It has been several days since "The Decision" and I went back and forth about whether to write about it. There have been probably millions of people who have weighed in on it.
Let me preface by saying that I don't enjoy the NBA like I used to. One of the main reasons why I don't can be traced back to the team that now resides in Oklahoma City. David Stern, the commissioner of the NBA, allowed the owner of the team to pull out of Seattle, an owner who never had any intention of staying and pretty much let a city get hung out to dry. From that point on, my respect for the NBA dropped tremendously. I will still watch from time to time but I don't enjoy watching it like I used to.
Fast forward to Thursday, LeBron James has a one hour televised event to decide where he is going. Speculation abounds as to where he was going. There was as much (if not more spectacle) than there should have been for someone deciding where they were going to sign. In the end, he decided to leave Cleveland and go to Miami.
There's so much that can be said but I'll just focus on two. The first is the allowance of an hour long special in the first place. I understand why ESPN did it (for the ratings) but really there was no need for it. In a lot of ways, it was just feeding the ego of someone who was seeking attention and approval. LeBron is the type of person who has been (and continues) to try and seek approval. He's not the type of player it seems that is competitive and wants to win and strives in that regard, he just wants people to like him and wants attention. That's not in and of itself a bad thing but when that's all you look out for, then that can be a problem.
The second was lack of foresight that he had with his decision. I think the nature of the whole thing lead to the backlash that is now present throughout not just Ohio but around the country. There are millions of people that really don't like him right now. I think there would have been people regardless who wouldn't have liked that decision. But it could have handled better. Forget the hour long special, have a press conference in Cleveland. Answer the tough questions. And above all else, go out on a high note. If that had happened, there probably wouldn't have been as much backlash as there is.
Kevin Durant, up and coming superstar, announced he was re-signing with (that team) in a twitter message. No circus, no hour long tv special. LeBron, take note and next time handle it a little better.
