Long time NBA fan and a fan of LBJ here. Not a Heat fan per say (T-Wolves fan, horrible I know) anyways, I've always liked LBJ even after the Descion and all that, but after watching game 1 of the Finals I don't wanna ever hear talk of him being the best ever or anything like that. That mantle is MJ's all the way IMO but I know my view is skewed as I'm only 33. My pops would talk about Lou Al Cinder when he played for the Bucks and obviously there's Magic, Bird, Bill Russell and Wilt among others. I remember the Jordan flu game or when Isaiah Thomas scored like a ton of points on one ankle. I used to play a ton of ball, I know how bad a cramp can be but don't you think you gotta Man up some how in that situation? Game is on the line, your team needs u, that's where greatness shines. What do you guys think?

 

this sums up my opinion of him rather nicely I think.



never liked the dude, never will.

joakim noah said it best, them boys are too hollywood.

 

I have not liked Lebron because he shunned the Knicks. However, 1 game, especially game 1 doesn't mean anything.

Lebron had cramps. It's hard to play through cramps. Unless you had them, you wouldn't know. It's nothing you can "push through". When your muscles fail they fail.

Unfortunately, Lebron will go down as the greatest of all time when it is all said and done. The thing with Lebron is that he will most likely finish with 6 titles and if not more, so that takes care of that. He won't get 11 like Russel. So people will try to use that against him.

However, look at Lebrons game. He can defend, he can rebound, he can shoot, he is great at assists, he can play at three different positions. There hasn't been an all around player like him in the history of the game.

So yeah, while we may not like him, it is not fair to take anything away from him.

While I rather have the Spurs win the series, I know that the Heat will win this series.

 

I'm a Spurs fan. I don't like LeBron James.

That said, the human body is a very complex machine. You can't compare cramps to getting the flu. It's one thing to work through illness - your body can still move even if you want to throw up every 3 minutes. With cramps, especially if you're a 6'8" 265lb. athlete, when your huge leg muscles stop working, there isn't much you can do except get LeBronned off the court. Everybody's body responds to things differently. LeBron has the propensity to cramp up while the two 38 year-olds on the court (Duncan and Allen) were just fine. It's just how his body works. All the conditioning in the world won't overcome genetics. It's unfortunate that it happened but he'll be back with a vengeance in game 2.

 

I think he's a self-absorbed, over-hyped douche. But then, I think that about pretty much every high-profile professional athlete.

 

I didn't watch the game last night, but I don't understand the hate for James. He is basically the only player in history that can effectively play and defend all five positions. His team is old and the Spurs are deep - he can't defend all 5 guys on the court at once.

And the decision - give me a break. People have press conferences when they switch jobs all the times. Just because James did it a little differently, doesn't mean he a bad guy. Frankly, the decision raised a bunch of money for charity. I've also never heard of him getting in trouble outside the game which is a lot more than you can say for many top athletes.

You guys may not remember, but Jordan punched a team mate. Jordan had several high profile affairs. Jordan has had gambling issues. Jordan gave up on his team and quit basketball in the middle of their championship run. Have any of those things happened with James? Jordan was awesome and I loved watching him, but James is awesome too. The guy's a human, give him a break.

 

Pampered Ass Baby. Oh No its hot I have a cramp..... Talk to me when you've wore 70+ lbs of body armor and gear in 150 degree weather. ( Oh let's not include the 20-40 degrees that get added when your in a truck)

So does this I'm in better shape than Lebron?

 

That's only because Joakim Noah gets beat by the Heat every year on the way to the Finals. If he was on the Heat, he'd be singing a different tune.

 

Not a fan of LeBron either (at least not since the Decision), and not a fan of the Heat (go Raptors!). While I don't outright HATE him...well, not as much anyways, I don't have to root for him. Hey! That's kinda like Batman Begins: "I won't kill you...but I don't have to save you."

But I digress. Two items to address here:

1) Last night's cramping
Agree with those here that said playing thru a flu =/= playing thru cramping. And this is speaking from personal experience: I ran a marathon 2012, and at the 39K mark (of 42.2) the cramps started kicking in. The pain was unbelievable as I could feel and see every single muscle and tendon in my legs (calves, quads, hamstrings, you name it) twitching like mad, was down for the count on the side of the road. Wanted to soldier on but physically could not take another step. Didn't even finish the race, it was tough having to press "stop" on my watch and essentially give up, since that moment felt like I pissed away 4 months of grueling training.
Tl;dr: cramping isn't something one can physically play thru, so you shouldn't really hold that against LeBron for last night.

2) His legacy, when all is said and done
Yes, Michael is #1, no question. At one point I wondered about Wilt and his off-the-charts stats. But my pops was around to see Wilt play, and he goes with Mike as well.
The craziest thing is LeBron could have surpassed MJ. He has all the tools and physical gifts. Just his mental toughness and drive would fall a bit short, but who knows how he could have matured over time.
But we'll never get that chance. Forming that superteam in Miami is a cop out. That would be like Charles, Reggie & Ewing getting together. Or even MJ flying the coop to team with a few all-stars after not getting past Detroit those years.
AT BEST he can finish is 1b to Michael's 1a, no matter how many rings he finishes with. But that's just my opinion.

 

The hate for Lebron James is absurd.

I use to be a James hater too, because it was what everyone else was doing after the decision. He somehow let the entire country down because of his decision to play in Miami and somehow became the most hated athlete in the world despite doing so much good off the court. Give it a rest.

This guy is an all-time great with flaws ... like every single other all-time great. I can't believe the comparisons to Jordan are still happening.

"Lebron did what last night?! Oh man, Jordan would never have done that!"
"Lebron won a championship? Oh man, Jordan did it first though."
"Lebron scored how many? Oh man, Jordan would have scored more."

Absurd.

You can't play through cramps. Anyone who says they can had one calf muscle stiffen up during a jump shot, stretched it out, and thought how manly it was to keep playing. And if for one second you think Lebron was faking the cramps, over exaggerating them, wimping out about them and not being a man ... really? C'mon, don't be ignorant.

I can't wait till Lebron has been retired for 20 years and we fondly look back on his accomplishments. The hate that is happening now, in the present, is humorous.

 

HAHA Even Gatorade was trolling Lebron:

Gatorade.

@ryanbkoo The person cramping wasn't our client. Our athletes can take the heat.
— Gatorade (@Gatorade) June 6, 2014​

James is an endorser of competitor Powerade, and the people running Gatorade's official Twitter account took great pride in pointing out the distinction after James couldn't return to the game.

@CarmichaelDave This is awkward....We don't sponsor him. #fail
— Gatorade (@Gatorade) June 6, 2014​

@LazyBumDrew we were waiting on the sidelines, but he prefers to drink something else. — Gatorade (@Gatorade) June 6, 2014
​

And Gatorade continued trolling James…

@PrinceAmukamara You've always had good taste, Prince.
— Gatorade (@Gatorade) June 6, 2014​

@OfficiallyRandy Thanks, Randy. We've been hydrating all day. We never cramp.
— Gatorade (@Gatorade) June 6, 2014​

@AthIeteMotivate Especially during important games.
— Gatorade (@Gatorade) June 6, 2014

Y! SPORTS
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