I know. And that’s not collusion.
If that was collusion you would pretty much have to outlaw all unions.
Legally not collusion. But the players have usurped the power of the owners. They have greatly enhanced the value of the Heat and diminished the value of the Cavs. Watch the ticket prices in Miami.
It still does not feel right. I can’t wait for the fan reaction when they play each other.
No, they haven’t. Players already had influence on personnel and coaching decisions even if we haven’t seen a group of stars get together like this.
That’s still not illegal or wrong. Is every player who changes teams as a free agent doing something wrong because the value of his new team goes up and the value of his old team goes down?
Season tickets have already sold out.
Can’t they be co-bananas? During the Shaq-Kobe years, there was no question it was Shaq’s team, but to think of Kobe as a second banana just seems wrong.
I imagine the same will happen with Wade and Lebron.
Bryant was a rookie when Shaq came to L.A. Neither player had put his imprint on the team.
Wade has already won a championship with the Heat. He’s the face of that franchise.
I completely agree with the OP, and I think LeBron made a poor choice. He had roughly the same chance of a championship in Chicago with a more emminently complete team around him. Hell, he probably even had a similar chance in Cleveland if he would have agreed to a pay cut, similar to what he’ll be taking by going to Miami, in exchange for them using that cap room to improve the team; they did have the best record last season after all.
Of the three options I mention, this clearly does the most damage to his legacy. Obviously, if he stayed in Cleveland and got them a championship, he’d be a God there. Now he can’t go back to his hometown without being booed. It will be priceless to see the first game they play against Miami next season. Even going to Chicago, he’d at least be the main man there and people would just argue that he didn’t get the help he needed in Cleveland. I’m sure Cleveland would be upset, but not as upset. But going to Miami he’s, at best, sharing the spotlight with Wade; hell, Wade is probably an even bigger star now because he helped to bring James and Bosh into town. Any championships he wins there will forever taint his legacy as being unable to do it on his own.
More on that, he’s a ball hog, so is Wade, both will have to change up their games. I imagine they can probably do it begrudgingly for a season, but that frustration will come to a head if they fall short, and if they win, it will probbaly boil over. It’ll be really interesting to see what kind of supporting cast they can get for those 3 on a limited budget trying to sell a championship.
And, of course, the special “The Decision” was just beyond obnoxious. As I understand, ESPN approached him, not the other way around, and it could have been glorious for Cleveland if he’d announced he was staying, but it was a big middle finger to his home town. Since he was almost certainly sure he was leaving when they approached him for the show, surely he should have been tactful enough to know it was a bad idea to do it.
So, really, I don’t see a redeeming quality about the decision at all, not for legacy, not for champions, not for money, and now he’s despised in Cleveland, and otherwise either hated or at least seen as an egomaniac in most of the rest of the country.
Wade’s certainly a great player, but his only title came when Shaq was still Shaq, not the worn out 20 minutes per game, 60 games per year model he’s become. Wade’s team hasn’t gotten out of the first round of the playoffs since O’Neal was traded.
He stands a better chance now with James and Bosh, obviously. Bosh has got to be thanking his lucky stars.
Shaq was not Shaq that year. Rather, he was somewhere in between the great Shaq of the past and the shitty Shaq of today. He only played in 59 games during the regular season and averaged 20 pts and 30 minutes. He did have 2 monster games in the playoffs, but make no mistake, Wade carried that team on his back.
Yeah was at his greatest the last couple years in Orlando up until the second championship with the Lakers or so, it’s been a slow decline since then.
This is different. They openly decided to move in a group to a team. That is so different, that it can not be explained as a slightly stronger incident. One of the other owners said he would not want Lebron because he knew James would try to run the team.
When did I say it was illegal ?
You said it was collusion, which is illegal.
I predict that the Heat will win a NBA championship (maybe two) within the next 5 years.
BUT NOT BEFORE THE CAVALIERS, I GUARANTEE IT! - Dan Gilbert
Huh. I forgot Shaq’s signing with the Lakers and Kobe’s rookie year were the same year. But still, while it was always Shaq’s team during their tenure together, I think calling Kobe a second banana is going a little far.
Just as I think Wade and Lebron can share the superstar duties even if its technically Wade’s team.
No I said it smacks of collusion. I said it sounds and smells like collusion. It legally is not .
I see 3 players who are going to play a lot of minutes. Who is the point guard going to be. Someone has to distribute the ball.
Forget a point guard. They size and defense. No way they beat the Magic or Lakers unless they get a couple good bigs. Problem is if you are a decent big man, you get paid in the NBA. This will be interesting.
I hope they fail miserably.
Non-NBA fan here.
I don’t watch very much NBA. I avoid it, in fact. However, I did enjoy watching James. He’s a monster, and he seemed to be a genuinely good guy. The fact that he never got in trouble (as far as I know) in his first 7 years in Cleveland gave me hope that he was going to be different. And the NBA allows for a team like Cleveland to not only keep their star, but pay him more than any other team in the league. I really wanted James to stay in Cleveland.
But that hour-long ESPN debacle (and is there any announcer/interviewer WORSE than Jim Grey?) changed James forever in my eyes. Not that he cares. But it was pathetic. His arrogance, which seemed to be under control, is no longer. He’s an arrogant prick. I didn’t think there was any one who could annoy me more than Kobe Bryant, but LeBron managed to do just that.
I simply don’t understand the decision. He could have been an all-time God in Cleveland. Bigger than Jim Brown. And it wasn’t like he would have been on a bad team next year. But he chose to destroy his legacy to play basketball in Miami. As a second-banana to Wade. I will no longer be rooting for James. I will enjoy it if/when Miami fails to win it all.