Today, free agency saw it's biggest moment so far, with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh headed down to South Beach. We all knew it was a possibility, but now that it's actually happened, the last major question is: what will happen to the prized jewel, The King, LeBron James?
James has announced that he'll be announcing his decision live on ESPN in a one hour special in primetime tomorrow, July 8, 2010. Don't just save the date, remember it; it could be the biggest day in the NBA this decade.
I couldn't be more excited about this announcement, as I've been waiting for LeBron to decide how he'll tell the world the answer to the multi-million dollar question ($16.6 million a year to be exact). But, people say it's too dramatic, that this is becoming more of a soap opera with all its twists and turns than about actual sports. To the haters like these, I say: don't you realize the magnitude of this decision? The shock waves that it could send through not only the league but sports? What do you want, a written statement from LeBron to be broadcast at 10 AM on public television? If I'm LeBron, I'm milking every last drop out of this free agency process. I'm doing what recruits do and laying hats on a table, putting on the hat of the team that I've chosen; I'm having the press conference and then leaving midway, hopping on a plane, and whatever city I fly to, means that's the one I choose; I'm standing up, throwing the chalk up in the air, and then having a sign put up behind the chalk, so that when the chalk finally dissipates, everyone can see what team I'm going to; I'm making this a pay-per-view event.
I'd have to laugh at anyone who didn't do the same thing. Imagine you're getting all of this attention, from media, from fans, from people who haven't even watched a whole basketball game in their entire lives, and you've been getting that attention for the past few years. You have an urge a need to impress these people, and that's what LeBron is doing. This is the man that people have waited for, fans have waited for, teams have waited for, the NBA has waited for, and the world of sports has waited for to make up his mind; not Dwyane Wade, not Chris Bosh, LeBron James. People have some undeserved view of LeBron as one of the most egotistical guys out there, but I really don't think he is. Up until this free agency bonanza, he didn't even have a Twitter account, and up until he had that Twitter account he had been silent throughout this whole process. He didn't pull a Chris Bosh, bringing cameras into the room with him during his meetings with teams in order to make a documentary, nor did he tweet about how the meetings were going. He's never done anything to call out for attention, we've just given it to him, pushed it on him. I'm not saying he doesn't want it, but he doesn't necessarily seek it, doesn't cry out for it like so many other star athletes do. People just think he's self-absorbed because of all the attention he gets from Nike, from being the only good player on his team, from all the credit the media gives him; yet he's composed, has a steady girlfriend, kids, and has remained loyal to his hometown even though he could have complained and complained as so many do about the lack of support he had. This isn't LeBron trying to steal the spotlight as much as realizing that everyone would watch him make his decision. So why not have it, and give the proceeds to a good cause in the process?
I'm also not going to say that LeBron's ego is nonexistent. Every star of his caliber, and there are very few of them, has to have a little bit of an ego, to be successful at least. I mean to suggest having a television special for yourself to the biggest sports television station around certainly isn't modest, but, it's not overdoing it either. Sure, this NBA Free Agency has been a soap opera so far, and this only makes it worse, but what's the problem with enjoying such an unprecedented moment, with an unprecedented event? As long as other athletes aren't convinced that they can do the same when their free agency comes around, and this never happens again, what's the harm of having a little fun, and lots of excitement with this decision? It only comes around, well, never.
Tomorrow night is the night that the free agency bonanza ends, and a new era possibly begins. The Heat may have a Super Trio lined up, which could create an unprecedented dynasty, or it could have Bosh and Wade alone, and still become one of the elite teams in the league, and an immediate championship contender. Any other new team that LeBron goes to, whether it's the Bulls, the Knicks or the Nets, becomes an immediate championship contender. If he can make the Cavs the best regular season team in the league, imagine what he can do with guys like Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and now Carlos Boozer on the Bulls; Brook Lopez, Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, and possibly soon, David Lee with the Nets; and Amar'e Stoudemire, Danilo Gallinari and a big time free agent next summer with the Knicks?
But then again, he can return to the Cavaliers, what I call, biting the bullet, and save his hometown from going off into irrelevancy, while all the other free agents surround themselves with solid supporting casts. It's like in my favorite movie, It's A Wonderful Life, where the main character George Bailey stays at home to help run the family business, while his brother and friends go off and make millions, become famous and do great things, while he's stuck in crummy, old Bedford Falls. Sure it's noble for James to do what Bailey did, sticking around, and serving as the hero in his hometown, even though he could have gone on to bigger and better things, but this isn't a fell good movie; there's no way of knowing there will be a happy ending to this story if LeBron stays in Cleveland. There's the major possibility that his prime could pass him by, surrounded by an awful supporting cast incapable of helping him win a title, while his buddies Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh win the championships and secure the legacy that LeBron passed on by sticking around in his hometown. LeBron could become the biggest wasted talent in the history of sports, instead of the best basketball player to ever live.
If inconsequential shows like Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives (sorry for alienating any readers) are good enough for primetime, then an event that has huge effects on both the future of LeBron, several NBA teams, and even American cities, is certainly good enough to be broadcast in the primetime slot, and I'm sure will be a moment to remember.
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