12/21/24
May 13, 2010
Final: Celtics 94, Cavaliers 85: Forget LeBron James. His season is done.
posted by BornIcon to basketball at 11:20 PM - 41 comments
If LeBron ends up in the DC area soon, he and Alex Ovechkin should have a beer and commiserate about how their number-one-the-whole-regular-season teams got KO'd from the playoffs well before they would've liked.
posted by boredom_08 at 05:21 AM on May 14, 2010
So, what are the odds that he's in a Knicks uniform next season? How about a Nets uniform? If that Russian oligarch guy backs up 40 dump trucks of cash onto LeBron's front yard, it could very likely happen.
posted by NoMich at 06:11 AM on May 14, 2010
It's becoming more and more obvious that Lebron's entitlement complex has affected his ability to see what's right in front of his nose: that all the skills in the world are not enough if you don't have the will to win it all.
posted by MW12 at 07:13 AM on May 14, 2010
I haven't heard much about the status of the Cavs' coaching staff in all the LeBron hubbub.
Wouldn't one of LeBron's options be to do like Magic Johnson and others have done and dictate the coaching part of the equation? Stay put in Cleveland and demand they get another guy in there to run the team.
One would think that should be a simple finger snap command.
Also, if LeBron wants to measure himself by the Jordan yardstick, he won't feel the need to be on a team with an elite center.
Jordan won his titles with Cartwright and Longley in the middle.
If LeBron is really smart, it won't matter first and foremost how much cash those dump trucks contain. It'll be what he does with the income. Hope he's been paying attention to the recent parade of high dollar NBA guys that have retired broke. Antoine Walker, Derrick Coleman, Kenny Anderson, etc. (and maybe Iverson is close to being in that bracket as well).
posted by beaverboard at 08:30 AM on May 14, 2010
My bet is that James will go to the Knicks. The allure of the biggest TV market and a storied franchise of (many) years past will be too much for him.
posted by rcade at 08:34 AM on May 14, 2010
As a Celtics fan, it pains me to have to write about LeBron instead of a pretty amazing series win, but everybody else is doing it, so why not? I can't believe the amount of time ESPN, et al devoted to talking about how LeBron sucked last night. Yes he had 9 turnovers and yes some of them were ugly. But the ugly ones were the result of him trying to be aggressive and do things himself, which was exactly what ESPN's halftime advice to him was1. Regardless, he had a triple double which included 19 rebounds. For a stretch from mid-second quarter to mid-third quarter I think he grabbed every available rebound. Rondo had 18 rebounds in Game 5 and damn near got promoted to Mount Olympus.
This crap about LeBron not being Jordan2 and how he's a slightly better Tracy McGrady is revisionist shit. People must remember a different Michael Jordan than I do. Because the guy I remember was a superstar when he came into the league, but didn't accomplish anything because he was saddled with a terrible supporting cast. Remember when Jordan was labeled a "ball hog"? Sound familiar? Check my math, but Jordan was 28, in his 6th season in the league, when he won his first title. And look at the description of that first championship season: "The Bulls entered the 198990 season as a team on the rise, with their core group of Jordan and young improving players like Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant, and under the guidance of new coach Phil Jackson."
I felt bad saying it last night, but I told my wife I hoped LeBron left Cleveland. Even if he goes to the Knicks and they spend the next decade beating on the Celtics. Not because I have anything against the city of Cleveland; in fact, I only feel bad because I'd like to see the city win something. But I want him to leave because I don't want to ever see Anderson Varejao on my TV in spring ever again. And the cold, inhuman, unfeeling part of me that gets pissed when incompetents succeed would very much like to see Mike Brown doing something else with his time. Like I said as soon as the game ended, Brown was my choice for series MVP.
James' has, as far as I can tell, acted like an entitled punk his whole career
How have you told that? All I remember was the non-handshakes last year. This year he went around to every Celtic, hugged them and said something to them and all I could think was, "It looks like he doesn't care. Jordan would not have done that. Jordan would have been pissed." So he can't win. The media wants him to be a God and 75% of the reason the media wants Gods is so they can tear them down and reveal them to be mortal. They guy went for 27-19-10 while his team (other than Mo Williams in the first half) watched with their thumbs up their asses. And yet all you can find on TV is how he didn't do enough. He went for 27-19-10 with what appears to be an injured elbow. Now he's getting crushed by the immortal Jamal Mashburn for not having a mid-range game like Kobe (he also lacks the rebounding game of Wilt, Jamal) and for not being aggressive enough when he gets double-teamed3. Maybe he's not aggressive enough against double-teams because he knows he can't pass to half his stone-handed teammates so double-teams are just the prelude to a triple-team: when the Cavs made their last-gasp run, at one point I think all 5 Celtics were surrounding LeBron under the basket. How many quintuple teams did you face in your career, Jamal?
1. ESPN's halftime also featured Jamal Mashburn's description of the crew's reaction to Tony Allen's first-half dunk: "We gave him the snake face like someone pooted in the green room." Stay classy, ESPN! I also wonder what Stu Scott's "snake face" looks like: whenever someone mentions a one-eyed snake, I get nervous.
2. The 6pm Sportscenter led with "Is this a legacy game for LeBron?" Dear shitheads: it's bad enough when you devote hours to telling us how an active player is one of the greatest of all-time. Now you're going to pre-determine if an upcoming game is going to be one that affects a player's legacy before we know what the legacy is? Die in a fire.
3. Mash assured us that he'd faced "many double-teams in my career". One assumes that referred to post-game groupies. The only time I remember him being truly effective in the pros was when I was so good at NBA Live 95 in college that I was forced to use his terrible Mavs team, who led the league in underachievers.
posted by yerfatma at 08:54 AM on May 14, 2010
My bet is Lebron isn't even aware that the Knicks are a storied franchise - cuz with him the history of basketball began with the Jordan era. But I agree that's where he'll go. The bright lights and celebrity factor are just too much for his ego to ignore. Forget basketball - King James wants to be King of New York. But he's still going to lose.
posted by MW12 at 08:55 AM on May 14, 2010
How about a Nets uniform? If that Russian oligarch guy backs up 40 dump trucks of cash onto LeBron's front yard, it could very likely happen.
You're nuts. Why would he go to a team that almost tied the record for the most losses in NBA history? There isn't enough money on the planet (if there weren't maximum salary considerations) to convince him to join that team. If the Nets added Bosh and Wade as well, maybe he'd consider it.
He's spent the last 6 years carrying a pathetic franchise on his back. Why would he go and do that again?
posted by grum@work at 09:03 AM on May 14, 2010
It was in the NBA's best interest for the Cavaliers to lose, so that LeBron James would be more likely to go to a bigger market. We know that NBA referees frequently receive instructions from the league and other entities on how to make calls. James was called for traveling last night. In the NBA!
Of course the Cavs hardly needed the help; they weren't a very good team. Shaq may still be dominant but he didn't play nearly enough, and without consistency at center it's hard for anyone to get a game going.
That, and the Celtics are just a better team, with more legitimate weapons (though none with quite the game-breaking potential of LBJ). Plus Kevin Garnett, shatterer of worlds, is still on an astral plane, even when he only averages 18 ppg.
Also the Cavs had Antawn Jamison, who was a Wizard for long enough to have caught the Loser bug and carried it to Cleveland (as if they needed to be any more losery). Teams beware: trades with the Wizards can saddle you with these Typhoid Marys of Loserdom. Better hire a doctor.
posted by Hugh Janus at 09:07 AM on May 14, 2010
I can't tell what parts of that are sarcasm and which aren't, so apologies in advance if I misunderstood.
Shaq may still be dominant but he didn't play nearly enough
I have no idea if Shaq can still dominate a game, but he played too much. My favorite "Let's try this for no good reason" rotation in last night's game had Shaq and Z on the floor at the same time. Why? What possible reason could there be? Who are they going to guard? Double-team Perk, maybe? I have to agree with Simmons on this:
"I'd like to thank Brown for playing Shaq 112 minutes in the first five games -- he slows the Cavs down, clogs the middle for LeBron, stifles their movement offensively and gives the older Celtics an improbable speed advantage . . . Cleveland went 21-4 when Shaq didn't play. But seriously, keep playing him! . . . The Cavs' biggest advantage in this series was/is athleticism. The Celtics can't match up with Hickson-LeBron-Moon-West-Williams or Hickson-LeBron-Varejao-Williams-West. In a Feb. 25 game in Boston, Hickson-LeBron/Moon-Varejao-West-Williams turned a 78-77 deficit into a 101-86 rout in just eight minutes. They blew the Celtics off the court . . . keep playing Shaq! Twenty-one points in Game 5! Looked great!"
One of the reasons I never want to see Varejao in a meaningful game against the Celtics (beyond the fact he's always pulling a face and crying for a call like he's a superstar) is the Celtics can't really control him. And where the hell was Delonte West last night?
posted by yerfatma at 09:45 AM on May 14, 2010
IMO the Cav's biggest problems were coaching and desire. Doc Rivers just plain out coached them. You have a team which is a proven winner during the season and as soon as the playoffs begin they fall apart due to lousy execution and a bad game plan. They played right into the Celtics defensive strategy. Lost their athletic advantage, and let the older slower Celtics beat them with just experience, and a good game plan.
I really don't know what everybody expected from LJ. I saw the same thing as others, at one point LJ was near the top of the key surrounded by four Celtics and the rest of the team was just standing there. No ball movement.
If LJ stays in Cleveland a lot of others will need to go, new supporting cast will need to arrive and a change in coaches. They need a proven post season winning coach.
posted by Atheist at 11:02 AM on May 14, 2010
Celtics have a lot of older guys who have really bought into winning as a team. If they are healthy they have a shot against anyone.
They'll see the biggest anyone next round in Dwight Howard who may be more valuable to his team than any other player in the league (MVP).
posted by cixelsyd at 12:11 PM on May 14, 2010
I can't help thinking.....how many teams would have beat Cleveland in this series?.....Answer- only the teams that remain in the playoffs. Rivers' admonision to his team about not "playing hero basketball- we can't do that" and letting Cleveland sink/swim with that methodology I believe is the key to his and Celtics success. It was Rivers two years ago that said since this was a playoff-bound team, he was not going to run them into the ground during the regular season. He realized that when they beat LA and had no gas left in the tank. Thankfully, that was for the Championship. And his methodology, along with the remaining teams, are what can beat LeBron centered hero basketball.
posted by Leominster at 12:23 PM on May 14, 2010
You're nuts.
Yes I am. I'm also feeling just a tad cynical today. I mean, if he's going to sign with a crappy franchise for $50 kajillion per season, why wouldn't he sign with a slightly more crappy franchise for $60 kajillion per season? Yeah I know, dumb, but as I said, I'm feeling a tad cynical today.
posted by NoMich at 12:30 PM on May 14, 2010
I'd like to think he's so media-savvy he's going to take a Mid-Level Exemption to sign with the Celtics next year to get the title and kill the "not a winner" talk.
posted by yerfatma at 12:58 PM on May 14, 2010
I mean, if he's going to sign with a crappy franchise for $50 kajillion per season, why wouldn't he sign with a slightly more crappy franchise for $60 kajillion per season?
How much a year is it worth to James, in terms of marketing and merchandising, to play on the Knicks versus the Nets (or my own Dallas Mavericks)? It has to be worth $10 kajillion.
posted by rcade at 01:44 PM on May 14, 2010
For all his talent and whatever, I don't get how Lebron has earned the King nickname yet. IIRC (and I may not be) Jordan wasn't his Airness until he won a championship. Give nicknames for sure but royalty? Must. Be. Earned.
posted by billsaysthis at 02:12 PM on May 14, 2010
You're nuts.
Yes I am.
Oh yeah, well I...what? You didn't retort when I rudely insulted you?
But..but what do I do now?
posted by grum@work at 02:18 PM on May 14, 2010
From everything reported it's a done deal LeBron to the Knicks next year. On a merchandising level it makes a lot of sense.
Nets then get the consolation prize, Dwayne Wade (a proven winner) paired with Chris Bosh and a couple of high draft choices.
If Knicks fans want to see a winner they'll need seats at the Prudential Center.
posted by cixelsyd at 02:23 PM on May 14, 2010
Can someone explain to me exactly how New York is going to make LeBron that much more money from a merchandising standpoint? What, is he going to do local commercials that will dwarf his existing national endorsements? Will his jersey inching up from #2 to #1 in leaguewide sales create that much of a windfall? Will his contract include ownership of the MSG Network? I feel as though this concept is taken for granted but rarely explored with any specificity.
If LeBron is going to flee Cleveland, he'd find a much better supporting cast waiting in Chitown.
Celtics have looked awesome lately, thanks to the evolution of Rondo and the the healthy return of Garnett. Bring on the Magic.
posted by Venicemenace at 02:57 PM on May 14, 2010
The New York TV market has 7.5 million households, compared to 1.5 million in Cleveland-Akron. Not only will his games be watched more locally and he'll be able to make more on local marketing, but he'll have more opportunities by virtue of being in the center of the media universe. It's the same logic that sent Shaq to LA.
James would have a better supporting cast in many other cities, so if that's the dealbreaker he won't be a Knick. But I have trouble believing he wants to go to Chicago and play in Jordan's shadow. How many titles would he have to win there to start the conversation about being the team's best-ever player?
posted by rcade at 03:06 PM on May 14, 2010
I guess I'm skeptical that LeBron James is being robbed of opportunities right now to do whatever it is he might want to do. How hard is it to get on a plane to NY or LA? Hell, with a max contract or an indulgent owner he can take a private jet.
LeBron is going to make max money and rack up massive endorsements no matter where he plays -- and I would hasten to mention that the most highly endorsed athletes do not necessarily play in NY/LA. Tiger, Peyton, LeBron, Dale Earnhardt all make tons of endorsement cash and none are based in the center of the media universe. (Tiger isn't the moneymaker he once was, so you can sub the surprisingly lucrative endorsement deals of Phil Mickelson in there if you want.)
It doesn't matter what uniform he is wearing, LeBron ALREADY plays in Jordan's shadow. His best chance to carve out a legacy of success is to get himself on a team with a great point guard and a great big man. I don't think the Knicks are able to offer that.
posted by Venicemenace at 03:15 PM on May 14, 2010
I don't know if anybody else would feel the same way but I admire players like Shaq who played for the Magic helped them become winners, goes to LA and gets a title there, then leaves for Miami and gets them a title (with help of course). Jordan paid his dues in Chicago and got the players and coach and proved he could win there. Kobe proved he could win with Shaq and then stuck it out until he could get back on top with a new team in LA. So for me I don't see that LJ moving to another franchise that needs a few additional components is much of a change then staying in Cleveland which is his hometown, and forcing the team to change coaches (the biggest problem) and add a component or two to put them into real contention, I mean they are close.
I remember a couple of NFL great players like Jr. Seau, Randy Moss went to the Patriots basically for the elusive championship they couldn't win with other teams figuring with the Pats they were a shoe in. They are undefeated going into the superbowl and are basically waiting for the ring when it turns out the Giants don't cooperate with the plan. I just don't see how chasing teams is really how a great player gets his ring. Hell Luke Walton has a championship.
Maybe if getting a championship is the most important thing in the world to Lebron James, he should just offer his services to the Lakers at a discount rate for a season to get the championship ring. Of course that would not be the same a winning a championship for his home town of Cleveland. Even if it takes 7 or 8 seasons the victory will be that much sweeter if he is the corner stone and they just add what they needed. An over the hill and injured Shaq was not what they should have gone for.
My guess is Cleveland, in order to keep James around, springs big time for a proven winning coach, (Phil Jackson), and one of the top available free agents to help James and he stays put, wins a title in Cleveland and goes on to greatness.
One more small point, I don't believe winning a championship is a pre requisite for greatness in a team sport. Don't get me wrong, it is very important but when Luke Walton has a championship and Lebron James does not, it is hardly a measuring stick of how great a player either is.
posted by Atheist at 03:45 PM on May 14, 2010
... the most highly endorsed athletes do not necessarily play in NY/LA. Tiger, Peyton, LeBron, Dale Earnhardt all make tons of endorsement cash and none are based in the center of the media universe.
Point taken, but golfers and NASCAR drivers are poor examples because they don't play team sports tied to a specific city.
Although James is successful and highly marketed in Cleveland, at some point it would be natural for him to wonder why he's spending half his year there when he could be in New York, L.A., Boston or Chicago.
From a playing standpoint, if he's willing to play for a team that would be LeBron and a bunch of spares, why do it in Cleveland when New York is starved for a winner? Bringing another title to the Knicks -- the first since 1973 -- would make his legend in ways that bringing several to Cleveland would never do.
posted by rcade at 03:59 PM on May 14, 2010
Not only will his games be watched more locally and he'll be able to make more on local marketing, but he'll have more opportunities by virtue of being in the center of the media universe. It's the same logic that sent Shaq to LA.
He already is the center of the media universe while playing in Cleveland. I don't see how moving to a different city will garner him much more attention. Hell turn on ESPN right now and you can't possibly miss hearing about LeBron James. True he'll be in a bigger local market but even people who don't follow basketball know who he is.
No matter where he goes he'll make millions in salary and millions more in endorsement deals. I still don't see what New York brings to the table beyond being a more interesting city than Cleveland.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 04:12 PM on May 14, 2010
@rcade: golfers and NASCAR drivers are poor examples because they don't play team sports tied to a specific city
I disagree -- if there's so much money to be made in local endorsements, why do these sports figures make more in total endorsements than many team-based athletes that can take advantage of local income? If being marketed as a local star in NY/LA is such a gold mine, why don't NY/LA athletes routinely top the lists of top endorsement earners? I think the fact that golfers and NASCAR drivers, not to mention players in random cities like Orlando (Howard) and OK City (Durant), make as much or more in endorsements than the stars of big-city teams demonstrates that local endorsements are not going to be a major factor here. LeBron already outearns Kobe and Jeter combined in endorsement income.
@athiest: when Luke Walton has a championship and Lebron James does not, it is hardly a measuring stick of how great a player either is
Yes, there are plenty of mediocre role players with rings. The point is that LeBron has been constantly compared to Jordan and the rest of the NBA's all-time greats. If he wants to earn his place in that pantheon, he has to carry his team to a ring. End of discussion.
I pretty much agree with Bill Simmons' take on the Knicks vs. Bulls decision:
If he cares about winning titles (multiple) and reaching his full potential as a player, he only has one move: the Chicago Bulls. That's always been the play...Deep down, I think LeBron (and just as important, the people around him) realizes that he needs one more kick-ass player to make his life easier...
Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah proved that they were warriors these past two springs. They could be his Pippen/Grant or McHale/DJ. Easily. Rose could take the creative load off LeBron on nights that he doesn't have it. Rose could come through a few times in the clutch. Rose could hide some of LeBron's faults. It's the single smartest basketball move for LeBron James. It's the Michael Corleone move.
Of course, it doesn't have the same upside as New York: Biggest market, great fans, most meaning. If LeBron saved professional basketball in New York and brought Knicks fans their first title since 1973? That's the best available accomplishment in team sports right now. Name me a better one. You can't. Biggest star, biggest city. But it wouldn't be a smart basketball move. He could only bring one good free agent with him, and from what we've seen, would LeBron + (Chris Bosh, Carlos Boozer, Joe Johnson or Amar'e Stoudemire) combined with what the Knicks already have (not much) translate to anything more than what just happened in Cleveland? Please. That's the Sonny Corleone Move.
posted by Venicemenace at 04:15 PM on May 14, 2010
I disagree -- if there's so much money to be made in local endorsements, why do these sports figures make more in total endorsements than many team-based athletes that can take advantage of local income?
Apples and oranges. We're talking about whether a team sport athlete could make more money in a giant market like New York than he could in a much smaller market like Cleveland.
Clearly, there's some additional money James could make in New York since the TV audience is five times as large as Cleveland. The book on James in Cleveland is becoming his inability to win a title there. How much does his national marketability suffer from that perception the longer he stays? Can he re-up in Cleveland for another stint and not suffer a diminished rep?
James earned $28 million in endorsements in 2009, according to SI. Five other NBA players earned at least $10 million: Shaq, Kevin Garnett, Kobe, Dwayne Wade and Dwight Howard. In that group, only James and Howard have not won a title, and Howard's still in the running this year.
Looking at SI's list, it's weird how marketable golfers are. Jim Furyk earns more in endorsements than Kobe Bryant?
posted by rcade at 04:55 PM on May 14, 2010
it's weird how marketable golfers are
Everybody talks about football, but not a lot of people over the age of 20 go out and play it. There's a lot more money to be made in selling golf clubs than shoulder pads.
posted by yerfatma at 05:31 PM on May 14, 2010
Let's face it, LeBron James is truly a gifted basketball player who can, on occasion, carry any team to a win. With even a slightly better than mediocre supporting cast, he can take his team to the best record in the NBA for a full season. The one thing he can not do -- YET -- is to lead a team through the playoffs. On the court he is a superb performer who can lead by example, but when the defenses are stacked against him and he is forced to play in a manner that is not comfortable for him nor his teammates, he cannot carry the team. Does he need better teammates? Of course he does, but finding them and signing them is not easy. LeBron's chief failure is not on the court but in the locker room. I read some reports today that characterized the Cleveland locker room as one in which the players were laughing and carrying on in a light-hearted manner. Now being loose is a good thing, but a game of this magnitude needs to be approached with a mind that is focused. This is the main difference between a 25-year-old LeBron James and, for example, an older Kevin Garnett. KG will not let his teammates forget the business at hand. Eventually LeBron will "get it" and his teams will be fearsome, but it will take some time. Perhaps he learned something last night.
One other thing about last night's game is worthy of mention. I've followed the Celtics for more years than many of you have been alive. I've seen them in the playoffs many times when the best player on the court did not wear green. Against the Lakers with Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, and Kobe Bryant; against Philadelphia and Wilt Chamberlain; against Cincinnati and Oscar Robertson; and now against Cleveland and LeBron James. The outcome is usually the same, team wins, great player loses. The formula has not changed. You make the great one work for everything he gets, and you force him to play defense against one of your good players. At the same time, you make sure you have the star's supporting cast adequately defended. It doesn't matter that the superstar goes off for big numbers if nobody else on the team can get very far into double figures. ESPN probably hates it, but a solid team will take down the superstar more often than not.
posted by Howard_T at 05:46 PM on May 14, 2010
If he cares about winning titles (multiple) and reaching his full potential as a player, he only has one move: the Chicago Bulls. That's always been the play...Deep down, I think LeBron (and just as important, the people around him) realizes that he needs one more kick-ass player to make his life easier...
Except how many championships does he have to win in Chicago just to become the best player in franchise history. I think that sort of legacy matters to him. And, I don't see how he wants to further comparisons to Jordan.
As far as Cleveland goes, I don't think he loves Cleveland like many people love their hometowns. He doesn't care about any of the local teams. He has no shame about wearing a Yankees hat to a Cleveland game. I just don't see a lot of love there. Even though the Knicks have a great market, they are really bad at what they do. They seem to be unable to put a competitive basketball team together.
posted by bperk at 05:58 PM on May 14, 2010
Just a note about Jim Furyk earning more in endorsements that Kobe Bryant. Kobe's endorsement money suffered a huge setback when he was accused of sexual assault. I think he was dropped by numerous sponsers including McDonalds. Even when the charges were dropped his infidelity cost him quite a bit. Just like Tiger Woods is finding out now.
posted by Atheist at 06:02 PM on May 14, 2010
"Eventually LeBron will "get it" and his teams will be fearsome, but it will take some time. Perhaps he learned something last night."
I totally agree but shouldn't he have learned this lesson last year. Is he slow?
I do not fault him for his performance or stats but as you say, I didn't see that fire and desire you see in Kevin Garnet or Kobe Bryant. Those guys play loose and are great all year but in the playoffs they get to a whole new level of intensity. They also they also have been known to get in the faces of their teammates when they do not do their part.
posted by Atheist at 06:10 PM on May 14, 2010
The Celtics were a far, FAR better team in this series. Outside of Williams, the Cavs were poor overall. I couldn't believe how they quit in the final couple minutes. They didn't even try to foul. I saw a team that wanted the game and series to end so they didn't have to play anymore. What a total letdown, because I thought the series would actually be competitive.
The Knicks would be a great fit for LeBron. He can run up huge regular season totals, get even more publicity, and still won't have to worry about any of that pesky winning crap.
posted by dyams at 08:02 PM on May 14, 2010
Yeah, I just don't think LeBron has the sand to get through the playoffs to get his ring.
posted by irunfromclones at 08:22 PM on May 14, 2010
Except how many championships does he have to win in Chicago just to become the best player in franchise history.
23
posted by Hugh Janus at 10:05 PM on May 14, 2010
Maybe LeBron had something else on his mind?
posted by grum@work at 11:22 PM on May 14, 2010
posted by grum@work at 06:43 AM on May 15, 2010
Whether that's the reason or it's something else, there has to be an explanation for the way Cleveland played the final two games. Boston beating them is not the point. What is the point is the attitude the team had on the court. There was a problem, because the team appeared to just not care.
posted by dyams at 08:37 AM on May 15, 2010
posted by MW12 at 09:45 AM on May 15, 2010
Except how many championships does he have to win in Chicago New York just to become the best player in franchise history.
Four to get past any of the Willis Reed/Bill Bradley era players. I added an extra because he'll have to win at least one of them playing through a serious injury to earn the title in three.
posted by billsaysthis at 12:03 PM on May 15, 2010
I feel bad for the Cleveland fans, but I can't help laughing a little. James' has, as far as I can tell, acted like an entitled punk his whole career. I think when he had that little pissing match about Starbury shoes it cemented in my mind "What a dipshit". So having him be the next Karl Malone brings me a little schadenfreude.