What is your opinion of LeBron?

[A Pac]

I post on an Ohio based sports forum and this topic has been discussed pretty much daily since last July. It really is amazing the way people have turned on him because he left as a free agent. The only thing that he did was wrong was the whole Decision thing. Nothing changed about his talent, or the person that he is.

That's what we are referring to. I could care less that he left, it was his "look at me and how great i am" attitude.

 

[clashmore_mike]

Yeah, Cavs fans act like he owed them something because he was a hometown kid when the fact is he isn't from Cleveland, he is from Akron. I think it was during his documentary he said he hated Cleveland growing up because they looked down on Akron kids.

 

[fortwayne_nd]

I can remember when Bird and Magic entered the NBA. The 70's were not that great a period for the NBA. Even the finals were not telecast in prime time. And then Jordan helped propel the NBA higher yet. The game doesn't have the same prestige as in the 80's and 90's. How does LeBron take it higher?

I can't ever remember Bird, Magic or Jordan sucking in the playoffs in their prime, ever. The same cannot be said for Kobe and LeBron. Both have had some embarrassing moments in the playoffs...completely disappeared at times.

And one final thing. When someone compares LeBron to Magic, they're only demonstrating their own ignorance. LeBron is no where close to Magic...never has been, and likely never will be. Please stop with this comparison.

 

[Rocket's Rocket Fan]

Huge DB, but I'm bias about it.

 

[IrishAlum1997]

What do I think of Lebron? I think Amare swatted his s*** into the 10th row the other night. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA........

 

[Rocket's Rocket Fan]

Mike its not that we think he owes us anything. Its how he went about it. Going on ESPN and saying where he was going is why all of Cleveland is pissed off.

 

[jason_h537]

Douchebag, Sellout, Took the easy route. Left his home, friends and community for money.

Gotta remember this is Cleveland. That is a city that not only struggles on the field but has had it rough economically for a while. LeBron meant more to them than just an athlete. To bail on them the way he did says a lot about the type of person he is.

I would take Kobe over LeBron and Kobe's a rapist.

 

[NDinL.A.]

What did he "owe" to Cleveland? He grew up there and was drafted by the Cavs. Neither of those were his choice. He took less money to try and win championships an he is selfish? I must be missing something.

You are missing something b/c he didn't take less money. Miami did a sign and trade (that wasn't highly publicized; Toronto did one as well w/ Bosh) after the fact and he got paid more than he would have had he signed as strictly a free agent. He got a max deal and an extra year (6th) to boot. So yeah, he wasn't being unselfish by going to Miami...not in the least.

Also, if he was about winning championships, then the team he would have gone to was Chicago. They had a ready-made championship lineup for him. Can you imagine a line-up of Rose, Deng, LeBron, Boozer and Noah??? Sh!t, even without LeBron Chicago is one of the best teams in the league. With him? Forget about it. He had the chance to go there, but he wanted to play with is buddies in a party town. His choice, but spare me the unselfish and trying to win championships nonsense.

best player in the league, i wouldnt have gone about things the way he did, but really he didnt do anything wrong.

You and I have a different definition of 'wrong' then. Leaving Cleveland wasn't wrong. But the classless, look-at-me way he left was absolutely, positively wrong. No way would I raise my kid to be like that, and neither would you. One of the reasons we all love ND is the type of student-athletes the university fosters. We'd all be embarrassed if a ND grad did something like this. There's a way to treat people, and the way LeBrick left Cleveland, stabbing them in the heart (not the back) in front of the nation was just wrong IMO, no two ways about it...

 

[BurningRiver]

Douchebag, Sellout, Took the easy route. Left his home, friends and community for money.

Gotta remember this is Cleveland. That is a city that not only struggles on the field but has had it rough economically for a while. LeBron meant more to them than just an athlete. To bail on them the way he did says a lot about the type of person he is.

I would take Kobe over LeBron and Kobe's a rapist.

Kobe only raped one girl..
LeBron raped the entire city of Cleveland

 

[IrishInColumbus]

Piece of sh*t. I'm now a huge Knicks fan.

 

[clashmore_mike]

You are missing something b/c he didn't take less money. Miami did a sign and trade (that wasn't highly publicized; Toronto did one as well w/ Bosh) after the fact and he got paid more than he would have had he signed as strictly a free agent. He got a max deal and an extra year (6th) to boot. So yeah, he wasn't being unselfish by going to Miami...not in the least.

Not entirely true. I know it was a sign and trade. His salary this year is $14.5 million. His max contract would have been for $16.6 million for 2010-11. Wade and Bosh both signed for a couple million less than the max as well.

 

[clashmore_mike]

Piece of sh*t. I'm now a huge Knicks fan.

smh Tobias.

 

[clashmore_mike]

Douchebag, Sellout, Took the easy route. Left his home, friends and community for money.

Again, Cleveland wasn't his home. He still has a house in Akron I believe and worked out at his high school last summer after he announced he was leaving. He will continue to donate money and hold camps there as well.

 

[HereComeTheIrish]

Again, Cleveland wasn't his home. He still has a house in Akron I believe and worked out at his high school last summer after he announced he was leaving. He will continue to donate money and hold camps there as well.

When did you become his PR guy??? Good Lord...get off the guys short and curlies... Maverick Carter needs his room, ya know?

 

[BurningRiver]

Again, Cleveland wasn't his home. He still has a house in Akron I believe and worked out at his high school last summer after he announced he was leaving. He will continue to donate money and hold camps there as well.

of course he still has a house here, he just finished building the small palace he used to call home. he still "lives" in akron, but he spends zero time here.
the only reason he still does that stuff is because if he didn't continue to donate to akron, he would shoot even farther up the douchebag charts. he's not stupid. well...

 

[Who'saWildManNow]

There was nothing wrong with "the decision"... They knew it would get huge ratings.. therefore the ads people would pay big.. it did.. they did.. and le bron hooked up a charity through it all. Solid move. I do think he made the worst career decision ever by going to Miami.. they can't even sell out a game. That fan base is pathetic. I'm biased cause I'm a knicks fan but do u think there are ANY empty seats at MSG when a decent or top team comes around? No. Maybe a few before amare and melo came but def not now. I also feel for cav fans but free agents have the right to choose.. dude just chose way wrong

 

[A Pac]

Again, Cleveland wasn't his home. He still has a house in Akron I believe and worked out at his high school last summer after he announced he was leaving. He will continue to donate money and hold camps there as well.

Stop making him seem like a saint. He is a douche bag and always has been. We just looked past it when he was here. There were numerous reports of he and his friends (thugs without him) going into restaurants and running up huge tabs. He would then refuse to tip the staff saying something along the lines of "they don't deserve a tip" and "they haven't done anything to deserve it". There have been many reports of this at different places. One owner even asked him not to come back and that was when he was still with the Cavs.

Cleveland may not have been his home, but we were certainly great to him. The city worshiped him and he knew it. To rip out hearts out and leave hurt, but it wasn't insulting. It's his choice and if he wants to leave then I have no problem with that. But did he have to go on Larry King last June and say that the Cavs are the front-runners to get him? No. He was blatantly lying. Did he have to go on TV to rip our hearts out? Absolutely not. Screw him and his selfish ways. I hope he never wins.

*Side note: Any moron who says that LeDouche leaving is the worst thing to happen to Cleveland is so far off it's not even funny. What Art Model did in '96 is ten times worse than this. Model lied when he said that the city wouldn't give him a new stadium. He never even asked for one because he knew that the tax payers would give it to him. He bankrupted the Browns and he knew he only had one way out.

LeDouche may have taken his talents from Cleveland, but he didn't take the team. Model will always be the biggest villain in Cleveland. At least we now know who LeDouche's father is... Art Model.

 

[A Pac]

There was nothing wrong with "the decision"... They knew it would get huge ratings.. therefore the ads people would pay big.. it did.. they did.. and le bron hooked up a charity through it all.

He could have donated that money on his own. Don't play the charity card. It's a cop out.

 

[NDinL.A.]

Not entirely true. I know it was a sign and trade. His salary this year is $14.5 million. His max contract would have been for $16.6 million for 2010-11. Wade and Bosh both signed for a couple million less than the max as well.

OK, I read an erroneous link that stated they got max deals. They didn't. But LeBrick wasn't being 'unselfish' by going to Miami...he actually got an extra year out of his contract and got slightly less by going to Miami than by staying in Cleveland. But he got more than guys like Stoudemire, so again, spare me with the 'unselfish talk'. He got...big time.

And the point remains...he wasn't looking for rings, he was looking to play and party with his best friends. The "I want to win championships" move would have been to go to Chicago. He went to a place where he knew he wouldn't have to shoulder the load, where he had a guy in Wade who was a legitimate superstar, top 3-5 player in the league, who already had a ring and who already ran that team. No other superstar/winner would have taken the easy way out, not Jordan, not Magic, not Kobe, not Bird. Alpha dogs don't join other alpha dog's teams. Other guys join them. And make no mistake, LeBrick is now the greatest player alive, but didn't have the stones to win a ring as the alpha dog (why do you think Kobe wanted to leave Shaq??? Call him a prick, but he needed to do it as the man; he's done it twice now)...

 

[InKellyITrust]

He has incredible talent. It makes me wonder if he had a father figure in his life how he would have turned out? I love watching him play but don't care for the way that he carries himself at times. He was incredibly blessed by God with a tremens amount of gifts but I wish he displayed a bit more humility.

 

[clashmore_mike]

I'm not saying he is a saint. I just find it funny that everyone hates him. He left as a free agent, they should have realized it was a possibility.

 

[clashmore_mike]

OK, I read an erroneous link that stated they got max deals. They didn't. But LeBrick wasn't being 'unselfish' by going to Miami...he actually got an extra year out of his contract and got slightly less by going to Miami than by staying in Cleveland. But he got more than guys like Stoudemire, so again, spare me with the 'unselfish talk'. He got...big time.

And the point remains...he wasn't looking for rings, he was looking to play and party with his best friends. The "I want to win championships" move would have been to go to Chicago. He went to a place where he knew he wouldn't have to shoulder the load, where he had a guy in Wade who was a legitimate superstar, top 3-5 player in the league, who already had a ring and who already ran that team. No other superstar/winner would have taken the easy way out, not Jordan, not Magic, not Kobe, not Bird. Alpha dogs don't join other alpha dog's teams. Other guys join them. And make no mistake, LeBrick is now the greatest player alive, but didn't have the stones to win a ring as the alpha dog (why do you think Kobe wanted to leave Shaq??? Call him a prick, but he needed to do it as the man; he's done it twice now)...

I didn't say he took the unselfish route. He is likely bringing home more in Miami than his max contract in Cleveland because of Florida's no income tax. If he can go to a city like Miami, play with friends, AND play for championships, that's his call. He was a free agent. Chicago wasn't a guarantee to be a championship contender either. Rose was solid but didn't start playing like an MVP until this season. Noah? He and LeBron had bad blood after he called out LeBron for dancing during games. I don't think Deng would have been around if LeBron signed. Boozer already had a giant contract.

How did Kobe do without Shaq and before Gasol? He learned pretty quickly that without other great players he wasn't going to win. He threatened to sign with the CLIPPERS unless the Lakers overhauled the roster.

 

[NDinL.A.]

I didn't say he took the unselfish route. He is likely bringing home more in Miami than his max contract in Cleveland because of Florida's no income tax. If he can go to a city like Miami, play with friends, AND play for championships, that's his call. He was a free agent. Chicago wasn't a guarantee to be a championship contender either. Rose was solid but didn't start playing like an MVP until this season. Noah? He and LeBron had bad blood after he called out LeBron for dancing during games. I don't think Deng would have been around if LeBron signed. Boozer already had a giant contract.

How did Kobe do without Shaq and before Gasol? He learned pretty quickly that without other great players he wasn't going to win. He threatened to sign with the CLIPPERS unless the Lakers overhauled the roster.

1. Never said you said he took the unselfish route. But you quoted me and so I responded.

2. You're completely mixing up people being mad at him leaving with people being mad at the WAY he left. I don't think I've read one post on here complaining that he left (I might have missed one or two), but I've read PLENTY hating on him for the dirrrrrrrrrty way he did it. I never got mad at him for leaving, but I couldn't stand the WAY he did it. And then for him and the other 2 clowns to do that WWE type celebration right after he signed BEFORE they had even won a damn thing (minus Wade's ring) was straight embarrassing and a major black eye on all 3 of them (LeBron saying that they'd win 7 championships was great for unintentional comedy).

3. As for Chicago...if he was worried about bad blood w/ Noah, then why take the meeting with them? Why waste their time? Unless you're saying it was a charade (which I believe it was), which makes him look even worse for doing all those stupid meetings (the Clippers????????) when he knew all along he was signing with the Heat. And if you honesty believe that a) the Heat roster was better served for a ring than Chicago's and b) Rose wasn't a budding superstar, then you simply don't know basketball and we're both wasting our time here.

If he truly wanted the rings, Chicago was clearly the move. Oh, and btw, KObe almost came to blows with both Matt Barnes and Raja Bell, and he recruited BOTH to play with the Lakers this past summer. With Kobe (and believe me, I know he has his major faults too), it's about the ring and nothing else. You can't say the same for Lebrick.

4) Big difference with Kobe is that he wanted to win and knew he needed help, but didn't ask to go to Tim Duncan's team, or Dirk's team, or D-Wade's team. Yeah, he obviously knew he needed help, but he didn't want to play second fiddle or even 1a and have another superstar do what he couldn't on his own. He had the desire to win, but not to have to stoop to having to go to another guy's team to do it. LeBron has the chance to be the GOAT, but he'll never be that b/c he couldn't do it as the only alpha dog on a championship team. Jordan did it 6 times, Kobe 2x's and 5 x's overall, etc etc...

 

[NDinFL]

1. Never said you said he took the unselfish route. But you quoted me and so I responded.

2. You're completely mixing up people being mad at him leaving with people being mad at the WAY he left. I don't think I've read one post on here complaining that he left (I might have missed one or two), but I've read PLENTY hating on him for the dirrrrrrrrrty way he did it. I never got mad at him for leaving, but I couldn't stand the WAY he did it. And then for him and the other 2 clowns to do that WWE type celebration right after he signed BEFORE they had even won a damn thing (minus Wade's ring) was straight embarrassing and a major black eye on all 3 of them (LeBron saying that they'd win 7 championships was great for unintentional comedy).

3. As for Chicago...if he was worried about bad blood w/ Noah, then why take the meeting with them? Why waste their time? Unless you're saying it was a charade (which I believe it was), which makes him look even worse for doing all those stupid meetings (the Clippers????????) when he knew all along he was signing with the Heat. And if you honesty believe that a) the Heat roster was better served for a ring than Chicago's and b) Rose wasn't a budding superstar, then you simply don't know basketball and we're both wasting our time here.

If he truly wanted the rings, Chicago was clearly the move. Oh, and btw, KObe almost came to blows with both Matt Barnes and Raja Bell, and he recruited BOTH to play with the Lakers this past summer. With Kobe (and believe me, I know he has his major faults too), it's about the ring and nothing else. You can't say the same for Lebrick.

4) Big difference with Kobe is that he wanted to win and knew he needed help, but didn't ask to go to Tim Duncan's team, or Dirk's team, or D-Wade's team. Yeah, he obviously knew he needed help, but he didn't want to play second fiddle or even 1a and have another superstar do what he couldn't on his own. He had the desire to win, but not to have to stoop to having to go to another guy's team to do it. LeBron has the chance to be the GOAT, but he'll never be that b/c he couldn't do it as the only alpha dog on a championship team. Jordan did it 6 times, Kobe 2x's and 5 x's overall, etc etc...

This^ NDinLA nailed it
I agree, the way he left was immature and attention whoring...
The Michael Jordan quote soon after Lebrick did this was the best. It was something along the lines of, "I never called Larry, or Magic and said hey let's play on the same team. I wanted to BEAT those guys to prove I was better"

Lebron isn't an alpha dog. He proved this by teaming up with 2 other superstars on the same team. I don't know if I'd necessarily call it "cowardly" but it's about as close as you can get... It's basically saying "I can't win it on my own, so why even try? I'll go play basketball with two other great players because I NEED their help"

Given, I'm a Pacers fan (yeah I know), but I root against the Heat and that circus act every single night. I don't think they can do it. The Knicks, Magic, and Celtics will give them fits, and I personally hope they get bounced in the 1st round so we can all "witness" just how stupid Lebrick really was in his move.

 

[clashmore_mike]

You're completely mixing up people being mad at him leaving with people being mad at the WAY he left.

I understand people are mad at the way he left. I agree with them that he handled that poorly. I followed the Cavs because of LeBron, and I was just as shocked as anyone that he did leave. At the same time, if everyone is only mad because of the way he left, shouldn't they be over it by now? LBJ has said that if he had to do it over again, he could have handled it better.

As for Chicago... if you honesty believe that a) the Heat roster was better served for a ring than Chicago's and b) Rose wasn't a budding superstar, then you simply don't know basketball and we're both wasting our time here.

If he truly wanted the rings, Chicago was clearly the move.

I didn't say Rose wasn't a budding superstar. Even with the way he is playing this year, Wade > Rose. No one other than LeBron knows if the meeting with Chicago was a charade. Chicago was not a lock to be the move. Is Tom Thibodeau, who had just been hired a couple weeks prior to free agency, a championship level coach? There were a lot of question marks in Chicago too.

...With Kobe (and believe me, I know he has his major faults too), it's about the ring and nothing else. You can't say the same for Lebrick.

Ok? Good for Kobe, but why does LeBron have to be Kobe? If you are going to use Skip Bayless' nicknames, you clearly don't know basketball and we are wasting our time here.

Big difference with Kobe is that he wanted to win and knew he needed help, but didn't ask to go to Tim Duncan's team, or Dirk's team, or D-Wade's team.

Kobe didn't have to go to join Duncan or Dirk or Wade. Because he demanded a trade on draft day, Kobe plays for an organization that is among the best in all of sports. Free agents line up to play for less money for the Lakers. Can't say the same for the Cleveland Cavaliers.


Bottom line is LeBron was a free agent. The reasons he decided on Miami were important to him. Maybe he doesn't care to be the alpha male and doesn't care what his legacy will be in the eyes of other people? If he can and wants to play in a city like Miami with a couple of friends while at the same time being able to compete for championships, who really cares?

 

[NDinFL]

The city of Cleveland? and all their dedicated fans? who were publicly embarassed by this bafoon? I think they might care.... just a little bit

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

Nothing wrong with Lebron leaving...

The primetime special created anticipation and crushed everyones heart at once.

Should have let his decision leak out like normal people.

 

[IHateMarkMay]

I remember watching this on Tosh.0, laughed my *** off only because I lived close to the city at the end.

Couldn't embed it but its a Cleveland tourism video.

YouTube - Hastily Made Cleveland Tourism Video: 2nd Attempt

 

[BurningRiver]

Stop making him seem like a saint. He is a douche bag and always has been. We just looked past it when he was here. There were numerous reports of he and his friends (thugs without him) going into restaurants and running up huge tabs. He would then refuse to tip the staff saying something along the lines of "they don't deserve a tip" and "they haven't done anything to deserve it". There have been many reports of this at different places. One owner even asked him not to come back and that was when he was still with the Cavs.

Cleveland may not have been his home, but we were certainly great to him. The city worshiped him and he knew it. To rip out hearts out and leave hurt, but it wasn't insulting. It's his choice and if he wants to leave then I have no problem with that. But did he have to go on Larry King last June and say that the Cavs are the front-runners to get him? No. He was blatantly lying. Did he have to go on TV to rip our hearts out? Absolutely not. Screw him and his selfish ways. I hope he never wins.

*Side note: Any moron who says that LeDouche leaving is the worst thing to happen to Cleveland is so far off it's not even funny. What Art Model did in '96 is ten times worse than this. Model lied when he said that the city wouldn't give him a new stadium. He never even asked for one because he knew that the tax payers would give it to him. He bankrupted the Browns and he knew he only had one way out.

LeDouche may have taken his talents from Cleveland, but he didn't take the team. Model will always be the biggest villain in Cleveland. At least we now know who LeDouche's father is... Art Model.

He might as well have taken the team

 

[Sweetness34]

I am so glad this subject was brought up. Let's get this out the way, Lebron is NOT a bad guy. He made a bad choice in how he presented his exit from Cleveland. Yes he can be arrogant at times but so was Michael, Charles, Magic and Larry not to mention Kobe and Shaq. He is the best basketball player in the league and if someone says he isn't then they are bias. He made the right choice in leaving Cleveland (although he should have chosen Chicago) the place he gave 7 years of the best basketball they will ever had. You can question his execution of the "Decision" but not his character and basketball skills.