[Psychology Today]LeBron James: The Making of a Narcissist

Oh, this was a good find, and I'm not at all surprised that you found it in Psychology Today. Another excerpt:

But depicting the basketball superstar as the savior (or should I say, Savior) for perhaps the single most frustrated sports town in the nation served to make him into a person worthy of nothing short of idolatry. A figure of such radiant immensity that it was as though such a person ultimately could do no wrong--could, with impunity, do whatever he chose. And it would have to be right because his stature was so absolutely peerless as to render all his behaviors unquestionable. (And, in this regard, I can't help but think of President Nixon, who once considered whether anything he did could possibly be illegal--because he was, after all, the President.)


Excellent stuff, and there is so much more! Kudos for bringing this to my attention.

 

People are missing the bigger point. That LeChoke is a Diva is not news. That LeChoke eventually used free agency to abandon Cleveland for a more glamorous city was inevitable. Both of these things are obvious and should have surprised no one.

No, the biggest revelation about LeChoke is that he's a quitter. That he quit in the playoffs. That, to me, is the most stunning development, that he's not the next Jordan, he's the next Pippin. That he's not an alpha, he's a beta, and that until Durant gets over the hump, Kobe remains the greatest player in the NBA.

As for LeChoke, he'll never be mentioned in the same sentence as Kobe, Michael, Larry, Magic, or Dream. He's simply not in their league. He doesn't have their heart, their toughness, their willpower.

 

Yeah but none of the men mentioned above have LerBon's dance moves.

 

HA!!!! I always hated that, dance when your blowing teams out but won't shake hands after a loss

 

Not only is he a quitter, but he's also a sore loser.

Just like Karla, another superstar that faded in big games and never won anything.

 

I am willing to bet everything I have that "The Decision" on ESPN will be remembered as one of the most self-indulged, egotistic and tragic announcements of all time.

Not only will it be considered one of the most shocking things in history, but depending on Lebron's future, it could also be considered one of the most tragic things in the history of sports.

Still, no matter how people play it, Lebron's decision just lowered the worth of his legacy by a ton. Even if he was only trying to win a ring, even if he was selfless in sacrificing a few million, he will be remembered as the one who "couldn't beat them, so decided to join them". No great player in the history of the league has done that, and those who have....still don't have a ring.

 

Repped you for your posts. Mad truth.

 

Clyde Drexler sucks.

So does kobe, I mean he wanted out.

 

Please, 90% of the NBA are Narcissits. Most ultra successful people are Narcissists. The reason other FA didn't have 'the decision' is because ESPN didn't offer it to them.

You think Magic Johnson would have turned down such a show? Have you seen him on TV? This guy is a spotlight hog and he's got 5 rings.

People are only bagging on Lebron he's the best and hasn't won a ring yet. It's harder to hate Kobe these days because Kobe's won, so the haters move on to Lebron. Once Lebron wins a ring the hate will be moved to the next superstar.

 

Narcissist? He's an entertainer, and he's doing a good job of it so far.

 

I have a feeling that James will have a career-affecting meltdown similar to the magnitude of Tiger. Probably won't be having to with women but something just as disasterous.

 

...men?

 

I've thought about this recently too. While I'm not sure he'll have a meltdown, it does help to understand his decision. People talk about Lebron like he is a regular person -- how could he leave his home, give up on his team like that!

But really, Lebron is far from any other person or even most other NBA players. Like Tiger, he's grown up as nothing but the next supposed sport-transcending athlete. They've been raised to do nothing other than be the best at their sport, all the while sacrificing their own adolescence (never having a chance to really grow up and be their own person). It shouldn't come as a surprise when they don't act with typical human actions and emotions. Tiger slept with those women in all likelihood because he didn't know how to handle a real-life relationship like you and I ... he didn't think bad could come from it and couldn't resist the temptation. Lebron is probably not nearly as emotionally vested in Ohio as it's made out that he should be. He's probably ready to get out, to "move out" so to speak. He's kind of like an 18 year old kid moving from Small Town, USA to a college town with a big party school and getting ready to have the time of his life.

The more I think about it, the more I think he made this decision a long time ago -- to leave Cleveland that is.

 

You and... Qazi? Well, good for you. I think it's cool you shared that.

 

Who isn't a narcissist these days? We live is a society of social networking where people take photos of themselves for all to see, update their pages to tell people what they're doing and even on here when fans try to show off their basketball views to others.

 

u people r really funny. hes obviously the best player in the league best since jordan and ya hes better than magic and bird yall can shut that up 2. kobe also wanted out 2 so if kobe would have got his wish would we be no longer b able 2 mention him with jordan or magic or the others??
and how can u not say that michael jordan and kobe arnt "narcissists" either. didnt kobe pull up in a fancy limo and hav some televised event wenever he decided 2 go 2 the league?? i mean im pretty sure he went 2 prom wit brandy and we all saw him runnin down the court jugglin his nuts sayn nobody can guard him. its a double edged sword if lebron would hav said he was comn 2 houston u wouldnt b mad. and every1 always said that he was nevr bout winnin only about his money well now that hes bout winnin and not about money people r startn 2 wine and cry so either way hes still gonna b hated and extra criticized for bein the best

 

I can't tell if this is brilliant sarcasm or supreme stupidity.