I thought the debate was about Wade stepping up in the finals and Lebron not doing the same. If you are going to take Lebron not being assertive out of the debate then there is very little to talk about. Nobody owns anything on their own in pretty much anything. Everybody gets help it is just a matter of how much they get. If you reread my post you will notice that I mentioned that help was needed just not a ton. Lebron went to a place that gave him a ton of talent. You can try and tell yourself that joining up and getting drafting and traded isn't any different but by definition it is and there is no arguing that. It's like saying that someone that was born into money is just as bad as a golddigger that marries someone just for their money. Now I ain't saying Lebron is a golddigger, BUT... In that scenario Jordan doesn't already have a ring and a finals MVP and Moses was traded.
Right and while he may be working the pole down in Miami it really doesn't count for anything unless he wins a ring because in the end (in this context) results are all that matter. In this case, there really is no right or wrong way. The concept of loyalty, honor and integrity do not apply to the professional sports business - only the end result is what matters. It's a bottom line business and don't ever mistake it for anything else. And the bottom line here is winning. After all, you can't be a Nike phenom without the hardware. The team owners do the same thing that LeBron did all the time. Look at OKC - they left Seattle high and dry. The Oilers? Nuff said. You always go for the better deal - that's the smart play. Do you believe that for one instant that Dan Gilbert would blink an eye and not move the Cavaliers to say Kansas City if his lease was up and KC ways dangling big $$$ in front of him?
Dude he 'sold out' for less money to sign with heat? Why is it so bad that lebron wanted to play where he wanted to play? If you left your company for a better location and better company that is selling out? I just dont get the lebron hate when he did what he wanted to do when he was able to. It's not like he didnt fulfill his contract in cleveland. He had a right to go and did.
Because in the end, he went to Wade, a guy who has won the MVP, a guy who was drafted there and has been there for 7 years, a guy who won the first championship for the city, a guy who showed up when it counted in these playoffs, a guy who will still be in his prime till the end of their contracts, a guy who will need to be on that team and is as important as LeBron because if he was traded they have no championship hopes at all.
Great article: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/06/06/2253572_p2/ask-all-the-great-ones-its-nice.html King-maker Pat Riley tells a story about needing help. Seems that Magic Johnson, ultimate winner, was so short-circuited toward the end of games even with Kareem Abdul Jabber’s assistance that he didn’t want to so much as think. The mental drain of carrying a team against waves of impassioned aggressors, and making all the important decisions, left him fried as the last seconds approached. Magic wanted to do so little thinking in that weary physical and mental state – “scrambled,” to use Riley’s word -- that he eventually asked his coach to please just hold up easy signs to convey every play he wanted run in the last few minutes. Magic Johnson, leader, floor general, champion, wanted to follow executive orders then, finding a modicum of relief in doing what he was told instead of having to create it all himself. It'll wear you out, making all the decision from quarter to quarter, game to game, day to day, month to month. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade grew tired of carrying this kind of late-game cross all alone across several dry seasons and postseasons, James so weary that Cleveland still believes he simply quit at the end of his last broken journey there. It is one of the reasons James and Wade came together, to share that burden, as friends, and make the heavy lifting lighter – the sports equivalent of calling a buddy to help you move a couch. Perhaps you’ve noticed that 32-year-old Dirk Nowitzki sits in the middle of the very first quarter to keep him fresh for late and that even 22-year-old Derrick Rose rested many more minutes in the last series than the older LeBron. Maybe it is coincidence that Rose didn’t have the legs for long jumpers late and James did, but this isn’t: James and Wade do every single interview together, side by side, as symbolic as it is unprecedented, while Rose and Nowitzki are left to endure those post-game questions about not having enough help all alone now. That so many of those questions directed at James and Wade are still about who is the alpha dog/closer is as silly as it is small. They’ve already answered it again and again, in words and in deeds, against Boston and Chicago and now Dallas, by deciding to come together in the first place and by staying together amid all the turbulence since. They both are, OK? They’re both the closer. How many Hall of Famers and MVPs and German gods do you want them to slay before you realize that they don’t care whom you credit with the kill? It is always interesting how forgetful and short-sighted the dizzying up and down of sports can make us, emotion trampling logic. Chris Bosh fixes three horrible games with one timely shot. Wade reinvents/resurrects himself in two games after a playoff series so bad people wondered if he was injured. And now James, after ending all of Boston’s Hall of Famers and Chicago’s MVP with an avalanche of punctuation points, endures a question about shrinking even in the winning press conference after Game 3. The way they came together invites this kind of scrutiny and criticism; but being together helps rebut it with a scoreboard's finality. James and Wade saw and felt something we didn’t the last few years – something Rose and Nowitzki see and feel clearly now. When you lose, that spotlight goes very fast from warm to scalding. It is funny, looking back, that the spotlight is the reason nobody believed they would come together in the first place, back when the idea seemed ridiculous. The money, ball, team and late-game glory simply could not and would not be shared by alpha males, not in a bling league and hip-hop culture soaked in gotta-get-mine. The King would not accept even the occasional appearance of being merely a sidekick. The need to be The Man would trump the desire to be The Teammate, The Friend, The Winner and The Champion. But we’ve seen this Heat team take a bat to that construct as it shifts basketball’s paradigm. Any of these three players can win a game or a series. Bosh was as good against Chicago as he has been bad against Dallas. Wade has been as good against Dallas as he was bad against Chicago. And if James had been kept out of the paint the way he has in the first three games of this series at another time in his life, he’d be down 0-3. Once upon a time, if Wade or James or Bosh were ever off, their teams simply lost. Now, Bosh can be sloppy for most of the game, James can score two points in the fourth quarter and the Heat still win a pivotal Finals game on the road. The big 30-point games Wade is being celebrated for now, as people rush to make it his team again? He averaged that in last year’s playoffs … while being extinguished by Boston in five games in the first round. You want to know why James plays in Miami? You need not watch The Decision television show that wrecked his image. All you need to do is hear Nowitzki and Rose after losing games, the burden solely on them. James didn’t want to carry that cross alone any more. Soon, Chris Paul and Dwight Howard won’t, either. In a way, Miami has eased the burden on guys like Nowitzki and Rose. Throwing the ball out of bounds in the last 30 seconds and missing the game-winner in Game 3? Nobody blames Nowitzki for being a choker in that spot because they know all he is up against. LeBron closes that game that way, and he gets scorched from sea to shining sea. Amid all the anger and noise, the Heat’s story, at the core, is one of remarkable friends and one of remarkable sharing. That’s not how it is seen from the outside, from people rooting for it to collapse like the Heat did in Game 2. Charles Barkley says he saw the Heat trying to play hero ball at the end of that game, Wade and James fighting over the Finals MVP trophy, both of them warring to see who could make the crowd leap up with the kill shot. The Heat are a Rorschach inkblot test. People will see whatever they want, depending on their baggage. But here’s all that matters, and the only thing that has mattered since these three decided to come together: In Game 3, at a tired time that used to scramble even the great Magic Johnson, as Nowitzki scoured the court for some help, any help, Wade tried to go right against a double-team. There was nothing there. So he shared the ball and the burden with James at the top of the key, who was also double-teamed and decided to share the ball and the burden with a wide-open Bosh. Bosh proceeded to make the game-winner. On the other end, Nowitzki had that burden all to himself the final 4.4 seconds. He was, as time ticked away and Dallas lost, the only Maverick who touched the ball. Which may be why Nowitzki says that, yeah, if LeBron James had asked him last offseason, he would have considered teaming up with him, too.
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2010/07/lebron-bosh-wade-take-less-money/ from the article: Each player took $15 million less over the life of the contract to sign with Miami
LeBron has only made the finals once and the game plan was to swarm LeBron and force his teammates to beat the Spurs. That's why a 2nd option is important. LeBron could have been back to the finals again in 2008, but take a look at what happened in the 2007 off-season that changed everything. The Lakers and Celtics, a team that barely made the playoffs and one that failed to qualify, made questionable trades that, in one season, put them one-step above everyone else. If anyone is to blame for superstars leaving their team for a better chance to win, it's what happened in summer 2007. Apparently, there is an unwritten rule that this is only acceptable if you are a certain age, preferably 29. Maybe LeBron had GOAT potential, but he didn't have GOAT-potential teammates. Moot point, but I also would have preferred LeBron to join a team screaming for an undisputed franchise face, like the Knicks, but it is what it is. It may be hard to eclipse Wade's mark in Miami, but as far as careers go, LeBron's will be ranked ahead of Wade. I'm sure he'll be content with that.
A slam article? And one that doesn't even mention all the tax breaks Lebron gets by playing in Miami. At the end of the day Lebron ended up with the same and probably even more money than he would have made in Cleveland by signing with the Heat. http://www.walletpop.com/2010/07/09/did-saving-25-million-taxes-fuel-lebron-james-miami-heat-pick/ http://blogs.forbes.com/beltway/201...should-blame-the-income-tax-not-lebron-james/
There is no doubt that LeBron is not being as assertive as he could be in the Finals. But again, considering that Wade has the best matchup and is dominating, it makes sense to give him the ball. I can't say LeBron is playing poorly, based on all the other things he is doing this series. LeBron isn't winning with anymore talent than most stars have won with. That's a fact at the end of the day. Address that.... Moses was traded after he decided to leave, much the same way LeBron was "traded".
probably? You are funny. He probably saves on heating bill as well in miami vs. cleveland He probably doesn't have to drive as much in Miami since S beach is a pretty small area he probably doesn't have to buy his posse sweaters and saves there too. How about factually his contract was for less and he took less?
Horrible article. LeBron could have signed a 6 yr, $125M deal. He signed a 6 yr, $110M deal. He left $15M on the table, pre-tax. The tax-break, at 6% (Ohio state tax rate), on $110M is $6.6M. The difference between $15M and $6.6M is $8.4M, so that's at least what he lost. And I say at least because players still pay tax when they travel for road games and LeBron could have gone have played in tax-free Texas as well (the Mavs did want him). If $8.4M isn't enough of a sacrifice to you then I guess it just isn't enough.
If LeBron was at a disadvantage (born into a poor family) and he was obviously more talented than everyone else so he moves to a place that provided a better opportunity for being successful, there's nothing wrong with it. He isn't gold-digging and not giving anything back -- he's still contributing at a very high level and is the main reason for their success.
He's playing Pippen like basketball. Pippen wasn't playing poorly at all but he was deferring to MJ and being the sidekick Haven't I already addressed that in previous posts and you just say you don't agree? Do we really need to go through that entire argument all over again? Houston went into rebuilding mode and said Moses could go look elsewhere if he wanted to win.
You think LBJ makes more playing basketball or getting paid to sponsor products? 8.4 million to him, is like 10,000 dollars to some people. It's alot but it won't make him cry.
So stripping is all about getting easy money? Then we should be strippers. Why bother paying for a good education when all you have to is go to the local nightclub and strip and see the millions flowing into your pocket? FYI Stripping isn't exactly easy money. Strippers barely scrape together enough to feed their families, and they face discrimination and sexual harassment on a daily basis. Their career is far more "real" than that plush desk job in the corner office, I don't think regular joes like you can even stomach the sh$t they go through just to put bread on the table. Your post about lebron is about as off base as your post about strippers. Lebron's playing an average of 45 minutes this playoff series. Since when did 45 minutes per game count as "easy money"? If anything Miami's working him harder than in Cleveland. Why don't you quit while you're behind?
Reread the article and it talks about his first five years and the tax difference. Lebron turned down more guaranteed money over a 6 year span but he also has 2 player options for years 5 and 6 and he could opt out and end up getting even more money.
Bitter enders such as yourself who dont understand the game of basketball, know that one man cant do it by himself. The Cavaliers were not going to get better. They had eight years to get the guy a legitimate second option and it never happened. In the end this mumbo jumbo about respecting a guy who constantly loses is garbage. In the end respect=ring. Thats it. Where is this trophy or plaque or ribbon for this mythical one way standard that you haters apply to LeBron if he stayed in Cleveland? You are not given credit for losing without having great players around you no more than credit is taken away if you win a ring with great players around you. Its very simple HOF players who never win a ring have that big giant asterik floating over them forever. To make it even more simple winning a ring >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> not winning a ring, no matter who you are. Ask Robert Horry
