Is LeBron James really the "self-appointed" chosen one?

[astorian]

One of the most unfair charges I keep hearing about LeBron James is that, “Unlike Michel Jordan, he doesn’t make his teammates better. He only cares about his own numbers, not about winning championships.”

Well, he just left Cleveland to play for a team where he THINKS (rightly or wrongly) he can win a championship. So much for him not caring about winning.

Moreover, I’m old enough to remember when it was an article of faith among media commentators (like the ever idiotic Skip Bayless) that, unlike Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan didn’t make his teammates better, and cared more about his own numbers than about winning championships!

That was a stupid and inaccurate reading of Jordan, and I’m inclined to think it’s a similarly dumb reading of LeBron James.

[kingbighair]

@Jimmy_Chitwood

(He doesn’t call himself a king anyway, jesus; he’s not Jim Morrison. What he does, like you said, is perpetuate a brand; he has warmup gear that says King James on it or whatever. But he didn’t invent that image any more than he invented this notion that you win a championship and that makes you a different species of athlete. He’s subject to both of them, whether he “deserves” it or not.)

He absolutely calls himself a king. Whose twitter feed is KingJames? What image is this trying to convey?

There is no contradiction. My point has nothing to do with what fans call him. I am saying he has not earned a description he has given himself.

He has no duty to reject what people call him. It is probably best for business. But if he does not, and people think his brand is unearned, he will face a backlash from fans. See the last 2 weeks for that.

[Tom_Scud]

@astorian

Moreover, I’m old enough to remember when it was an article of faith among media commentators (like the ever idiotic Skip Bayless) that, unlike Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan didn’t make his teammates better, and cared more about his own numbers than about winning championships!

Yep. Not even a Finals appearance until his seventh season, and until he did win one, the story was that unlike Magic (and of course Larry Bird), he was too selfish/a ball-hog/what-have-you to lead a team to a championship.

[Justin_Bailey]

@kingbighair

There is no contradiction. My point has nothing to do with what fans call him. I am saying he has not earned a description he has given himself.

As has been pointed out multiple times in this thread, he did no such thing. The fact that he has run with it is what makes him a colorful figure that the talking heads at ESPN (and most fans) love.

Look at some of the true greats: Michael Jordan, Babe Ruth, Shaquille O’Neal. They’ve got that swagger that fans love (and others love to hate). Lebron has it more than any other player in the NBA right now and he has the numbers to back it up. He is… to coin a phrase… The King.

[gonzomax]

@Jimmy_Chitwood

And, of course, he was selfish and a quitter when he retired to get away from it, and a loser and overrated because he never won a championship (which might have required “turning his back on” the team that drafted him, which he didn’t want to do). And Bonds was selfish because he was seen as holding the media (who pretend they’re “the fans”) in contempt. “We” want a very specific narrative from the superstars we create, and almost every reaction they have to our demands is subject to criticism.

Ultimately, even though you’re getting more animated about it, you’re returning to the same contradiction: he hasn’t earned the right to be called this thing that other people decided he should be called. Somebody else called him King James; that’s how he “earned” it. If you want to be outraged by that, be outraged at the person who decided King James was a good nickname.

(He doesn’t call himself a king anyway, jesus; he’s not Jim Morrison. What he does, like you said, is perpetuate a brand; he has warmup gear that says King James on it or whatever. But he didn’t invent that image any more than he invented this notion that you win a championship and that makes you a different species of athlete. He’s subject to both of them, whether he “deserves” it or not.)

You’re criticizing him for not rejecting a perception that benefits him, because you’ve decided the perception wasn’t earned. And that’s just another issue of how somebody else perceives him. But in either case, that perception is external to him. He does what he does (which includes for instance, what? 29, 19 and 10 in the deciding game this year?) and people react. One of those reactions is a lot of people saying he’s a big god damn deal. He doesn’t owe anybody some kind of duty to forgo the fame or the marketing power that people are handing to him on silver platters. That’s all part of another fictional narrative - the true great - that is entirely defined in hindsight. Who are the true greats? Well, Jordan, obviously. Because he never got caught up in any kind of branding or nickname silliness.

Do not diss Barry sanders. He did not in because he got drafted by the Lions. They have been poorly managed for decades. When he decided to quit, the Lions had just cut or traded his best blockers for salary reasons. He knew he could not win there and he risked getting crippled for life. He was just the best runner in history playing for a crappy organization.
Lebron has been treated as something special since the 8th grade. It is hard too keep it together when you get so much attention as a kid. Then at 18 he becomes extremely wealthy. He begins to believe his ability to play basketball is a big deal and he is special. His entourage has told him how great he is for so long, he thinks he is the King.