"The Decision; The Reaction; The Aftermath!"

It's time to Break It Down!

Without a doubt, the biggest story in sports this week is the death, yesterday, of George Steinbrenner, owner of the New York Yankees. The Yankees…those words by themselves denote with singular distinction the preeminent icon of American Sports franchises, perhaps of all sports organizations, the world over. Steinbrenner bought the flagging franchise for $10 million in 1973. The team’s current value is estimated to be $1.6 billion. Known as The Boss, Mr. Steinbrenner's penchant for hiring, firing, and several times rehiring managers was akin to speed dating. His deep pockets approach to spending the Yankees back into relevancy, and eventual dominance, was a trait rival teams feared, respected, and more than occasionally, detested. George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930 – July 13, 2010); May he Rest In Peace!


OK, as you likely deduced from the title, the central theme of this discourse is not about The Boss; it’s about The King, his new (basketball) court, what followed, and most important, what is still to come. If you have maintained even a basic level of consciousness over the past week, you know LeBron James is relocating from Cleveland/Akron to Miami/South Beach.

After seven years as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron exercised his right as a Free Agent to sign with another team, inking a new pact last Friday with the Miami Heat. In making a determination where he would play next year, LeBron collaborated with ESPN to conduct an elaborate news conference, loosely dubbed “The Decision.” According to various reports, 6 Franchises factored into “The Decision”:

• Chicago Bulls

• Cleveland Cavaliers

• Los Angeles Clippers

• Miami Heat

• New Jersey Nets (Set to move to Brooklyn in 2012)

• New York Knicks

After what seemed an interminable lead-in interview (how long can an hour-long show last anyway?), on a telecast hosted by ESPN sports analyst Jim Gray, LeBron announced “The Decision,” which surely surprised very few viewers. He revealed, “This fall I am going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat.”

All things considered, the reaction was far more spirited than the decision. In Chicago, Los Angeles, New Jersey and New York, fans and NBA executives responded swiftly, but with restraint and civility. They acted in a manner one might have expected, considering most if not all considered themselves long-shots. They were disappointed, and they said so, in muted, direct, and the most dignified manner they could muster. Still there was an element of drama as the NBA execs managed their disappointment artfully.

In Miami, the favorite and the eventual winner, fans partied enthusiastically into the night; visions of sugar plums replaced by fanciful images of NBA Championships, dancing in their heads. Dwayne Wade, seven years a member of the Heat, and Chris Bosh, who came to terms with the team earlier in the week beamed with excitement at the prospect of the soon to be Miami trio taking the court together. LeBron seemed more relieved than happy or excited, to have "The Decision" behind him.

Never before have three more heralded stars of the NBA universe performed as members of the same team. Wade, James, & Bosh; sounds more like a law firm than three fifths of an NBA starting unit. And therein lies the rub. These are three very talented basketball players and are certain to dazzle with an array of stylishly creative scoring and defending pyrotechnics. Yet, the game is played with 5 guys per team on the court at-a-time. The Heat now reside in the land of great expectations, and they still need 9 more players, just to complete their roster. We will soon see if Pat Riley can use prestidigitation to find even more rabbits in what must be the most oversized of hats.

If the reaction in Miami was enthusiastic and excitement-filled, in Cleveland, there was also a passionate response. Understandably, however, it was not a positive one. In fact, many Cavs’ fans were seething with unbridled rage. They were inflamed, literally in some cases, as numerous video shots captured them setting fire to LeBron James jerseys, T-Shirts, sneakers, and other paraphernalia.

Cleveland fans and some sports analysts framed “The Decision” in the same light as that of former Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell moving the team to Baltimore in the middle of the night, after the 1995 season. The fans’ reaction, though irreverent, could largely have been anticipated. Alternately, the response of team majority owner, Dan Gilbert, was remarkably strident, to have come from an NBA executive. In his “Open Letter” to Cleveland fans, Gilbert called James many things, none of them flattering. A Top-10 listing of the things Gilbert called James, includes:

• A deserter

• Narcissistic

• Self-promoting

• Cowardly

• Betrayer

• Self-titled/self-declared former king

• Disloyal homegrown chosen one

• Heartless

• Callous

• Antidote to the Cleveland Curse

Mr. Gilbert, in an effort to frame Lebron’s “Decision” in context he considered appropriately descriptive, declared James’ actions were “Unlike anything ever witnessed in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment.”

In describing his own commitment to lift the Cavaliers to their proper place in the NBA hierarchy, Gilbert insisted, “If you thought we were motivated before tonight to bring the hardware to Cleveland, I can tell you that this shameful display of selfishness and betrayal by one of our very own has shifted our “motivation” to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels.”

Dan Gilbert closed his epic rant by saying, “I PROMISE you that our energy, focus, capital, knowledge, and experience will be directed at one thing and one thing only:

DELIVERING YOU the championship you have long deserved and is long overdue.”  Oh yeah, Gilbert also "promised," the Cavs would win a Championship before LeBron does.

As a casual observer, it occurs to me that had Mr. Gilbert moved proactively, rather than waiting until LeBron decided to leave, to “shift his motivation to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels,” and/or to “direct the Cavs energy, focus, capital, knowledge, and experience to delivering the fans the Championship they long deserved, and is long overdue,” the Cavaliers may already have won a Championship, and LeBron might not be bolting for South Beach. Mind you, that is just a thought.

As for the Aftermath, this one is still unfolding. In a period of less than a week, already:

• Civil Rights Activist, Jesse Jackson, accused Mr. Gilbert of acting as the owner of LeBron James, instead of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ owner. He suggested Gilbert’s words and tone served to treat James like a run-away slave. Mr. Jackson’s retort created its own firestorm. Jackson was widely accused of meddling, and erroneously…and needlessly injecting race into the discussion.

• Dan Gilbert has responded to Jesse Jackson’s assertion, stating in a tersely worded press release, “I strongly disagree with Rev. Jesse Jackson's recent comments and we are not going to engage in any related discussion on it. Going forward, we're very excited about the Cavaliers and the positive future of our region."

• Dallas Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban suggested the NBA should investigate the circumstances behind D-Wade, Chris Bosh, and King James all landing in Miami.

• NBA Commissioner, David Stern, fined Gilbert $100,000 for his rant, said he thought Jackson was mistaken, and indicated no formal request had been made to investigate LeBron-gate.

These matters are important, but not all-telling. The stark reality is the crux of this issue will not be resolved, or placed in its ultimate proper context until the reinvented Miami Heat take the court in November and show whether and when this grandest of NBA experiments is an idea, half or fully baked; ready for Prime Time, or not ready at all. The Heat will still have to navigate successfully the realm of the Eastern Conference, which includes their intra-state neighbors, the Orlando Magic, the talented and improving Chicago Bulls, and the defending Conference Champion Boston Celtics. 

In the event the Heat melt all comers from the slate of Eastern Conference competition, chances are they will then face the reigning World Champion Los Angeles Lakers, and their own talented triumverate of Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and Lamar Odom, guided by Zen-master Phil Jackson. The Lakers, if they advance that far would be seeking an elusive Three-peat, while Jackson would be seeking a record 12th NBA Title as a coach. That is just a sampling of the challenges the Heat must overcome to begin fulfilling the promise of becoming a dynasty.      

In a nutshell, that is the unvarnished truth of “The Decision; The Reaction; The Aftermath.” I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday. For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Steinbrenner

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/07/13/steinbrenner.profile/index.html?hpt=C2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LeBron_James

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwyane_Wade

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Bosh

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Gilbert_(businessman)

http://www.cavstheblog.com/?p=2616

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5372266

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/13/dan-gilbert-lebron-james-_n_643930.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Jackson

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/www.foxsports.com/nba/story/Jesse-Jackson-responds-to-Dan-Gilbert-comments-071110

http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2010/07/nba_commissioner_david_stern_f_1.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Riley

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleveland_Cavaliers

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miami_Heat

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miami_Heat

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miami_Heat

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobe_Bryant

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Jackson

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byron_Scott_(basketball)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Brown_(basketball,_born_1970)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Celtics

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doc_Rivers

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orlando_Magic

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Van_Gundy

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/416980-the-lebron-sweepstakes-2010weighing-six-teams-chances

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_Clippers

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinny_Del_Negro

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Bulls

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Thibodeau

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Knicks

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_D'Antoni

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Jersey_Nets

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avery_Johnson

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Spoelstra

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antawn_Jamison

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas_Mavericks

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Cuban

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/lebron/story/index.html?id=27530

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jl7jl2YBX7M-bm-CyATytsWPmyVA

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Gray_(sportscaster)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIbND_7TSQ0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6tu0LXCAR0

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleveland_Browns

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_Ravens

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Modell