun. I envision a scenario where I would spend the money like the kid did in Blank Check. That water slide was sick.

Here are some of the better parts from Dan Gilbert's letter to Cleveland fans:

As you now know, our former hero, who grew up in the very region that he deserted this evening, is no longer a Cleveland Cavalier.

This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his “decision” unlike anything ever “witnessed” in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment.

Clearly, this is bitterly disappointing to all of us.

[...]

You simply don’t deserve this kind of cowardly betrayal.

You have given so much and deserve so much more.

In the meantime, I want to make one statement to you tonight:

“I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE”

You can take it to the bank.

If you thought we were motivated before tonight to bring the hardware to Cleveland, I can tell you that this shameful display of selfishness and betrayal by one of our very own has shifted our “motivation” to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels.

[...]

The self-declared former “King” will be taking the “curse” with him down south. And until he does “right” by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.

[...]

I PROMISE you that our energy, focus, capital, knowledge and experience will be directed at one thing and one thing only:

DELIVERING YOU the championship you have long deserved and is long overdue….

Was the CAPS really necessary? If Gilbert really thinks the Cavs will win a championship before LeBron does he is delusional. A starting 5 of Mo Williams, Anthony Parker, Jamario Moon, Antawn Jamison and Anderson Varejao is laughable.

Dream Team

Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh announced today that they will both sign with the Miami Heat. This is great news for Miami as they have a legitimate chance to win multiple championships if they can just add a few pieces around them. Of course, they are still waiting to hear where Lebron James signs when he makes his decision at 9pm EST tomorrow night on ESPN. Wade and Bosh said they are willing to take pay cuts to play with Lebron in Miami but they did not know the specifics of their deals.

The Heat only have 4 players currently signed to their roster (Wade, Bosh, Chalmers, Beasley) and desperately need to add a small forward and center. The Miami Herald listed players such as Mike Miller, Josh Howard, Richard Jefferson, Kyle Korver, Rasual Butler and Matt Barnes as small forward targets while Brendan Haywood would be the top center target. If Lebron signs with the Heat they will have very little money to work and likely won't be able to sign any of those names but a trio of Lebron, Wade and Bosh surrounded by anything would be nasty.

Party in the City Where the Heat is On

It is being reported that Lebron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade will sign with the Miami Heat when free agency starts on Thursday. This news comes a few days after it was reported that Lebron and Bosh to Chicago was a "done deal". I don't believe anything with Lebron news until it actually happens so take this news with a grain of salt but I have been predicting Lebron to the Heat all along. The Heat will have to move Beasley and his laziness if they want to free up enough cap space to sign the 3 but that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

P.S. Hey Blog Dylan, I listened to the podcast...specifically the part where you called me out about predicting Lebron to the Heat because you picked the Bulls...how's that karma treating you Riiiiccckkkyyy?

Source

Geneva Convention of Basketball

Dwayne Wade came out today and said he has talked to Lebron and Joe Johnson about meeting up to discuss their pending free agency. Now first thing that came to my mind was "who the fuck invited Joe Johnson?", but then secondly I thought, damn that's awesome. After Dwayne came out to mention this, Chris Bosh, who I think can be a better addition than Lebron to many teams, said he would also join. This is a great idea because just the idea of 3 superstars like that signing to one team is enough to make me get a semi-chubby (only the thought of Carmelo can give me a full chubby). So my hope is that all these guys are gonna go meet somewhere, roll like 25 blunts of the best kush they can find, and blaze it all up, most likely playing NBA 2k10, and talk about where they're going next year. Please invite me Dwayne.

This also got me thinking of what other celebrity hang out seshs would be the best.


Baseball: I'd love a game of The Show with Jeter and Manny, especially cause I'd beat Jeter's ass with the Sox. You know Jeter's gonna bring some hotties and you know Manny's gonna bring some weed. Could it be any better?


Football: 2 came to my mind immediately and they both played in the NFC Championship game last year. Drew Brees cause he's bringing some fine New Orleans poontang and Allen cause he isn't scared to fuck someone up in the club when they say something bad about that fine New Orleans poontang (also, watch this because Jared Allen is a hard-ass).


Golf: Tiger and John Daly. It needs no explanation.

Brown Flushed Down the Can

What can Mike "Brown" do for you? Well, that's the question NBA teams will be asking this off-season now that the Cavaliers fired him. Brown spent the last 5 season in Cleveland and compiled a 272-138 record. His .663 winning percentage is the highest in team history. I guess it didn't hurt that he had the best player in the league on his team the entire time.


The first question I asked myself when I saw this news was "How does this affect where Lebron will sign?/Do they want Calipari?". Maybe the Cavs have Lebron's inside info and he really does want to play for Calipari. Last week the Bulls were rumored to be interested in Calipari as part of a package deal with Lebron. I'm not sure why Lebron wants to play for Calipari, he seems like more of a dominant recruiter than a dominant coach. He put together a 72-115 record as a head coach in the NBA, not exactly strong numbers. I guess Lebron knows it doesn't matter who coaches him because he runs the show anyways and maybe Calipari is fun to hang out with. Who knows. I have to imagine Lebron didn't like the thought of playing for Mike Brown for the rest of his career. He couldn't win a championship with him the past 5 years so what would make him think something would suddenly change.

(why does he always have such hilarious facial expressions?)

The second question I asked myself was "Who will hire Mike Brown?". The Hawks, Nets, Hornets, Bulls and Clippers are the other 5 teams searching for a coach. My guess is as good as yours where he will end up. Maybe Prokhorov will look at his winning % and throw a ridiculous amount of money at him to coach the Nets.

One last thing, why the hell do people keep going to Obama with sports questions? He's the President of the United States, not an analyst for ESPN. He recently said that Lebron would fit in well with the Chicago Bulls. No shit. You could add Lebron to any team in the NBA and he would fit in well. Just a great bit of wisdom from Barry.

New King, Same Place

Since we have already provided you with 2 of our predictions as to where Lebron will land this summer we have invited our good friend John SaWALL (yes, he is a Wizards fan) to provide his input. Below is what he e-mailed us.

The already perfect fit: Cleveland Cavaliers. As we all know, the 2010 NBA season did not exactly have a storybook ending for Cleveland. While many take this as a sign that Bron is going to move on and try to cement his legacy elsewhere, I think this fact will actually nudge him into staying for a long, long time.

Michael Jordan. Kobe Bryant. God Shamgod (okay, maybe not.) Lebron James. Still, his name looks out of place in the midst of such basketball gods. The aforementioned gods-of-the-game all have one thing in common: winning, and winning a lot, for one city. Right or wrong, he has been compared with Kobe and Jordan since he was still in high school. He has been with the Cavs for 7 years, and has netted 1 NBA finals appearance, and ZERO NBA finals games won.


So, you think the greatest-hyped player in the history of the game is going to let his future-legend status get tarnished by trying to win his first title with another superstar - ala D Wade in Miami? I think not. Lebron is going for the kind of lifetime domincance as an early-career Shaq, not an over the hill Shaq that could only win a title with D Wade, a reality TV show, and a short career as a Miami-city police officer. While I'm sure he would appreciate a more suitable playoff-winabble roster around him (their best pickup since he's been there has been a trade for Antawn Jamison, who doesn't win), signing as a free agent in a city with an already prollific superstar such as Miami makes absolutely no sense. He is going to prove he can do it on his own, like all the great players that have come before him. Oh, and he's going to sign in Jordan's city without any titles to his name? Yeah right.

In the 7 years he's been in Cleveland, he has brought their downtown economy to record heights. He has given that city SOMETHING. Truly, he is the only shot that entire state has at anything great for a long, long time. It's his city. He's not done with Cleveland, and Cleveland is not done with him. Look for Lebron to sign a long term contract, eventually bring his city a few titles, some respect, and maybe a nice older gentleman for his mother.

Same King, New Place

So with the incredible bore the NBA playoffs have become this year, the biggest story in basketball is the pending free agency of Bron'bron. Before they got bounced by the now invincible Boston Celtics, I was quite positive Lebron would be returning to Cleveland. But after those performances? I simply feel he can't return, just don't see it happening. So, in my opinion, where will Bron end up? Well lets just say his PG next year will be a little bit better than lame ass Mo Williams.


Thats right, The King will be in the Windy city next year, playing along side one of the best PG's in the game right now. It's obvious Lebron is gonna go somewhere where he can get a max deal (sorry Washington) and that means either the Knicks, Nets, Heat, Bulls, Clippers, Kings, or Twolves. He'll be making a 5 year 95 million from any of those teams and a 6 year 125 million if he stays with the Cavs.

I'm picking the Bulls on a process of elimination, we'll start with the worst fits:
Twolves, Clippers, Kings: These teams simply don't work. Lebron says he wants to win and none of these teams even made a playoff birth last season. The Timberwolves are on my radar for a decent team in the future, but not any time soon. The Kings are a looking better with Tyreke running the point but are still a long way away from making a truly competitive team. And while the Clippers would be a lot of fun (Lebron and Kobe in the same city), they are a terrible franchise and Lebron would fit terribly with their best player (Baron Davis).

Its possible, but doubtful: The New Jersey Nets
The Nets are clearly on the up and coming. They have a great PG in Devon Harris, maybe the second best big man in the East with Brook Lopez (Dwight in first), and the number 3 pick in the draft. Oh, also have some ABSURDLY rich owner who probably wipes his ass with 100 dollar bills. Prokhorov still gives the Nets are great opportunity in the coming years, but unfortunately it won't be with Lebron.

Ok this might work: Miami Heat and New York Knicks
Theres a clear reason why the Miami Heat look appealing to Lebron: Dwayne Wade. One of the top 5 players in the league, DWade could easily be the piece to fit with Lebron to form a frightening dynasty. It also helps that he's in Miami. What 25 year old wouldn't want to live there? Unfortunately, I think Wade's style of play simply won't fit with Lebrons. Neither are great spot up shooters and both want the ball in their hands, making the plays. Both like to drive and kick, but neither are good enough shooters to be the "kick" part of the play.
The Knicks are a very interesting potential residence for Lebron. Lebron has openly said multiple times that he wants to be the first billionaire athlete and there is without a doubt no better place to do that than in New York. The Knicks have an incredibly storied past that no player wouldn't want to be a part of. If Lebron could bring the Knicks back to prominence and win a couple titles, there would be no dispute he would be the best player of all time.

The perfect fit: Chicago Bulls
Now before I get started I want to address what many people feel will be the main argument against the Bulls: Jordan's shadow. I respond to that by stating Jordan's time has come and gone. Yes, many still consider him the best player of all time, but our generation have come to accept the new era. And that new era is Lebron James. Now this is why I feel the Bulls will be such a good fit. Lebron wants to win and he wants to win now. But he also wants to win for a time to come. The Bulls are good, but most importantly, the Bulls are young. Their 2 young stars, Rose and Noah, are 21 and 25 respectively. That means both probably haven't even reached their prime yet. The Bulls have a head coach opening that a specific Jackson (Phil, if you didn't catch on) will probably be quite attracted to. If Lebron goes, I have a strong feeling Phil will go, which will give the possibility of one of the best dynasties of all time.

So thats that and in my eyes, Lebron will be a Bull next year. And I look forward to watching that team next year

Where Oh Where Will King James Go?

If you pay attention to sports at all you know that where Lebron James will sign is the number one story right now. Everyone wants to know where King James will sign and we have decided to each write a post about where we think he will end up.


I think Lebron James will sign with the Miami Heat. You heard it here. Lebron James will be playing with Dwayne Wade next fall in the great city of Miami. Lebron has to go to a team that can sign a max deal and teams that can sign a max contract deal right now are: Knicks (room for 2 max contracts), Nets (1 plus a solid player), Clippers, Bulls, Kings, Timberwolves, and Heat. The Heat have room to sign D-Wade to a max deal, plus someone else to a max deal, plus room to spare.

Before Cleveland got bounced from the playoffs I thought there was a good chance he would re-sign with the Cavs but now I think that chance is out the window. He has had 7 great seasons there but none have resulted in a championship. He has accomplished about as much as he could in the regular season so now all that is left is to win a title. It is time to move on. He always gets compared to Kobe and Michael but the only way to try and move ahead of them is to win championships. What is the best way to win a championship? Play with D-Wade.

Miami can sign D-Wade to a max deal. They can also sign Lebron to a max deal. They can even then afford to sign someone else to complete the puzzle. If they re-sign D-Wade and sign Lebron they will have Chalmers/Arroyo at PG, Wade at SG, Lebron at SF, Beasley at PF and Jermaine O'Neal at C. All they would need to do is add depth which they will have money to do. That is definitely a better team than Cleveland had (even a Cleveland team with Lebron), better than aging Boston, and better than Orlando. It immediately makes them the favorite to win the 2011 title.


Every great champion had another great player at his side to win the championships with him. Bird had Parrish, McHale, etc. Magic had Kareem. Michael had Pippen. Kobe had Shaq. Hell, Pierce, Garnett and Allen all needed each other to win one. Wade already has a championship but he wants more. Lebron needs him to win one.


As for the teams that can afford to sign Lebron to a max deal, let's look at them.

Knicks - Lebron knows that the Knicks might be a playoff team with him but not a contender. He has to convince Wade or Bosh to sign in New York with him to have a shot at the championship and that might be hard. Wade will be very hard to convince to leave but Bosh might be easier. Even so, it will be a new scene for everyone and who knows how that will play out

Nets - Even though we wrote about how awesome their new owner is, signing Lebron might make them a playoff team but not a contender next year. Lebron wants to win now and the Knicks can't sign 2 max deals. That takes them out

Clippers - Cursed. No one wants to sign with them.

Bulls - Possibly, although a Lebron D-Wade pairing is much more intimidating than a Lebron Rose pairing and Lebron knows that.

Kings - Lebron wants to stay in the east. He already has to hear enough comparisons with Kobe and being in the same league as him won't do anything to help that.

Timberwolves - Really? Any possibility he signs with them? Um, no. Ricky Rubio would rather play in Spain than in Minnesota. No chance Lebron wants to play there.