Lebron James (Los Angeles Lakers)

[WolverineMike]

players just don't stay on the same teams anymore like they did 20 years ago. He'll never be Jordan anyway, so it doesn't really matter.



side note, I loved the shot of Hibbert being the only Pacer going to the locker room immediately after the game last night while the rest of his team was out shaking hands. Guess he had some more gay slurs and media bashing to get on paper before the interviews........

 

[matcar]

compared to years in the league

Ok, I'm not sure how relevant that is, but regardless-comparisons to Jordan are absurd to me until LeBron wins more, but his trajectory is theoretically fine should he win again this year.

Unlike most folks here, I like LeBron and think he is a truly special player, but I honestly cannot imagine him being favorably compared to Jordan at the end of his career. I'm sure LeBron wants to someday be considered one of the all time greats, and maybe he will, but I really doubt he will ever be at Jordan's level. Jordan was a killer, an all-time great "killer" who coupled that incredible drive with an equal amount of talent. That's not LeBron.

 

[Bucky32]

Ok, I'm not sure how relevant that is, but regardless-comparisons to Jordan are absurd to me until LeBron wins more, but his trajectory is theoretically fine should he win again this year.

Unlike most folks here, I like LeBron and think he is a truly special player, but I honestly cannot imagine him being favorably compared to Jordan at the end of his career. I'm sure LeBron wants to someday be considered one of the all time greats, and maybe he will, but I really doubt he will ever be at Jordan's level. Jordan was a killer, an all-time great "killer" who coupled that incredible drive with an equal amount of talent. That's not LeBron.

Nor do I think anyone will ever compare to Jordan. We've placed him on such a pedestal (and maybe rightfully so) that it's a pitfall to try and stack up next to him now.

 

[BayBuck]

players just don't stay on the same teams anymore like they did 20 years ago. He'll never be Jordan anyway, so it doesn't really matter.
.

Wha?? The NBA is one league that (theoretically) encourages players to stay with their home teams for those bigger contracts, and many of the best/most accomplished NBA stars stick with a single team: Kobe, Duncan, Durant, Westbrook, Wade, Nowitzki, Parker, Pierce, Rondo... Even allowing for one team move includes almost every other star today, so I would agree that yes, another move by LeBron would negatively impact his legacy.

 

[WolverineMike]

with the exception of Parker, Duncan, and Kobe, I guarantee you none of those players you listed will be on their respective teams when the retire. The NBA pushes the names on the back of the jersey, not the name on the front.


Sure, LeBron moving around will affect his legacy. But how remains to be seen. If he goes elsewhere and wins more titles, they will say he wins titles wherever he goes and Cleveland never put the pieces around him. If he moves around and doesn't win another title, he'll go down as a guy who needed to go to Miami and team up with another all time great in Wade, but could never win on his own.


That's how I see it. Of course, if he wins a title this year, I'll be more impressed than last years title, because Miami isn't even in the Finals without the play of LeBron this post season.

 

[exhawg]

Wha?? The NBA is one league that (theoretically) encourages players to stay with their home teams for those bigger contracts, and many of the best/most accomplished NBA stars stick with a single team: Kobe, Duncan, Durant, Westbrook, Wade, Nowitzki, Parker, Pierce, Rondo... Even allowing for one team move includes almost every other star today, so I would agree that yes, another move by LeBron would negatively impact his legacy.

This may very well be his last chance to win another title with the Heat with how Wade is aging and Bosh is a big vagina. If none the "Big 3" opt out of their contracts after next season the Heat will likely have to trade one unless they want to pay $50 mil in luxury tax.

The Heat won't be building through the draft any time soon and once the "Big 3" aren't the "Big 3" anymore they aren't going to get the old players in to sign minimum contracts to try to win a title.

If all 3 of the "Big 3" opt out of their contracts the Heat would probably try to sign Lebron and let the other 2 walk, but that would be stupid for Lebron. My money is that he will go someplace with some good young players and cap space other than Cleveland.

 

[BayBuck]

with the exception of Parker, Duncan, and Kobe ... , I guarantee you none of those players you listed will be on their respective teams when the retire.

Pierce, Nowitzki, Wade? We're talking about every other title-winning superstar in the league right here (plus maybe Garnett who has made one move in his 30s). I could easily see Durant, Rose, Griffin, Hibbert, Irving(?), etc etc doing the same thing. LeBron has already moved once, in his prime, and is gearing up for a 2nd team switch still in his prime. He's an all-time great player, but he's a whore.

 

[Buckeneye]

players just don't stay on the same teams anymore like they did 20 years ago. He'll never be Jordan anyway, so it doesn't really matter.



side note, I loved the shot of Hibbert being the only Pacer going to the locker room immediately after the game last night while the rest of his team was out shaking hands. Guess he had some more gay slurs and media bashing to get on paper before the interviews........

How is that any different from what Lebitch has done? Sounds like him during the finals against Dallas.

 

[MaxBuck]

LeBron has already moved once, in his prime, and is gearing up for a 2nd team switch still in his prime. He's an all-time great player, but he's a whore.

I'm flummoxed by the notion that someone who changes employers should be termed a "whore" for doing so.

Normal Americans change jobs all the time. James deserves no criticism for doing so. The manner in which he did, though, is fair game.

 

[OH10]

I'm flummoxed by the notion that someone who changes employers should be termed a "whore" for doing so.

Normal Americans change jobs all the time. James deserves no criticism for doing so. The manner in which he did, though, is fair game.

Sure, but he kind of forfeits his right to claim he's at all fan-oriented. Choosing Miami fans over Cleveland fans? He's a me-first athlete that craves being viewed otherwise. But he doesn't care about the fans.

And that's fine as long as we recognize that fact.

 

[BayBuck]

I'm flummoxed by the notion that someone who changes employers should be termed a "whore" for doing so.

Normal Americans change jobs all the time. James deserves no criticism for doing so. The manner in which he did, though, is fair game.

Depending on their motivations for doing so, people in all walks of life could be considered whores for making big career changes--even "Normal Americans". People do in fact whore themselves out for money and fame and power all the time, and that often affects how people view them. And that's the whole point, how LeBron has done it and how he will do it again. He's not a whore for changing teams: he's a whore for being LeBron changing teams.

 

[billmac91]

I'm flummoxed by the notion that someone who changes employers should be termed a "whore" for doing so.

Normal Americans change jobs all the time. James deserves no criticism for doing so. The manner in which he did, though, is fair game.

He has that right, but it impacts his legacy. He will forever be seen as a guy who cut corners and "stacked the deck" instead of taking it upon himself to lead a team.

I hope he doesn't come back to Cleveland, but at some point, if he cares about his legacy, he needs to prove he can lead a team and be a competitor. Teaming up with 2 other top 10 players in the game at the time, was the least competitive thing he could have done from a historical viewpoint in the game of basketball. You just don't do that...and he still gets hammered within basketball circles for that. All time greats view him as a great kid, but he still hasn't proven he has the balls to lead a team like Jordan did.

Even in this series with the Pacers, Wade had to speak up to reign LeBron in. Wade and Bosh have sacrificed a ton of their games and don't reflect elite players anymore, but when the decision was made by LeBron to join them, they were. That is still viewed as a "pussy-move" in a lot of circles. Jumping team to team looking for the easiest path to the title makes him a "whore" in a traditional basketball sense. Elite players haven't done that outside of Shaq who wanted to remain in L.A. Even when Kobe was threatening to leave L.A. for Chicago, it was to go to Chicago when they literally had the worst record in basketball and analysts debated whether they could beat Duke. Kobe wanted to leave LA to go to that franchise to put them on his back and get them back to the big stage. The mentality between LeBron and other superstars (past and present) is just so different. Those guys wanted to prove they were the best by beating the best, whereas LeBron decided to make it easy as possible. He's the one who said at his presser, "this is going to be easy".

Maybe LeBron remains in Miami past Wade and Bosh's prime and continues to lead that franchise...I don't know. What I do know, is winning titles the way he has, by stacking the deck in an already weak conference....his accomplishments are just diminished. He isn't doing anything extraordinary. He should be winning titles when you rig the league as such.

 

[Buckeneye]

I'm flummoxed by the notion that someone who changes employers should be termed a "whore" for doing so.

Normal Americans change jobs all the time. James deserves no criticism for doing so. The manner in which he did, though, is fair game.

Pretending that being a professional athlete is the same as any other job
Is a fools notion.

However if we must compare - what Lebitch did to Cleveland would be like being
The CEO of AMD - and not giving them a 2 week notice that you've decided to take the same position at Intel. (That's completely underselling it obviously)

 

[NFBuck]

Most fucked up thing in all of this? He hasn't been eaten by a shark yet. Seriously, fuck Florida and its adjacent waters.

 

[Bleed S & G]

If he comes back to Cleveland, I become a Heat fan.