THE DECISION
July 8, 2010
Ok, NBA free agency is out of control at this point and we WILL get to that, but I need to touch on a few stories unrelated to basketball. I'll make it quick, I promise.
MLB
Bill Hall and Darnell McDonald. Sounds more like the guys who announced the Red Sox game than who is playing second base and right field for Boston. The Red Sox have not been bitten by the injury bug, they have been run down by his car and beaten with the injury bat.
Dustin Pedroia
Jacoby Ellsbury
Josh Beckett
Clay Bucholz
Jason Varitek
Jeremy Hermida
Hideki Okajima
Manny Delcarmen
The Sox are playing with NONE of these guys right now and will be without some of them for more than a month. If any MLB team was without 3 everyday guys, 2 starting pitchers and 2 bullpen staples, we would expect them to struggle….unfortunately the Sox are no different. There is a lot of baseball left, which for Boston could actually mean a lot more time to get hurt this season.
Meanwhile the Cincinnati Reds are having a resurgent season, leading the NL central at 47-36 and boasting the current National League HR leader, get ready….Joey Votto. Yup, Joey Votto has more homeruns than Albert Pujols, Ryan Howard and Adam Dunn.
WORLD CUP
Spain vs. Netherlands
The World Cup has been very good. That’s really all I can say because the level of play hasn’t been great, and the household names (Messi, Ronaldo, Kaka etc.) did not deliver on their names this time around. Spain’s defense has them in the final after they shut down a German team who had put up 8 goals in its previous 2 matches. It will be interesting to see if the Netherlands can overcome that.
We are keeping the soccer portion of the blog short today (I will dedicate a full post to why we don’t care about soccer enough in the US soon) because some guy in the NBA has changed the free agency game…
NBA
Ground zero. there is going to be some angry "old money" in CT tonight.
Lebron James.
That name is synonymous with great play, the NBA and arguably the best player in said NBA. After tonight, it may also be synonymous with arrogance, ego and traitor.
Lebron James will have his own ONE HOUR SPECIAL tonight on ESPN, to let the sporting world know where he will play basketball for the next 3-6 years. Yep, his people pitched this idea to ESPN and ESPN said yes. The event will be televised from the Boys and Girls club in Greenwich CT. with all proceeds of the broadcast going to the Boys and Girls club of America.
(Before you jump on the “Greenwich is close to NY" bandwagon, understand that ESPN studios is also in Connecticut and the Greenwich B&G club may be the biggest in the area. And, Carmelo Anthony is getting married in the area this weekend. Just saying)
So the question immediately following “What team will Lebron choose?” is whether making his choice in this fashion is ego-maniacal or savvy business? I’ve given my answer to several friends and I’ll restate it here.
Yes.
It is by all means an ego trip, and why shouldn’t it be? We have put Lebron James on a pedestal above proven NBA stars since he was a senior in high school (playing high school games on ESPN in prime time…first ever to do that). The media has been telling the world he is the next “greatest player ever” since he dropped 25 pts, 9 asts and 6 rebs on the Sacramento Kings the first time he ever stepped on an NBA floor. The Magic comparisons began. The Big O comparisons began. And of course the obligatory MJ comparisons began.
(Truth be told, he is closest to Oscar Robertson, but when a kid is the same size as Karl Malone and as fast as Allen Iverson…it’s hard to find a mold to fit him)
So over the course of 7 years, the media and the basketball world have anointed Lebron James “The King” of the NBA and repeatedly stated it’s just a matter of time before he is the best player who ever lived. Meanwhile this kid from Akron has additional plans, he wants to be one of the richest too.
Lebron has never been shy about his money making aspirations, stating he wants to become a billionaire and pulling in the endorsement offers as easily as he does alley oops. Warren Buffet and Jay-Z are just two self made million/billionaires James calls friends. By all counts he is doing it the right way, right?
As of 7/7/2010, wrong. Fans, writers, players and coaches alike are outraged that Lebron would make his free agent decision into a reality show of sorts. They say it’s arrogant and he should be more humble or low key.
I say WHY?
I totally understand the move coming off as arrogant because it is, but WHY should he do it differently? All the basketball world has talked about for the past 2 plus years is “What will Lebron do in 2010?” We’ve been reading articles from sports writers about this summer, since 2 summers ago. The New York Knicks destroyed their team and roster just for the chance to have a shot at maybe getting Lebron James. ESPN has created entire web pages dedicated to “Courting the King” along with recurring segments of the same name and even a "Lebron tracker" that updates you with a perceived free agent status. They pushed the WORLD CUP to the side to update us on what team was meeting with Lebron at the moment. But NOW Lebron James is considered arrogant by writers and fans because he acknowledges the status he has been given and decides to use it to further push his “brand”? NOW Lebron is wrong for cashing in on Lebron?
C'mon son, that’s just good business.
Why not cash in a bit on the hype your name and play created? Why not get paid off of the saturation of coverage that is going to be there whether you decide via press release or prime time TV? In a country where capitalism and hypocrisy know no limits, Lebron is the culmination of both. He has used the media in the same way they have used him, for monetary gain. The hypocrisy comes in when writers who have been trying to scoop his destination of choice for 2 years, now write stories about how arrogant he is to think it’s “all about him”.
IT IS all about Lebron! ESPN, "The worldwide leader" even dubbed this “The summer of Lebron”!
So it’s no wonder ESPN also picked up the hour long special and will not apologize for the ratings it receives.
Now, where will Mr. James play next year? That’s even more interesting if you ask me. The teams in play are Cleveland, New York, Chicago and Miami.
(I’m a diehard Bulls fan and I‘m not paid to be objective, so there’s your grain of salt before you read on)
Cleveland still has the hometown factor, but it’s pretty clear that’s all they have. The Cavs have been in a holding pattern since free agency began, waiting for James to decide their fate. Not a good way to run an NBA team. Now Cleveland is at the point where if Lebron comes back, they are pretty much the same team as last year…but If Lebron leaves, they are dead. Again.
I see the hometown factor playing a big role tonight, but it may not overpower the “I know I can’t pass the ball to ANY of these guys in April/May” factor.
New York is desperate. They cleaned house (or took out the garbage in the case of their roster) for 2 seasons hoping to get the jump on Lebron this summer. Now they have paid Amare Stoudamire $100 million to come to NY, not play defense and prove he can do it without Steve Nash. Not what Donnie Walsh had in mind so much. There is a chance they get their wish tonight, but basketball knowledge says a roster with Danilo Gallinari and Toney Douglas on it isn’t as appealing as the Bulls, Heat or even the evil James does know in the Cavaliers.
Chicago is the perfect fit. They have a roster aching for a plug and play SG/SF to put them over the hump. Elite PG in Derrick Rose, solid play at the SF from Luol Deng, the newly signed production of PF Carlos Boozer and the X factor intangibles guy on the inside, Joakim Noah. Add in the fact that Chicago just showed Lebron that outside of him, the Bulls are better than his Cavs in the first round of this year’s playoffs, and you have a tantalizing choice in the windy city.
There is the “Jordan factor” (lots of factors in this blog) but I think that is overrated. Every great franchise has its great players who made the team what they are. Franchise Faces let’s call them. Chicago’s just happens to be the best player who ever lived. That fact isn’t going to stop Lebron from winning multiple rings, if anything it should drive him.
BUT, what if Lebron isn’t the type to be driven by the desire to fill shoes that big?
Wouldn't you rather play WITH this guy than against him?
That leads us to Miami. They have Dwyane (closest competitive fire to MJ) Wade and Chris Bosh. That’s 2 perennial All Stars, one of whom already brought a ring to the city. If Lebron goes here it will be because these three guys decided this a long time ago (say around Beijing Olympics time), AND because Lebron knows that teams win rings, not individuals.
Maybe James doesn’t want all that pressure on him to do it all every night? Can we blame him? He has carried that burden for 7 years and it’s gotten him 2 MVPs and no rings. In Miami (ideally) he can play amongst great guys instead of stand alone as THE guy. I can’t knock this logic, I do feel however that Wade and Lebron will have to make adjustments to their game that would be unnecessary if Lebron went to say, Chicago.
If the Heat pull this off, Dwyane Wade and Pat Riley are the most powerful player/GM tandem in the NBA right? I say right.
So tonight we get “The Decision”. It’s the culmination of media over-hype, greed and opportunistic thinking…and we’ll even get to find out what the NBA will look like next year.
Sounds like must see TV.
MLB
Bill Hall and Darnell McDonald. Sounds more like the guys who announced the Red Sox game than who is playing second base and right field for Boston. The Red Sox have not been bitten by the injury bug, they have been run down by his car and beaten with the injury bat.
Dustin Pedroia
Jacoby Ellsbury
Josh Beckett
Clay Bucholz
Jason Varitek
Jeremy Hermida
Hideki Okajima
Manny Delcarmen
The Sox are playing with NONE of these guys right now and will be without some of them for more than a month. If any MLB team was without 3 everyday guys, 2 starting pitchers and 2 bullpen staples, we would expect them to struggle….unfortunately the Sox are no different. There is a lot of baseball left, which for Boston could actually mean a lot more time to get hurt this season.
Meanwhile the Cincinnati Reds are having a resurgent season, leading the NL central at 47-36 and boasting the current National League HR leader, get ready….Joey Votto. Yup, Joey Votto has more homeruns than Albert Pujols, Ryan Howard and Adam Dunn.
WORLD CUP
Spain vs. Netherlands
The World Cup has been very good. That’s really all I can say because the level of play hasn’t been great, and the household names (Messi, Ronaldo, Kaka etc.) did not deliver on their names this time around. Spain’s defense has them in the final after they shut down a German team who had put up 8 goals in its previous 2 matches. It will be interesting to see if the Netherlands can overcome that.
We are keeping the soccer portion of the blog short today (I will dedicate a full post to why we don’t care about soccer enough in the US soon) because some guy in the NBA has changed the free agency game…
NBA
Ground zero. there is going to be some angry "old money" in CT tonight.
Lebron James.
That name is synonymous with great play, the NBA and arguably the best player in said NBA. After tonight, it may also be synonymous with arrogance, ego and traitor.
Lebron James will have his own ONE HOUR SPECIAL tonight on ESPN, to let the sporting world know where he will play basketball for the next 3-6 years. Yep, his people pitched this idea to ESPN and ESPN said yes. The event will be televised from the Boys and Girls club in Greenwich CT. with all proceeds of the broadcast going to the Boys and Girls club of America.
(Before you jump on the “Greenwich is close to NY" bandwagon, understand that ESPN studios is also in Connecticut and the Greenwich B&G club may be the biggest in the area. And, Carmelo Anthony is getting married in the area this weekend. Just saying)
So the question immediately following “What team will Lebron choose?” is whether making his choice in this fashion is ego-maniacal or savvy business? I’ve given my answer to several friends and I’ll restate it here.
Yes.
It is by all means an ego trip, and why shouldn’t it be? We have put Lebron James on a pedestal above proven NBA stars since he was a senior in high school (playing high school games on ESPN in prime time…first ever to do that). The media has been telling the world he is the next “greatest player ever” since he dropped 25 pts, 9 asts and 6 rebs on the Sacramento Kings the first time he ever stepped on an NBA floor. The Magic comparisons began. The Big O comparisons began. And of course the obligatory MJ comparisons began.
(Truth be told, he is closest to Oscar Robertson, but when a kid is the same size as Karl Malone and as fast as Allen Iverson…it’s hard to find a mold to fit him)
So over the course of 7 years, the media and the basketball world have anointed Lebron James “The King” of the NBA and repeatedly stated it’s just a matter of time before he is the best player who ever lived. Meanwhile this kid from Akron has additional plans, he wants to be one of the richest too.
Lebron has never been shy about his money making aspirations, stating he wants to become a billionaire and pulling in the endorsement offers as easily as he does alley oops. Warren Buffet and Jay-Z are just two self made million/billionaires James calls friends. By all counts he is doing it the right way, right?
As of 7/7/2010, wrong. Fans, writers, players and coaches alike are outraged that Lebron would make his free agent decision into a reality show of sorts. They say it’s arrogant and he should be more humble or low key.
I say WHY?
I totally understand the move coming off as arrogant because it is, but WHY should he do it differently? All the basketball world has talked about for the past 2 plus years is “What will Lebron do in 2010?” We’ve been reading articles from sports writers about this summer, since 2 summers ago. The New York Knicks destroyed their team and roster just for the chance to have a shot at maybe getting Lebron James. ESPN has created entire web pages dedicated to “Courting the King” along with recurring segments of the same name and even a "Lebron tracker" that updates you with a perceived free agent status. They pushed the WORLD CUP to the side to update us on what team was meeting with Lebron at the moment. But NOW Lebron James is considered arrogant by writers and fans because he acknowledges the status he has been given and decides to use it to further push his “brand”? NOW Lebron is wrong for cashing in on Lebron?
C'mon son, that’s just good business.
Why not cash in a bit on the hype your name and play created? Why not get paid off of the saturation of coverage that is going to be there whether you decide via press release or prime time TV? In a country where capitalism and hypocrisy know no limits, Lebron is the culmination of both. He has used the media in the same way they have used him, for monetary gain. The hypocrisy comes in when writers who have been trying to scoop his destination of choice for 2 years, now write stories about how arrogant he is to think it’s “all about him”.
IT IS all about Lebron! ESPN, "The worldwide leader" even dubbed this “The summer of Lebron”!
So it’s no wonder ESPN also picked up the hour long special and will not apologize for the ratings it receives.
Now, where will Mr. James play next year? That’s even more interesting if you ask me. The teams in play are Cleveland, New York, Chicago and Miami.
(I’m a diehard Bulls fan and I‘m not paid to be objective, so there’s your grain of salt before you read on)
Cleveland still has the hometown factor, but it’s pretty clear that’s all they have. The Cavs have been in a holding pattern since free agency began, waiting for James to decide their fate. Not a good way to run an NBA team. Now Cleveland is at the point where if Lebron comes back, they are pretty much the same team as last year…but If Lebron leaves, they are dead. Again.
I see the hometown factor playing a big role tonight, but it may not overpower the “I know I can’t pass the ball to ANY of these guys in April/May” factor.
New York is desperate. They cleaned house (or took out the garbage in the case of their roster) for 2 seasons hoping to get the jump on Lebron this summer. Now they have paid Amare Stoudamire $100 million to come to NY, not play defense and prove he can do it without Steve Nash. Not what Donnie Walsh had in mind so much. There is a chance they get their wish tonight, but basketball knowledge says a roster with Danilo Gallinari and Toney Douglas on it isn’t as appealing as the Bulls, Heat or even the evil James does know in the Cavaliers.
Chicago is the perfect fit. They have a roster aching for a plug and play SG/SF to put them over the hump. Elite PG in Derrick Rose, solid play at the SF from Luol Deng, the newly signed production of PF Carlos Boozer and the X factor intangibles guy on the inside, Joakim Noah. Add in the fact that Chicago just showed Lebron that outside of him, the Bulls are better than his Cavs in the first round of this year’s playoffs, and you have a tantalizing choice in the windy city.
There is the “Jordan factor” (lots of factors in this blog) but I think that is overrated. Every great franchise has its great players who made the team what they are. Franchise Faces let’s call them. Chicago’s just happens to be the best player who ever lived. That fact isn’t going to stop Lebron from winning multiple rings, if anything it should drive him.
BUT, what if Lebron isn’t the type to be driven by the desire to fill shoes that big?
Wouldn't you rather play WITH this guy than against him?
That leads us to Miami. They have Dwyane (closest competitive fire to MJ) Wade and Chris Bosh. That’s 2 perennial All Stars, one of whom already brought a ring to the city. If Lebron goes here it will be because these three guys decided this a long time ago (say around Beijing Olympics time), AND because Lebron knows that teams win rings, not individuals.
Maybe James doesn’t want all that pressure on him to do it all every night? Can we blame him? He has carried that burden for 7 years and it’s gotten him 2 MVPs and no rings. In Miami (ideally) he can play amongst great guys instead of stand alone as THE guy. I can’t knock this logic, I do feel however that Wade and Lebron will have to make adjustments to their game that would be unnecessary if Lebron went to say, Chicago.
If the Heat pull this off, Dwyane Wade and Pat Riley are the most powerful player/GM tandem in the NBA right? I say right.
So tonight we get “The Decision”. It’s the culmination of media over-hype, greed and opportunistic thinking…and we’ll even get to find out what the NBA will look like next year.
Sounds like must see TV.
Posted by Khari Rose.
So maybe you haven’t heard, but Lebron James is a free agent. It’s a pretty big deal, and 6-12 NBA teams are all but cutting their janitorial staff to clear salary cap space to sign Lebron. One of those teams is the New York Knicks, who want (read: NEEEEEED) Lebron. So badly that they hired a marketing consultation company called Interbrand to "analyze" James' chances of becoming a billionaire based on his free agency decision. Lebron has not been shy about his goal of becoming a bill... 
