No King In Cleveland

There’s no “King” in Cleveland, folks.  Yes, the Cavaliers had an impressive win over the Warriors on Wednesday Night, but the NBA world knows what the final outcome of this series will be.  The Cavs are not going to win three out of the next four games against the Warriors with two games on the road.  Go ahead and try to convince yourself that it’s going to happen.  Game Three was a nice story, but in the big picture it means very little.

The self proclaimed “King” of the NBA is once again about to fail in the NBA Finals.  Lebron James is about to be 2-5.  The Golden State Warriors are on their way to back to back NBA Championships.  The Warriors are now being compared to all-time great teams such as the 80’s Lakers and Celtics and also the 90’s Bulls.  The comparison is now becoming real as the Warriors are poised to be strong contenders to win again next year and, perhaps, more years after that.  This is a story for another day.  Today, we’ll focus on how Lebron James has fallen short which has become a theme with his NBA career.

If or when Warriors win this series, the Lebron apologists will be in full force over the entire summer.  Are you ready?

Lebron didn’t have enough talent around him.

Lebron had to face an all-time great team.

Lebron’s teammates didn’t do enough.

Lebron is often compared to all-time great players like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird.  Yet, there’s something that’s missing in those comparisons.  All of those players overcame adversity to lead their respective teams to multiple NBA Championships.  Granted, Lebron won championships, but was he a true leader on those teams?  Yes, he was the best player on the Heat, but he clearly jumped ship to join a team with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh.  Picture Bird joining the Lakers, Jordan joining to Pistons, or Magic joining the Sixers.  It wouldn’t happen.  Those players took their teams from the bottom to the top and took pride in that.  Lebron couldn’t do it in Cleveland the first time around and he’s not going to do it this year.  Why?  Well, it’s simple.  He isn’t the leader those players were.

Do you know what Bird, Magic, and Jordan all had in common?  They all failed at various points in their careers and they took full accountability for it.  As the leaders of their teams, they didn’t point fingers at teammates, lobby to get coaches fired, and talk about their individual performances.  They accepted falling short and became determined to become better because of it.  Lebron?  The apologists will tell you that it’s never Lebron’s fault.  If Lebron fails, it’s on Kyrie Irving.  It’s on Kevin Love.  It’s on Tyron Lue.  He’s been on a top two team in the NBA in each of the last six years as a result of jumping onto teams that best fit his situation and he has not delivered in the Finals consistently.

“The King” title was never earned.

“The King” is being dethroned.  There’s a new order in the NBA and it’s refreshing to fans who like good basketball.  The put the head down into the lane, miss a shot, and complain to the refs to get the call approach no longer wins.  Instead, a group of players who run the floor well, pass until they find the open man, and can shoot the lights out prevail.  The Golden State Warriors are bringing the NBA back to relevance.  “The King” is losing again.  Stephen Curry is better.  The NBA world knows it.

Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Joe Montana, Tom Brady.

Peyton Manning, Jerry West, Lebron James.

Get the comparisons right.  Lebron is not a great leader and he’s not an all-time great player.  A player who is about to be 2-5 in the Finals cannot be compared to the best players that ever played the game.

 

 

 

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