All the hate now

[Vintage]

So the fans are to accept being stiffed because of his promiscuis mom. I feel much better now.

No. I think LeBron was planning on leaving Cleveland even if Delonte kept it in his pants. That much is obvious. This has been orchestrated for some time.

I think the Delonte thing was just another reason for him to want to leave, no matter how trivial.

Long story short - this looks like this was planned well before Delonte started his "who's your daddy?" routine with LeBron.


edit: he's also in a tough spot. His franchise lost its marquee player. They will likely struggle next year - both in terms of winning and in filling the stadium. He's a smart guy. I wouldn't put it past him to try and do the "rally around the team" effect to try and get support for the team next year to fill seats. He's a business man.

 

[casmith07]

Eh, he does, but it's buried underneath that smug crap that turns a lot of people off to his image.


I think the most important things Kobe have is a huge stage and 5 rings.

I'm not sure how you can say Kobe Bryant has "smug crap" when he's barely in the public spotlight and is nothing but a professional in interviews and press conferences and any public appearances that you actually do see him.

 

[Bob Sacamano]

I'm not sure how you can say Kobe Bryant has "smug crap" when he's barely in the public spotlight and is nothing but a professional in interviews and press conferences and any public appearances that you actually do see him.

Whenever I see Kobe on TV he has this stupid, smugly smirk on his face.

He's the Donovan McNabb of the NBA as far as personality is concerned.

 

[casmith07]

Whenever I see Kobe on TV he has this stupid, smugly smirk on his face.

He's the Donovan McNabb of the NBA as far as personality is concerned.

LoL...I don't think Kobe Bryant has much of a personality at all.

 

[Bob Sacamano]

LoL...I don't think Kobe Bryant has much of a personality at all.

I should have said forced, fake personality.

 

[nflandbooze]

I'm not sure how you can say Kobe Bryant has "smug crap" when he's barely in the public spotlight and is nothing but a professional in interviews and press conferences and any public appearances that you actually do see him.

Not sure what planet you're living on, but on planet Earth, and most specifically in the U.S.A., when a star NBA player has 5 rings and plays in L.A., he gets a pretty big spotlight.

I'd offer to buy you a TV and cable for a few months, but with you not being family, it would feel weird. :

 

[nflandbooze]

Whenever I see Kobe on TV he has this stupid, smugly smirk on his face.

He's the Donovan McNabb of the NBA as far as personality is concerned.

I don't know who you are, but you are keeping it way real right now. Preach!

 

[TellerMorrow34]

Well first and foremost, I can't believe anyone would have the audacity to defend the way he left, considering how brutal that hour long special he had to publicly rip Cavs fans hearts out and then defecate all over them was. If somehow, some way, DeMarcus Ware pulled that crap on us, I can guarantee you we wouldn't be shrugging it off like it wasn't a big deal. Even if he did, it couldn't match what LeBron did. A native guy, born and raised, coming back with all the hype and promises in the world, and then he publicly breaks up with them. I almost can't believe that made sense to him, but it obviously did. LeBron leaving Cleveland was going to hurt no matter what, but to make a show out of it was pretty classless, and I don't care where the money from that skeptical went.

Now to be fair, the only way he wasn't going to get ripped to shreds by fans and the press, was if he stayed in Cleveland and the Cavs would have been able to get Bosh, or at least Boozer, and then gone on to win it all this year. The problem is, nobody wanted to go to Cleveland, especially since they couldn't offer a big contract, and James wasn't willing to take a big pay cut to stay there. Maybe their FO could have done a better job the past 7 years, but lets not pretend that franchise didn't bend over backwards to accommodate this guy for the past 7 years either.

What makes all of this even more brutal, is that after 7 years of hype in the NBA and all this talk about how he's the best in the game, the way he looked in his final playoff series as a Cav was pretty sad. There was nothing great about him, and the way he took that jersey off for the last time just let us all know, that we was frickin' done. I don't know if he cares about his legacy or not, but he's the single greatest factor that it just took a huge hit.

I'm guessing that if he's able to win a title, or two, in Miami with his friends, while making some pretty darn good money, that he's not going to care to much rather people are angry with him for how he left Cleveland now.

And I couldn't care less if a Dallas Cowboys leaves or how he leaves. It's part of the game. I'm not attached to these guys like they're family or something. I love the team. When they're playing here that's awesome. When they become FA if they go elsewhere then they go elsewhere.

It's happened before, it will happen again, and I couldn't care less. It's part of sports. D-Ware doesn't owe me a thing. He owes himself and his family to do whatever he feels is best for him and his family.

None of it matters. He's gone to bigger and better things as any one of us would if offered a better job.

If I could stay working for a mediocre company in my hometown or take a job in Miami, FL with a much better chance to hit the big time, I'll holler at you from South Beach.

Exactly.

I still don't get why people think he owed Cleveland, or their fans, to stay with the team. Some people are acting like their big brother kicked them in the butt and told them to piss off on his way out of the house or something.

So the fans are to accept being stiffed because of his promiscuis mom. I feel much better now.

How are the fans being stiffed? Cause Cleveland sucks now? They sucked before James got there so they should be used to that by now and, again, there are no players, including James, who owes them anything.

He isn't required to continue to play there, or to be overly nice on his way out. It's part of sports man. Players come and go.

I've never seen anything like the hate for this guy cause he left Cleveland.

 

[nflandbooze]

I've never seen anything like the hate for this guy cause he left Cleveland.

Well you probably should have been paying attention the last decade in regards to the way Kobe is mentioned. For one of the best ever, he's been crapped on about as much as a great player can be crapped on.

 

[rkstevens]

Why is all the hate for Lebron James. He did what he had to do. The Cavs didnt do anything to improve the team. It's obvious it's not about money cause he could have made more if he'd stayed or went to the Knicks. Who cares how it went down. He gave the money to charity. If this owner was smart he never would have given Lebron an extention with an option to opt out(that was just dumb) did nothing else to improve the team other than Shaq which did'nt work out. In my opinion it was what's the best way to win a ring and on paper it was the Heat. Blame the Cavs owner for not building a better team Lebron..

I don't know that the Cavs owner didn't try to put better pieces around Lebron. The Cavs have always been active in the off-season and around the trading deadline. Gilbert even hinted that Lebron was involved in some of those decisions, but who knows how much truth there is to that. When you're over the cap, there's only so much you can do. The problem is that the Cavs were a really good team record-wise, so it's not like they can just lose or trade players away to set yourself up for free agency. The Heat have been mediocre (and awful for one year) since winning the Finals in 2006, and were able to use the indifference from fans to set themselves up for this summer -- in addition to probably having inside information that Bosh and Lebron would be coming.

What I think will be interesting is how popular Wade remains throughout all this. It seems that Lebron's popularity has to go down with fans of his old team plus all the fans of the spurned teams and fans who hate the idea of the Three Me-Egos turning against him. I haven't seen as much anger against Wade, but it seems like there would be some backlash by association from fans who will hate all three players and their gloating, err confidence. Wade's been a pretty popular player in general who has never gotten the hate that Lebron and Kobe have, despite some shady stories about his personal life. My guess is Dwight Howard continues his rise as the face of the NBA with Kobe possibly seeing a bit of a resurgence.

Also, Wade is no young pup. He'll be 6 months away from his 30th birthday when the Finals start next year and he's only 3 1/2 years younger than Kobe and has an history of injuies including back problems. With his mediocre outside shot, he'll have to keep his quickness and speed to continue slashing and getting free throws. I don't think a combo of Lebron and Bosh is close to being as dominating without Wade, so the reign from South Beach may not be as long as they would like.

 

[erich1r]

I agree i'm just surprised that people take this stuff so personal. It's always been a part of sports so it's nothing new. I just don't get why people were surprised he left.

 

[jackrussell]

I'm guessing that if he's able to win a title, or two, in Miami with his friends, while making some pretty darn good money, that he's not going to care to much rather people are angry with him for how he left Cleveland now.

And I couldn't care less if a Dallas Cowboys leaves or how he leaves. It's part of the game. I'm not attached to these guys like they're family or something. I love the team. When they're playing here that's awesome. When they become FA if they go elsewhere then they go elsewhere.

It's happened before, it will happen again, and I couldn't care less. It's part of sports. D-Ware doesn't owe me a thing. He owes himself and his family to do whatever he feels is best for him and his family.


Exactly.

I still don't get why people think he owed Cleveland, or their fans, to stay with the team. Some people are acting like their big brother kicked them in the butt and told them to piss off on his way out of the house or something.




How are the fans being stiffed? Cause Cleveland sucks now? They sucked before James got there so they should be used to that by now and, again, there are no players, including James, who owes them anything.

He isn't required to continue to play there, or to be overly nice on his way out. It's part of sports man. Players come and go.

I've never seen anything like the hate for this guy cause he left Cleveland.

Several of these quotes are so removed from what really is the case.

I believe you are over simplifying your points of contention in an otherwise more complex situation. I think I'll just take what you and some others have said when you mention you don't understand the reaction, or don't get why people are feeling a certain way. Fair enough.

 

[nflandbooze]

What I think will be interesting is how popular Wade remains throughout all this. It seems that Lebron's popularity has to go down with fans of his old team plus all the fans of the spurned teams and fans who hate the idea of the Three Me-Egos turning against him. I haven't seen as much anger against Wade, but it seems like there would be some backlash by association from fans who will hate all three players and their gloating, err confidence. Wade's been a pretty popular player in general who has never gotten the hate that Lebron and Kobe have, despite some shady stories about his personal life. My guess is Dwight Howard continues his rise as the face of the NBA with Kobe possibly seeing a bit of a resurgence.

Also, Wade is no young pup. He'll be 6 months away from his 30th birthday when the Finals start next year and he's only 3 1/2 years younger than Kobe and has an history of injuies including back problems. With his mediocre outside shot, he'll have to keep his quickness and speed to continue slashing and getting free throws. I don't think a combo of Lebron and Bosh is close to being as dominating without Wade, so the reign from South Beach may not be as long as they would like.

Well I think it's for a few reasons. For one, he's arguably the third best player in the NBA, and unlike 1A and 1B, he's never been accused of rape, or ripped out the heart of his home teams fans. This is a guy that isn't just All-Star games and commercials either. We've watched him play in the Finals, and put on a show like a truly great player should, which gives him credibility his new teammates still lack. Furthermore, I think he'll ultimately get a lot of credit for choosing to stay with Miami and successfully helping to recruit LeBron and Bosh. I mean, if I was a Heat fan, I would love Wade now more than ever for helping pull this off. While I'm sure he'll get some hate during the season, he's not the guy people call the best in the league, and he's not the one that left home. I think it makes sense that he isn't getting bashed right now.

As far as their reign goes, I don't think it's a stretch to picture them putting at least 4 great season together. Also, I'm not going to count Riley out of anything in terms of bringing guys in over the years. I think it's possible for the Heat to transition from Wade's team to LeBron's in a few season, and Riley might be able to bring some other guys in along the way to keep the Heat near the top of the heap for as long as 6 or 7, or maybe even 8 years, considering LeBron is only 25. While I realize his contract could allow him to bail early, the other possibility is that he stays, and they have success for years to come.

They look like they're going to be the most interesting story in basketball for years to come, and it's going to be fun to see if they can live up to the hype.

 

[TheCount]

I agree i'm just surprised that people take this stuff so personal. It's always been a part of sports so it's nothing new. I just don't get why people were surprised he left.

They aren't taking it personally that he made his choice, they are taking it personally that his choice wasn't their choice.

If he had gone to the teams they wanted him to go to, they'd be worshiping the ground he walks on.

Personally, I've never been a huge Lebron fan. I think he's physically gifted, but as a player there are multiple individuals I'd give the ball to for the last shot before him.

The terrible part is I'm actually a Heat fan and wanted to see Wade and Bosh do their thing and possibly win a championship but now with Lebron there, Wade will probably never get acknowledged for being as good as he is.

The funny part is that while everyone was waiting with baited breath to see which way Lebron would go, Wade stayed with the team that drafted him and recruited two stars to join him there after being in essentially the same position Lebron was last year (being in the playoffs on a team where he had to do everything).

No one's going to champion Wade though, it's all about Lebron hate/love.

 

[casmith07]

They aren't taking it personally that he made his choice, they are taking it personally that his choice wasn't their choice.

If he had gone to the teams they wanted him to go to, they'd be worshiping the ground he walks on.

Personally, I've never been a huge Lebron fan. I think he's physically gifted, but as a player there are multiple individuals I'd give the ball to for the last shot before him.

The terrible part is I'm actually a Heat fan and wanted to see Wade and Bosh do their thing and possibly win a championship but now with Lebron there, Wade will probably never get acknowledged for being as good as he is.

The funny part is that while everyone was waiting with baited breath to see which way Lebron would go, Wade stayed with the team that drafted him and recruited two stars to join him there after being in essentially the same position Lebron was last year (being in the playoffs on a team where he had to do everything).

No one's going to champion Wade though, it's all about Lebron hate/love.

Good points. Wade was there since the start, and he stayed and had people come to him. Pretty good work, I'd say.

The leader of the team unquestionably should be Wade.