BTeamBombers.com A Website About Sports

The Forums: Is LeBron Slipping?

Okay kids - we're trying something new here. Welcome to the first B-Team forum. This is a new feature where the entire B-Team and maybe a guest blogger or two get the chance to weigh in on a hot button topic.  And this shit's supposed to be interactive - so for the love of Christ USE THE COMMENTS SECTION (that's the thing that says "comments" that you write your opinions in).  We want to hear what you have to say.  This forum is for everyone.  So let's hear it!  My buddy Chris is getting us started off tonight as we discuss the recent realization the King James might be human. So without further ado: Here's the B-Team's thoughts on the drak, competitive side of LeBron James:

Still the King?

Chris Cwik:
This whole LeBron James situation is playing out like a classic Greek tragedy. All heroes have their flaws. Let's face it, you don't hear about the NBA without mention of LeBron James. He is the future, the player that you model your game after, the next MJ. He's even personable and seems like he's a pretty funny guy. In the whole LeBron vs Kobe debate, no one takes Kobe. Let's rephrase that, no one wants to take Kobe. However, here is LeBron's tragic flaw: he's way too competitive. Typically, we want our athletes to be ultra-competitive. They always demand the best out of themselves and everyone around them. Who doesn't love that in an athlete? LeBron, though, seems to be taking it a little too far.

Sure, I admit, it didn't bother me that LeBron didn't shake hands with the Magic after a loss. Athletes should be frustrated when they lose, especially considering he didn't have any help from his teammates. The media, however, had a field day with it. Now, with the whole tape confiscating, dunk-fest video, my opinion may have changed. I understand the competitiveness and the will to win, but doesn't that have to end at some point. The past few months haven't been so good to LeBron, but freaking out over a kid dunking on you shows that LeBron may have hit rock bottom. Let the kid have his 15 minutes of fame and move on. If there is a positive for all the Cavs fans out there, it's that maybe LeBron gets so crazy about the past few months that he goes into "there is no way I'm losing in the playoffs again mode" and takes his game to a truly unbelievable level. Then again, the tragedy always makes for the better story.
- Chris

Wild Bill:
Alright lookit. Everybody's blowing this thing waaaaay out of proportion. First of all, Mr. Cwik - THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS BEING WAY TOO COMPETITIVE - especially when you're an NBA star who gets paid millions of dollars to do one thing: win championships. So let's just cancel that shit right now. Should he have shook hands? Yes. Should he have apologized after he didn't? Sure. But let's remember here that we're dealing with a 23 YEAR OLD KID who before he reached the NBA only lost a handful of games in his life. We're dealing with a kid who has the weight of an entire franchise, city and league on his shoulders. Not making the finals - again - IS KIND OF A BIG DEAL.

Now as far as this whole supposed "dunk tape" situation goes, let's look at what really happened: a guy who WASN'T SUPPOSED TO BE FILMING SOMETHING got his tape confiscated after an NBA star supposedly got dunked on. Now I don't want to start some sort of big conspiracy theory here, but are we sure LeBron got dunked on? Is it possible that homeboy was pissed because his tape got jacked so he floated this story to his buddies in the sports media. As far as I know, this camp had a pretty clear "no filming" policy and I can understand why college and pro players in the middle of the offseason and not in playing shape wouldn't want their runs ending up on youtube. Did the dunk happen? Probably. Did the tape get taken away? Definitely. Did it get taken because of the dunk? Maybe. It could have been because the motherfuckers were told not to film practice and they did it anyway. Either way, we're making a mountain out of a mole hill here. You know how you know LeBron's on top? Because everyone is tryna knock him down. And that's sad.

Does LeBron make mistakes? Yeah. That's what guys in their twenties do. We're walking, talking, drinking, smoking mistake makers. Most of us have the luxury of only looking stupid to a handful of people when we do. So let's cut the King some slack and appreciate the fact that we're getting to watch one of the greatest, most entertaining players in the history of the NBA. Let's appreciate that LeBron is generous, magnanimous and outgoing about 95% of the time and not sweat the 5% when he just needs some time for LeBron.
-Wild Bill

Sean Hef:
It made me think of when Lebron walked off the court without shaking the Magic's hands that he's breaking one of the most basic rules of sportsmanship that every kid learns playing tee-ball. At the end of the game you shake hands with the other team no matter what. Any kid who ever played sports got that beat into their heads growing up. But perhaps that doesn't apply to professional athletes. Didn't Tom Brady do that when the Patriots got knocked out of the playoffs. I mean everyone would agree if after the Magic won Dwight Howard rubbed it in Lebron's face than he'd be destroyed by the media. So why shouldn't a athlete be critized acting like a child when they lose. Then again it was the fans, the media spotlight, the sponsors that supports Lebron's interstellar super stardom so who's surprised the guy has a ego problem. If the same thing happened to Jordan back in the day I could see him and those who protected his persona (Nike) snatching up that guy's tape. Today, personality is almost as important as what the player achieves professionally. Look at Tim Duncan. Wins a NBA Finals every few years, but the guy couldn't sell a sneaker if his life depended on it. The good always comes with the bad.
-Hef