Monday, June 20, 2011

The Eagerness to Create the Next Jordan

By now, this LeBron drama has captured the attention of everybody in the sports world. SportsCenter now continually updates viewers on LeBron's latest tweet, and every consonant uttered from the King's mouth is dissected and elaborated to unfathomable levels. It's quite ridiculous given the fact that he hasn't been able to live up to anybody's expectations and has become sports' number one villain in a matter of seconds.

Did he handle "The Decision" in a professional manner? No.

And why are you talking about Cleveland so much? You could care less, Bron-Bron; let's be real. If you cared half as much as you talk, you would have let them know as soon as you knew you were going to South Beach, they needed to start rebuilding. Instead you left them to drown in Lake Erie for an entire season. I don't fault him for leaving, I fault him for the way he left.

Your celebration in Miami before you hit the practice facility? Really? We understand your approaching uncharted waters with a yacht, but let the win column talk, then your ring. And of course all of your off-court antics are noticeable.

We live in the 21st century bro; everybody has a smart phone and cameras follow you everywhere. Stop playing the victim role, you put it upon yourself to have all the attention you get. And it's not just you, Wade certainly aided you.

The problem with all those accusations is the level we as sports fans, writers and the media put him at was way too high to ever reach. We gave this Akron kid the nickname "The King" before he had ever hit layup lines. The media is so eager to forget the past and crown a superstar before it's been rightfully earned.


A perfect example was this year's postseason. Dirk at the same level or better than Larry Bird? Are you crazy? Why, because they both have white skin? Dirk, who is a proven talent just won his first championship, while Bird has three. And as much as fans hate these comparisons, when you compare the talent Bird played against to the competition Dirk dealt and is dealing with, clearly the French Lick phenom has the edge. I'm not at all taking away what Dirk did this postseason. It was incredible and made the playoffs one of the best in recent time. But the media has to relax.

LeBron is the same case. He is a complete package and I believe the most gifted player of the past decade, but you have to let him prove himself before you put your foot down on making him the next Jordan. Different eras, different competition and Jordan took over both the game and his off-court dealings before Nike went completely mainstream.

I'm still a LeBron fan, but he needs to shut up, for one. Two, he needs to figure out his situation in Miami quickly.

The Finals were not only abysmal for LeBron, but also the Heat. Instead of vacationing or heading off to Paris, the Heat should figure out each others' game. The Finals was a bunch of passing at the top of the key, late into the shot clock, followed by a contested 18-foot fade away jump shot. Really? That got you past Boston and Chicago? They failed to ride on the wave that pushed them through the East and should have looked at tape from late in the regular season.

Maybe they'll learn next season. I can guarantee one thing: there probably won't be a Beatle's concert type of celebration before the regular season (pending we have one).

Simone Mütherthies Carrie Underwood Rosario Dawson Tricia Helfer Elena Lyons

No comments:

Post a Comment