The Lebron James Debocle

Lebron James deciding to leave his hometown team to go and play for the Miami Heat alongside Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh has turned Lebron into a villian overnight. Why? Is it because he decided to go to Miami or for the hour long special that he and ESPN partnered up to broadcast? In my eye its a combination of both, a little more for the, "Decision." When its all said and done, this whole situation can be summed up in a vebatum quote from the one and only Allen Iverson, "They (the media) build you up and are your bestfriend, but as soon as you make one mistake, they will turn their back on you." They are actually waiting for you to mess up." This was evident as soon as the hour long special went off air. Although ESPN promoted this show the whole week leading up to it, they along with their analyst embarked on a week long tearing down of Lebron James.

Watching and reading each article that slammed Lebron James was almost unbearable for me. It was almost as if they didn't realize that they had created this guy that they were now breaking down. They were the ones that put him on covers of magazines dubbing him the next coming of Micheal Jordan. They were also the ones who put him on such a high pedestal before he had even played a single NBA game. Were they not the ones who made him out to be a basketball god before he even won a Championship? Out of his seven years they also pointed out his rare size, athleticism, and unselfishness. They pointed out everything except his flaws. But as soon as he decided to go to Miami, the media that praised LBJ, grew some balls and began to point out his shortcomings. Starting with the bitch of a owner Dan Gilbert, who wrote a 5 page letter accusing James of the ultimate sport sin, QUITTING. Where were those accusations during the playoffs? Oh yea, he couldn't talk due to a dick in his mouth. My point with this scrambled rant is that owners and media heads should hold every star accountable at every moment, don't act like a  scorned female when he decides to jump ship in order to be in a better position to win championships.

2010 USA Basketball

The 2010 USA Basketball team is missing the key components of its predecessor, The Redeem Team, due to their off-season obligations(injuries,weddings,contract limitations, etc..). Kevin Durant, who was on the cusp of making the Redeem Team, is now at the forefront of this years roster. Most of the NBA analyst believe that the success of this team rides squarely on KD's shoulders. This is backed up by his regular season performance which earned Durant the regular season scoring title(30 ppg). Although this is a valid point, I on the other hand believe that the Americans will go as far as the second or third scorer allows them to. I believe that Derrick Rose will emerge as that second threat each night. With his improved jump shot and his ability to finish at the rim, there is no doubt in my mind that Rose will be up for the task. Stephen Curry will be prove to be a valuable asset to the team also, not only for his innate ability to knock down the three, but for his play-making ability and his sneaky rebounding(i do recall him recording a triple double during the season). I would love to put Rudy Gay in this category, but his history of going through the motions and his lack of toughness negates my wishful thinking. But if there is a guy that can get players playing at a high caliber, it is Coach K. So if Mr. Gay can prove me wrong and not cower against the rough international players, team USA will gain another very deadly weapon and make it out of the World Championships without any blemishes on its record. Only time will tell.