After a long hiatus, I am back to blogging. Thanks to everyone who continues supporting my blog. This week, CTO and I have written a blog about Lebron's recent return to the Cavs. I'll be discussing the impact his return will have on Cleveland and CTO will be discussing how his move will impact Miami.
SOM
Lebron James is returning to the
Cleveland Cavaliers, which came as a shock to many people. He is leaving the glitzy, fast-paced city of Miami
for the cold, barren terrain known as Cleveland. Why would he leave a proven commodity, i.e.
the Miami Heat, Pat Riley, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh? The answer is simple: He missed home.
Who remembers “the Decision” in 2010? It was one of the most awkward press
conferences of all time. That was
probably one of the few times Lebron James has ever made a public misstep. Considering the fact that the media has been
covering him since he was a teenager, a public misstep was going to happen at
some point. He has been scrutinized more
than any professional athlete and he—more often than not—makes the right
decision or says the right things. “The Decision,” however, was a mistake. How many of us have not made mistakes, and
especially as a 25 year old? Even though
it was a misstep, his heart was in the right place, as “the Decision” raised
over $2 million for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. Despite the obvious benefit to many children,
many people still dislike Lebron, which is unfortunate. I have never seen an athlete hated by so many
who is: (1) undeniably the best player in today’s NBA; (2) a role model; (3) well
spoken; (4) family oriented; and (5) respected and revered by his teammates.
Yeah, sounds like a bad person to me (insert heavy sarcasm). Some of the people who hate Lebron the most
are Kobe Bryant fans. I’ll digress.
In 2010, Lebron needed Miami just as much
as Miami needed him. As an all-time great player, it is very important that he
wins championships. Unfortunately, a
player’s legacy is often defined by how many championships he won. I do not believe that is fair, but that is
the standard that all great players are judged by. Lebron has been very successful and has two
championships before the age of thirty. The
Cleveland teams he played on from 2003-2010 never had a chance to win a
championship. If he decided to re-sign
in 2010, he would likely have zero rings. Many people—unfairly or not—would have
labeled him as a failure, or at least as a player who underachieved without
acknowledging that he was surrounded by inferior talent. This is one of the burdens that come along
with being the best player in the world. Many people criticized Lebron for
leaving Cleveland, and the Cavs owner, Dan Gilbert, wrote a scathing letter
about Lebron addressing his displeasure with “the Decision.” Lebron was a free agent in 2010 and was well
within his rights to explore the open market. He ultimately decided to chase
titles in Miami, and now, he is headed home to continue his quest.
What does Lebron’s return mean for the
Cleveland Cavaliers? Lebron’s return provides
instant credibility to a team that has been reeling since he left in 2010. The Cavs are now considered a dangerous playoff
team. His return also means that free
agents will soon be flocking to Cleveland for a chance to play with
Lebron. Cleveland is a championship-
deprived city that has not had a professional sports champion since the 1964
Cleveland Browns won the Super Bowl. There
is no telling which free agents will come, but you can rest assured that many
will inquire, including Mike Miller and Ray Allen. As much as Lebron loves Ohio, he did not return
to lose. I can only imagine the types of
behind-the-scenes moves Lebron is making to ensure that he will be successful
for years to come. The most obvious move
is a trade for Kevin Love, which, if it happens, would arguably give Cleveland
a better “Big Three” than the one Lebron anchored in Miami. Also, the Big Three including Lebron, Kyrie
and Love would be considerably younger, as Lebron would be the oldest player,
and he is only 29 years old. Kevin Love
is only 25 years old and Kyrie is 23 years old. If this combination of players comes together,
Lebron would be able to compete at a high level for years to come—even when his
physical abilities begin diminishing.
The Big Three in Miami was simply too old and their window was closing
rapidly, and I believe Lebron understood that point.
So, how will it all end? How will Lebron James be remembered when he
hangs up his basketball shoes?
Fortunately, for basketball fans, barring injury, Lebron will likely
play another 6-8 years. If he is able to
bring even one championship trophy to Cleveland, he will be lauded as a
savior. I truly believe that winning one
championship in Cleveland would have the same, if not greater, impact as
winning three rings for any other professional franchise. As Lebron so eloquently stated in his letter
regarding his return to Cleveland, “Before anyone ever cared where I would play
basketball, I was a kid from Northeast Ohio.
It’s where I walked; it’s where I ran.
It’s where I cried. It’s where I
bled . . .” As cliché as saying that
Lebron’s return to Cleveland is “deeper than basketball,” it seems evident that
it is. He talked about wanting to help
make Cleveland a city that people want to start a family, build houses and open
businesses. It is admirable that he is using his celebrity status and influence
to help his hometown prosper economically.
It is hard to imagine any other all-time great player leaving a team
that he led to four consecutive NBA Finals appearances to return home to a team
that has been struggling. Lebron is
doing his part to debunk the myth that athletes only care about wealth and
fame. Lebron James is not that guy; he
has taken the road less traveled back to Ohio—where it all began. Stay tuned.
CTO
For
Miami, this is semi-Heartbreak because Miami is a transient city known for its
celebrities, great weather, and attractions for Floridians and tourists alike. Miami
is a great city in its own right and is a destination city for vacations. Many people consider places like Miami and Los
Angeles (more on LA later) to be vacation homes but not permanent residences. For all of the allure Miami has to
offer, many Americans do not believe Miami is truly a home for a family. And LeBron
James at 29/30 years old is a family man that seeks to raise his children in an
environment he believes would best suit their growth.
This
doesn’t mean the Heat did not support LeBron or vice versa. The Miami Heat
organization is a family and most credit belongs to Micky Arison and Pat Riley
for making Miami a destination basketball city for many NBA players since
Arison took over in 1995. The Heat is a first class NBA organization and will continue
as long as Arison and Riley are at the helm. However, like most vacations, at
some point, the vacation must end and reality begins to set in. This happened
for LeBron James this summer.
Miami
had the greatest basketball player since MJ for 4 years and did not act
accordingly. Sure, games sold out and Miami Heat made money with their local
Sun Sports TV deal once the “Big 3” arrived but the Heat failed to bring the
Miami fanatics to the games to show their appreciation for the gift “The
Decision” gave them.
LeBron wanted to go return home
because he is an Ohioan that has strong ties to his community, friends and
family. He was always to return back to Cleveland; the only question was when. LeBron
left because Heat “fans” were too fickle to be trusted with such great talent.
Heat fans (in Miami) showed up late to games, were nonchalant during timeouts
and did not have maniacal devotion to really appreciate a historical player of
James’ caliber. This does not mention the embarrassment that occurred in Game 6
of the 2013 NBA Finals where hundreds of
fans left the arena early when the Heat were close to elimination…at home, in the Finals! This was
treasonous on all levels of sports...and today the Miami Heat’s chickens have
come home to roost.
The
LeBron-era Miami Heat enjoyed unprecedented success in four years: Miami
reached the Finals for 4 consecutive years for the first time since the Bird
Celtics and the Showtime Lakers. The Heat won back-to-back titles for the first
time since Kobe’s Lakers and won 27 games in a row for the first time since the
West/Baylor/Chamberlain Lakers in 1971-72. The 2010-14 Miami Heat are historic
figures that have etched their own destinies in the annals of NBA History.
However,
the Heat “fans” did not have the burning desire of many other
championship-starved cities. Miami Heat have been entitled since inception. The
Heat have 3 titles since they were formed in 1988 and yet the Heat are still less
revered than the Dolphins. Miami retired Michael Jordan’s number and honored
Dan Marino’s number (13) in their early years to maintain relevance. Now, Miami
is now teetering on returning to the nominal relevance it had during the
Hardaway-Mourning years. Miami is a playoff team that is not good enough to contend.
Dwyane Wade will likely retire with the Heat but his best days are behind him. Chris
Bosh has re-signed for the max contract but Bosh has never shown the capacity
to win as the center piece of an NBA team. The Heat have space to sign another
free agent this summer but they do not have the caché to lure younger free
agents to play with an aging Wade and a good, but not great player like Bosh after
LeBron’s stunning departure.
Miami
is caught in a similar position as in 2008 when an aging Shaq was traded to
Phoenix. In 2008, Miami immediately began to rebuild and became the worst team
in the league with 15 wins. On the bright side, D-Wade won the scoring title
and was in his prime and healthy. The 2014-15 Heat team will need Wade to turn
back the clock and Bosh to return to his 2008 Toronto Raptors form and get more from younger pieces like
Norris Cole and Michael Beasley. This is wishful thinking. Miami will remain
relevant with Wade and Bosh but their ceiling is limited. Heat’s ceiling is
further limited by its draft position and its failure to cultivate a
championship level bench in the last two years of King James’ tenure(Oden,
Beasley, amnestying Mike Miller and trading for Toney Douglas were misses the
Heat wish they had back).
Miami
will continue to remain relevant as long as Wade remains a healthy top tier player
in the NBA. However, Miami’s championship window is officially closed shut.
Similarly to Kobe Bryant’s Lakers, Miami has become a destination city without
the free agents to show for it. Miami will begin to offload some of their
remaining older pieces while focusing on accumulating assets to rebuild for a
new chapter. Shabazz Napier is a solid draft pick that LeBron wanted for the
Heat but in the end, Miami failed to secure their biggest asset when Miami and the
Heat failed to make a destination city LeBron’s permanent home. Miami had a
chance to keep LeBron by paying the repeater luxury tax to acquire younger
wings to help LeBron during the postseason run but the Heat chose not to. The
Heat’s front office gambled on their current roster and banked on LeBron’s
talent to overcome well-rounded teams. This strategy barely worked in 2013 and
in 2014, the Heat’s free agent and talent luck appears to have run out.
The
Heat will continue to compete but similar to the 2009-10 teams, the Heat will
now seek to remain competitive while LeBron’s talents return to shine in the
Buckeye State.
Peace
