Today is opening day around the league and i'm watching the new look Miami Heat against the Boston Celtics.......Boston is stomping the Heat by 15pts right now, 5 min to go in the 3rd. Miami has managed to put up only 44pts to this point, kinda crazy when you realize they have 3 of the top players in the league on their team, including Dwayne Wade and LeBron James

 

Any sport you can score 100 points in can't be that hard right. So no I'm not a fan

 

By far the most educated comment on this board!

 

I'm a big Cavs fan. Had season tickets the last couple seasons. It was good to see the Celtics whip the Heat and then the Cavs beat the Celtics. The problem with the Heat is that they don't know how to play as a team, no chemistry yet. I think if they start out slow and don't start winning quick they will get frustrated and implode very quickly with all the egos on that team.

 

So what's your opinion on LeBron-gate? I don't see what all the hoopla was about, it was nice to see a player has that much control and power over his situation because that's hardly ever the case. The only thing I think he should have done is at the very least made a call to the Gilbert to advise him of his plans before the big "announcement". But other than that, no issues with it.

I agree 100% on the Heat.....but I don't anticipate that will happen. So how are you feeling about your Cavs now? How do you see them doing this year?

 

I too was very pleased with the Boston win over the Heat. I am not a fan of Miami or Lebron. Seems Lebron is ring chasing. I think he should of stayed in Cleveland. You can't win championships over night. But that is just my opinion.

I agree with you on that fact that Lebron should have advised Gilbert before the "announcement". For everything Cleveland has done for him, is that the way you treat the team and fans?

I think Boston is pretty well balanced and talented to win the East. Cleveland looks really good so far. This should be an interesting year.

 

Isn't chasing a ring the goal of every single player that steps on to the court? That's not really the issue, can't be, I think it's an issue of betrayal....there are people who feel LeBron was disloyal to the Cavs organization by what he did. So I think that's where that comes from. I just don't get the logic behind that statement though because like I said, everybody wants that ring and I don't know about you but if I was him I'd do the same thing because at least with Miami he's in a position to be in contention for the ring for years to come. He has a hell of a better chance at winning a title with this Miami team than he has ever had with Cleveland. And not just one title, but many titles for the forseeable future.

I can't knock LeBron for making this move, I don't necessarily agree with the way he handled it though. So many other great players let loyalty stop them from putting themselves in a better position to be able to compete for a ring, so the next time you're watching one of those "greatest players in the nba" shows or discussions let me know if you ever hear any of those players get commended for staying loyal to their team. One thing you can count on hearing is "yeah, he was a great player but he never won the big one." Which effectively knocks them down a couple of rungs on the rating system.

I really think people are so used to management having the upper hand in these situations and the players just doing what they're told that it's almost a culture shock for it to be the other way around, especially with such a high profile player. But at the same time, he did himself no favors by being so "Hollywood" about it.

I like what Rondo said after the Boston/Heat game when asked if Miami was the team to beat in the East.....he looked at the reporter serious as a heart attack and said "I think we are."

 

Well I think he's a traitor and a coward. He gave no indication he was leaving and was in fact hinting that he was going to stay in Cleveland. So there was a big feeling of betrayal. And if you think you have to switch teams and team up with 2 other stars to win then your just a coward and will never be the man. If he would have stayed in Cleveland and won a ring he would have been a legend. Now he just looks like he gave up, gave in, and straight up quit. He promised Cleveland a ring and couldn't deliver and then abandoned us. That's all there is to it. He's a quitter and a coward and I hate his new commercial. Just be yourself, follow your heart, and quit being a tool is my answer to his question lol.

As far as how the Cavs will do this season. I think they will have a decent season, around 35 wins, they have a lot of young guys and a coach that teaches an up-tempo run the floor type of game. I think they will just miss the playoffs because the east is so stacked this year. Looks like another Lakers 3-peat in the grand scheme, woop-tee-doo.

 

Hypothetical situation here: If Dan Gilbert decided to trade LeBron last year due to not knowing if LeBron was gonna stay or go at the end of the year, to ensure that he didn't just lose LeBron outright and get nothing in return, would you feel the same exact way as you do right now about LeBron but about Gilbert instead? How many times have you heard a coach or upper management insist a coach or player isn't being shopped/traded/cut, only to have that player traded/cut/fired shortly thereafter? I don't ever recall anyone being so angry about that happening, it happens all the time! That's why I've learned to not pay that any mind because like my grandmother used to say, where there's smoke, there's fire.

How many times have you heard a player say their trade/release came as a complete and total shock to them? Alot! Owners rarely discuss these type of matters with the player or players before it becomes a done deal, nobody gets all up in arms about that. So why is it that you expect LeBron to do what owners rarely ever do, give advance notice? I expect it because I expect the owners to do the same! Just like I think it's only fair that since we as employees would need to give a 2 week notice if we were to find another job, our current employer should be required to do the same if they wanted to fire us. I don't like the double standard at all!

LeBron can't control how people interpret what he says or does so if you concluded that he was going to do one thing or another before he said himself what he was going to do, that's on you. The man had the biggest decision that he's probably ever had to make and millions upon millions of people were watching and giving their opinion, trying to get him to show his hand, trying to convince him to do something or not do another, for the past 2-3 years leading up to this decision so I can imagine the many different emotions running through his head any given time when the issue got brought up. Surely some days he was leaning one way, other days another way, so I can understand how you could feel he was giving hints one way or another. But at the same time, couldn't him wearing his signature shoes in Knicks colors and constantly wearing Yankees hats be considered a hint that he was planning on going to NY (widely rumored as the team he would end up with). So while it may seem he was hinting at staying sometimes, it seemed he gave just as many hints that he was leaving too.

When a GM or coach makes a move that they think will better their team, nobody calls them traitors or cowards, it's a business and the team has to do what they feel is in their best interest. Players aren't always able to fulfill their contract with the team that gave it to them, due to the team going back on their word and trading them away, they don't get called cowards for that. Teams are constantly looking for the best talent they can afford to put them in a position to win a title and make the moves they can afford to do so. When they succeed the GM gets praised for making the moves he made to put said team together, nobody calls him a coward or traitor for trading away Player A for Player B due to them signing Player A initially to a 5 year deal to play for them but only keeping him for 3 years before trading him. That's the nature of the business! Same rules should apply here. Teams don't consider the effects on a players family that trading him would have, that's the last thing on their minds. So why is it that in this situation when LeBron is wielding the power, he gets called a coward and traitor for making what he felt was his best business decision and not considering (allegedly) the effects it would have on his old organization?

Did his legacy take a hit? I'd agree with that, because I think it would be significantly more difficult to win a title with the squad in Cleveland than with the squad in Miami. But that's also why I like his decision, because at the end of the day it's about winning rings and to have the ability to control your fate and put yourself in a situation where you have a far better shot at doing that is a smart business move. Ask KG what loyalty got him in Minnesota. Ask Clyde Drexler what loyalty got him in Portland. Ask Charles Barkely what loyalty got him. Ask Karl Malone and John Stockton what loyalty got them in Utah. Ask Gary Payton what loyalty got him in Seattle. So many players let loyalty carry too much weight when it comes to making business decisions and it cost them a chance to wear the ring they chased their whole career. Look at KG and Drexler, they both won their titles after being traded away from the team they stayed loyal to. Stockton, Malone and Barkley never won a title, and Gary Payton finally got his hardware after failing on his ring chasing attempt with the Lakers....but as a small bit player for Miami's title winning team in 05 when he was but a shell of what he once was in his prime with Seattle. Can't say he won that title, he simply was on the team that did.

So cut the man some slack, he did just as GM's do every year...made what he perceived to be his best business decision.

I am not angry, mad, upset or offended in any way, shape or form and my comments are not meant to incur any of those emotions. I'm just participating in a healthy discussion/debate about the topic of discussion.

 

Bare with me because it is very difficult to discuss Lebron and be civil about it, thats my disclaimer haha. I could care less if the players get to decide where they play or not. The point was Lebron promised a ring, lead everyone to believe he was staying, and then made a spectacle of leaving on national television. So hell no I won't cut that Benedict Arnold any slack and your not going to convince me otherwise lol. I don't expect you to understand, your not from Cleveland, you weren't invested, the economy of your city wasn't at stake.

Hell yeah I would be mad at Gilbert if he traded Lebron without knowing, but he didn't. But in fact we did officially trade Lebron, that's how we got the trade exception in return. And Teams should be in charge of where players play. You don't tell your boss where your going to work, your boss tells you where to work. The teams pay the players not the other way around. So yes I think the players shouldn't have much of a say. Oh and here is the smallest violin playing the saddest song for the NBA players that make millions of dollars but have to move cities every so often, gimme a break.

Oh and everyone knew he was a NY fan, thats not news. He had shoe colors in a lot of different teams colors and HS colors and college colors... doesn't mean anything. He never hinted of playing there. He hinted several times in the local Cleveland media about staying and that's the truth. The loyalty examples are pretty poor and don't apply, those are all different situations completely, none of those players were on the level of a player Lebron is or aspires to be, how many of them have 2 MVP's, how many of them were on 60+ win teams when they left? The only players worth comparing Lebron to are Jordan and Bryant and look what loyalty got them. At the end of the day Lebron is still a coward and traitor... Let's face it, he couldn't hang and went for the easy way out.

Can we please please please not discuss Lebron? My next post about him will just be a string of profanity and get me banned, LOL. Cavs lost again tonight, it's not looking to be a good season.