Lebron James (Los Angeles Lakers)

[exhawg]

I blame the front office for not getting him players to win with. No way the Cavs can win playoffs with a one man team.

You're smoking crack. The front office did the best they could to put talent around The Traitor. He never once did anything to help them bring good players in. In fact the only mistake that I can see that the front office made was sticking with Mike Brown for as long as they did. A better coach could have won a title with last years roster assuming Traitor doesn't quit like he did.

 

[Jake]

Wow, I think I see a few names of "free enterprisers" in this massive "fuck LeBron" fest. It's a business, he's a businessman. Are you telling me that if your company, or another company, made you what you consider to be a better deal in another city you wouldn't take it? Better still, what if your company had the right to trade you, or if your profession kept you from taking the best offer straight out of school?

I've never been a Cavs fan so I'm just watching from the sidelines, but I think some of the angst is the way he made "the decision" rather than the decision itself.

He has every right to do what is best for him, but he could've delivered the news to people who have been his supporters for years in a far less self-serving manner. He came off as a smaller man because of the narcissistic nature of the spectacle.

 

[ORD_Buckeye]

The best summation of this whole thing and why James, regardless of how many rings he pulls in Miami, will never be among the greatest of all time was the writer who stated, "Jordan didn't want to play with Isiah, Magic or Ewing; he wanted to beat them, dominate them and humiliate them."

 

[OSU_D/]

rule #1 of investing. Don't put all your eggs in one basket (especially if that basket has 2 years left on his deal when you buy the team)

^^^ dead on.

Gund knew what might happen and sold at the right time to maximize his profit.

Again, to me this is not about LBJ's decision (I would have gone elsewhere, too) but rather how he did it.

 

[jlb1705]

I'm grateful for Dan Gilbert's response. What it lacks in tact and civility it makes up for in passion and a personal investment in the relationship between his business and its customers.

I've always admired Mark Cuban and the way he sticks up for his franchise and its fans' interests. I'm glad Dan Gilbert is displaying those same qualities.

As I prepared myself for the inevitable disappointment of last night, I was ready to write off the NBA entirely. The league has a big problem - from a collective bargaining standpoint and a cultural standpoint.

Coming into this offseason, everybody knew Chris Bosh would not return to Toronto. From a geographical and cultural standpoint, Toronto isn't an attractive place to play for a young, American-born basketball player. What David Stern has hopefully found out is that his league is full of Torontos. Think of it this way: Pick an NBA city. If that city is more likely to be shouted out in a '70s rock song than in a 2000s rap song, that city is not going to be able to sign free agents or pull off sign-and-trades. Toronto, Cleveland, Detroit, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Portland, Memphis, Oklahoma City, Indianapolis, etc. There's no room for them in the NBA.

The new reality of the NBA is that players are making lifestyle choices, and the power centers in the NBA are structured around nightlife and celebrity culture. In this version of the NBA, the only cities that can host viable teams are going to be Boston, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, Washington, Atlanta, Orlando, Miami, New Orleans, Houston, Dallas, Phoenix, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

Honestly, I wouldn't blame Dan Gilbert if he realized this and wanted to take his franchise to Las Vegas before somebody else does. Art Modell moved his franchise because he was a horrible businessman and ran his franchise and the operation of Municipal Stadium into the ground. If Dan Gilbert and the Cavs left it would simply be a reaction to the changing culture of the NBA and the atom bomb dropped on his investment by LeBron James. I hope it doesn't come to that, but I'd understand.

At least for now though, Gilbert's letter has inspired a certain level of bloodlust and a desire for vengeance within me. I don't think he could ever live up to the promise to win a championship in Cleveland be for LeBron receives his elsewhere, but I'm glad he has the stones to say it and I won't hold any ill will toward him if it doesn't come to pass. I'll just be happy if he does his damnedest to try. It'd be more than us fans got out of LeBron James in this year's playoffs.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

I've never been a Cavs fan so I'm just watching from the sidelines, but I think some of the angst is the way he made "the decision" rather than the decision itself.

I think that's just a convenient excuse to swear and call him names.

 

[Jake]

I'm grateful for Dan Gilbert's response. What it lacks in tact and civility it makes up for in passion and a personal investment in the relationship between his business and its customers.

And that's why he did it. Listening to the idiot talking heads today saying he "lost his mind", etc., shows they missed the point. He was appealing to the people who have been paying customers to his team. He said what many of them were feeling at a time when they wanted to hear it. That's a smart businessman. What people in other cities, or media guys, think about it is irrelevant.

 

[buckeyesin07]

The best summation of this whole thing and why James, regardless of how many rings he pulls in Miami, will never be among the greatest of all time was the writer who stated, "Jordan didn't want to play with Isiah, Magic or Ewing; he wanted to beat them, dominate them and humiliate them."

Bingo. At the end of the day, even mentioning LBJ in the same sentence as Michael Jordan is a joke. From the NBA titles, to the ability to make clutch shots, to the killer instinct, to the desire to win, to not trying to get in the spotlight at every chance he gets, MJ and LBJ are nothing alike.

 

[buckeyefool]

I'm grateful for Dan Gilbert's response. What it lacks in tact and civility it makes up for in passion and a personal investment in the relationship between his business and its customers.

Ted Nelson, Customer: But why do they put a guarantee on the box?

Tommy: Because they know all they sold ya was a guaranteed piece of shit. That's all it is, isn't it? Hey, if you want me to take a dump in a box and mark it guaranteed, I will. I got spare time. But for now, for your customer's sake, for your daughter's sake, ya might wanna think about buying a quality product from me.

 

[ORD_Buckeye]

At least for now though, Gilbert's letter has inspired a certain level of bloodlust and a desire for vengeance within me. I don't think he could ever live up to the promise to win a championship in Cleveland be for LeBron receives his elsewhere, but I'm glad he has the stones to say it and I won't hold any ill will toward him if it doesn't come to pass. I'll just be happy if he does his damnedest to try. It'd be more than us fans got out of LeBron James in this year's playoffs.

I've never given two shits about the NBA and am not a Cleveland fan in any sport. That being said, this whole thing kind of has me intrigued in the sense that it might lead to a rooting interest--not really for anyone, just against the Heat.

 

[buckeyefool]

And that's why he did it. Listening to the idiot talking heads today saying he "lost his mind", etc., shows they missed the point. He was appealing to the people who have been paying customers to his team. He said what many of them were feeling at a time when they wanted to hear it. That's a smart businessman. What people in other cities, or media guys, think about it is irrelevant.

But what others players think is. Why do I want to go play for a guy who is going to go off the deep end if and try and throw me under the bus at any given moment?

 

[Jake]

I think that's just a convenient excuse to swear and call him names.

For some, sure, but I thought it was piss poor way to make the announcement and I don't give a shit about the Cavs. He did everything he could to draw attention to himself full well knowing Clevelanders were going to be mad as hell about it. He didn't even tell the Cavs management his decision. They had to watch it on TV like everyone else. There was a better way to handle it.

 

[crazybuckfan40]

link?

Do I need one...Does Dan Gilbert seem like a man that knew LBJ was leaving? No. And there have been reports from people that know.

wasn't that on like Wednesay...what is another day.

It was a spectacle no matter how he did it.
[sarcasm]I'm sure Wade and Bosh are just [censored]ed that James is coming to town and that he tried to "one up them". [/sarcasm]

He cares about winning a ring...not being the best. And to be the best you have to win a ring anyway. He left for what he felt was a better shot at a ring.


It's all about championships. Are KG and Ray Allen loser's for leaving their teams to join up in Boston?

We can agree to disagree...He took the easy way out to get a ring, and smeared Cleveland in the process. He may have his reasons, but we have our reasons to be upset and pissed, and everything people thought he stood for has changed. He will always be viewed differently for this.

And I for one love Dan Gilbert, because who cares about PR, and what a basketball owner should do. Stand alone on a island and stick up for what you believe, instead of hiding it. He is not the jilted lover, he is the betrayed, honest and loyal man, that got dicked by a man that has a tatoo that says loyalty. Talk about a hypocrite.

 

[Bucklion]

But what others players think is. Why do I want to go play for a guy who is going to go off the deep end if and try and throw me under the bus at any given moment?

That was the point Drennan and the Cleveland media (some of them anyway) were making last night, and I think it is a good one.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

For some, sure, but I thought it was piss poor way to make the announcement and I don't give a shit about the Cavs. He did everything he could to draw attention to himself full well knowing Clevelanders were going to be mad as hell about it. He didn't even tell the Cavs management his decision. They had to watch it on TV like everyone else. There was a better way to handle it.

I think it was a crappy way to reveal it if you're a Cleveland fan.....but some people are taking that angle too far.