LeBron's legacy

[PP34]

Seriously, where does this leave LeBron now?

Don't worry about what happens in Cleveland in the future, look more at the context of the decision. Comparing him to all-time greats, it's obvious that Lebron stands on his own. Like it or not, as great as he is, he has abandoned a train headed for derailment once again to jump on a train headed down a clearer path. Bird, Magic, MJ etc never did this.

Is LeBron now firmly to be known as a quitter? We all talked about it post-decision but then it disappeared once he won the titles.

Or is this decision more of an attempt by LeBron to heal the wounds he opened up in Cleveland and league-wide when he ditched them in 2010?

 

[Westy Bogan]

This is just as big of gamble as staying in miami. I would trust Pat Riley more to get pieces then I would Dan Gilbert

 

[PP34]

This is just as big of gamble as staying in miami. I would trust Pat Riley more to get pieces then I would Dan Gilbert

A gamble? I'm not a cap expert (I was okay a few years back but my knowledge escapes me now), but with Waiters, Varejao, Wiggins and Tristan Thompson surely there they have assets to move on to bring in that next guy or bring in a few more veterans, experienced guys?

This team will probably be the East's best, unless Rose rediscovers his game or something else drastic happens. Out in the West, their threats will remain the Spurs although I think this is the final year, the Thunder and Rockets (I think with a few shrewd moves they could shoot up to contention). The Clippers are an unknown.

Other than the Spurs and Thunder who I think at the present time would be far superior to the Cavs, there aren't too many real threats to the Cavs.

 

[Westy Bogan]

But he is still going to an organisation that always *s up. Big risk compared to where he was

 

[PP34]

But he is still going to an organisation that always ****s up. Big risk compared to where he was

This time though they've got Kyrie who will surely learn a thing or two from LeBron, they don't have Mike ******* Brown, Varejao is arguably more useful and Tristan Thompson is handy. That's a lot better already than Jamison, O'Neal, West, Williams, Parker etc

 

[Primetime Pricey]

* me i hate these threads. A quitter? Really?
Dude did everything for Cleveland and after he repeatedly asked for signings and promising they would they kept on bringing in guys whoe were either done as players or avg. Now he is leaving Miami after taking them to 4 straight finals and 2 rings to play for his hometown. If he stayed in Miami they would have been contenders so its not jumping off a sinking ship. The East is that bad Miami would have prb still made the finals.
In the end this is just another LeBron hate thread when the dude doesnt deserve it. Maybe i should have started a KG/Allen thread for jumping off again once the Celtics became s**t...
Oh and dont compare this to Jordan/Magic/Bird. The difference is they werent drafted into a s**t team and had hall of fame players around them so they didnt have to and who did LeBron have in Cleveland originally? oh Mo Williams. Please

 

[Hipster Doofus]

**** me i hate these threads. A quitter? Really?
Dude did everything for Cleveland and after he repeatedly asked for signings and promising they would they kept on bringing in guys whoe were either done as players or avg. Now he is leaving Miami after taking them to 4 straight finals and 2 rings to play for his hometown. If he stayed in Miami they would have been contenders so its not jumping off a sinking ship. The East is that bad Miami would have prb still made the finals.
In the end this is just another LeBron hate thread when the dude doesnt deserve it. Maybe i should have started a KG/Allen thread for jumping off again once the Celtics became s**t...
Oh and dont compare this to Jordan/Magic/Bird. The difference is they werent drafted into a s**t team and had hall of fame players around them so they didnt have to and who did LeBron have in Cleveland originally? oh Mo Williams. Please

Nicely summed up. Can't blame Lebron here.

 

[Dagless]

He'll put Gordon on the straight and narrow, subsequently ensuring a championship for the Browns as well.

 

[randyzany]

This is just as big of gamble as staying in miami. I would trust Pat Riley more to get pieces then I would Dan Gilbert

Riley did diddly squat. I thought it was pretty damn obvious that The Big 3 decided that out of the 3 cities their respective franchises were based in, Miami was the most attractive due mainly to the weather and tax incentives.

It had nothing to do with this mythical bs that riley is some goat gm. All that geriatric did was clear the cap space to fit them in. Whoop de doo, any imbecile can do that. lol

 

[randyzany]

But he is still going to an organisation that always ****s up. Big risk compared to where he was

Let's face it, Cleveland is not attractive destination for FAs. They tried to get Lebrone a quality supporting cast but playing alongside Lebrone was not enough of an inducement to forego more money (overpaying B grade players is common to convince them to sign to smaller markets) and 'sexier' cities in his first 7 years there. Now might be a different story, Allen and some other vet ring chasers appear to be willing to join him at this stage of their careers.

Let's not pretend all the franchises are competing on an equal playing field. The Lakers have feasted on these advantages (bigger market and sexy locale) for years and I'm pretty sure their GMs would struggle to assemble the same star studded teams if they worked for the milwaukees and minnesotas of the NBA instead.

 

[tigs2010]

**** me i hate these threads. A quitter? Really?
Dude did everything for Cleveland and after he repeatedly asked for signings and promising they would they kept on bringing in guys whoe were either done as players or avg. Now he is leaving Miami after taking them to 4 straight finals and 2 rings to play for his hometown. If he stayed in Miami they would have been contenders so its not jumping off a sinking ship. The East is that bad Miami would have prb still made the finals.
In the end this is just another LeBron hate thread when the dude doesnt deserve it. Maybe i should have started a KG/Allen thread for jumping off again once the Celtics became s**t...
Oh and dont compare this to Jordan/Magic/Bird. The difference is they werent drafted into a s**t team and had hall of fame players around them so they didnt have to and who did LeBron have in Cleveland originally? oh Mo Williams. Please

Well said. No issue with him going back home. I think if he jumped to a 3rd team then it would be an issue.

 

[tigs2010]

Riley did diddly squat. I thought it was pretty damn obvious that The Big 3 decided that out of the 3 cities their respective franchises were based in, Miami was the most attractive due mainly to the weather and tax incentives.

It had nothing to do with this mythical bs that riley is some goat gm. All that geriatric did was clear the cap space to fit them in. Whoop de doo, any imbecile can do that. lol

We've made playoffs 16 out of 19 years he's been in charge. His legacy to the Heat isn't bringing in the Big 3.

 

[randyzany]

We've made playoffs 16 out of 19 years he's been in charge. His legacy to the Heat isn't bringing in the Big 3.

*meh* Atlanta has an impressive record of making the post-season as well, treadmill team be treadmilling

The only other achievement of note is the 06 chip and even that got handed to him on a platter because Shaq picked the heat as his best chance to win a ring to get back at the lakers, it has zero to do with his goat-like ability as a gm.

 

[PP34]

**** me i hate these threads. A quitter? Really?
Dude did everything for Cleveland and after he repeatedly asked for signings and promising they would they kept on bringing in guys whoe were either done as players or avg. Now he is leaving Miami after taking them to 4 straight finals and 2 rings to play for his hometown. If he stayed in Miami they would have been contenders so its not jumping off a sinking ship. The East is that bad Miami would have prb still made the finals.
In the end this is just another LeBron hate thread when the dude doesnt deserve it. Maybe i should have started a KG/Allen thread for jumping off again once the Celtics became s**t...
Oh and dont compare this to Jordan/Magic/Bird. The difference is they werent drafted into a s**t team and had hall of fame players around them so they didnt have to and who did LeBron have in Cleveland originally? oh Mo Williams. Please

People will view him as a quitter, not everybody loves him like you seem to.

Of course he did. Nobody is denying what he did for Cleveland. He saw an easy option and jumped at the chance. Are you really going to deny this? Miami wouldn't get out of the East this year. What moves were they going to make? Bosh was only becoming more and more useless, Wade is struggling with age, and the rest of their team is very ordinary. Chicago should be a top team if Rose stays healthy which I actually think he will do. The Pacers are going to remain near the top, and realistically if they didn't self-destruct midway through the season they would've been in the finals.

How is this a hate thread? Not everyone wants to suck off the guy like you, as you're always defending him. I'm far from a hater, in fact if you look at my posting history the majority of my hate while LeBron was in Miami was targeted more at Wade, the fans, Pat Riley and other flogs that have played or have been associated with that franchise.

Go ahead, be my guest. Start the Allen/KG thread. Garnett wasn't wanted by the organisation so why would he bother hanging around? I'm sure if the Celtics wanted KG for his leadership they would've kept him and he would have had no complaints. KG is probably one of the great team players of all time, so I hardly think you can insult him in that regard.

You can start one on Allen because he did quit. That will damage his legacy significantly. It's already well known.

Like it or not, by objective NBA fans, Garnett will be remembered as the guy who gave his all for the Wolves, and still didn't want to leave even when he was surrounded by crap. The opposite to LeBron. Not a Garnett debate though so like I said make that thread and we'll discuss that there.

Me personally. I view LeBron as a guy who is far less old-school and is always looking to put himself in the best position at winning. Does that hurt his legacy? Who knows.

One thing I will never rate is the way he handles his affairs. Since the Decision debacle his statements, decisions etc have been allover the place. It's like the guy has seen four different people telling him how to handle off-court matters. He talks about this decision as returning back to his home.

Sorry but it's nothing more than another move to grasp desperately at rings. If you don't think Cleveland is in a better spot going forward than Miami I don't know what to say.

Now can you understand why many will have different opinions on his legacy?

 

[midorigreenwood]

Well said. No issue with him going back home. I think if he jumped to a 3rd team then it would be an issue.

Yeah, its not really quitting.....more returning to unfinished business.

He wanted rings, now he has em

now he can finish his career without that itch nagging him.

 

[Crafted]

I think if he wins a title in Cleveland, all critics will realise he has what it takes.

But if he doesn't win a title in Cleveland, all the critics will turn around and say that the only way he could win was to join two all stars.

I'm not one of them, but in my eyes I think that's what it will come down to. There will be a fine line between what most consider "failure" and "success"

 

[Connoisseur]

I think if he wins a title in Cleveland, all critics will realise he has what it takes.

But if he doesn't win a title in Cleveland, all the critics will turn around and say that the only way he could win was to join two all stars.

I'm not one of them, but in my eyes I think that's what it will come down to. There will be a fine line between what most consider "failure" and "success"

He'll get the 'help' he needs at the Cavs this time around. Hell, Mike Miller has signed up already. Next in line will be Shuttleworth and not long after K. Love.

 

[Primetime Pricey]

People will view him as a quitter, not everybody loves him like you seem to.

Of course he did. Nobody is denying what he did for Cleveland. He saw an easy option and jumped at the chance. Are you really going to deny this? Miami wouldn't get out of the East this year. What moves were they going to make? Bosh was only becoming more and more useless, Wade is struggling with age, and the rest of their team is very ordinary. Chicago should be a top team if Rose stays healthy which I actually think he will do. The Pacers are going to remain near the top, and realistically if they didn't self-destruct midway through the season they would've been in the finals.

How is this a hate thread? Not everyone wants to suck off the guy like you, as you're always defending him. I'm far from a hater, in fact if you look at my posting history the majority of my hate while LeBron was in Miami was targeted more at Wade, the fans, Pat Riley and other flogs that have played or have been associated with that franchise.

Go ahead, be my guest. Start the Allen/KG thread. Garnett wasn't wanted by the organisation so why would he bother hanging around? I'm sure if the Celtics wanted KG for his leadership they would've kept him and he would have had no complaints. KG is probably one of the great team players of all time, so I hardly think you can insult him in that regard.

You can start one on Allen because he did quit. That will damage his legacy significantly. It's already well known.

Like it or not, by objective NBA fans, Garnett will be remembered as the guy who gave his all for the Wolves, and still didn't want to leave even when he was surrounded by crap. The opposite to LeBron. Not a Garnett debate though so like I said make that thread and we'll discuss that there.

Me personally. I view LeBron as a guy who is far less old-school and is always looking to put himself in the best position at winning. Does that hurt his legacy? Who knows.

One thing I will never rate is the way he handles his affairs. Since the Decision debacle his statements, decisions etc have been allover the place. It's like the guy has seen four different people telling him how to handle off-court matters. He talks about this decision as returning back to his home.

Sorry but it's nothing more than another move to grasp desperately at rings. If you don't think Cleveland is in a better spot going forward than Miami I don't know what to say.

Now can you understand why many will have different opinions on his legacy?

seems majority people here have my view so.....

Of course Cleveland have a better chance going fwd due to the age of the players but if he stayed in Miami they would still be the best in the East and have the best chance of winning. Wherever he went they were gonna be in the best position to win going fwd.

I would have left Miami as well, Wade single handedly cost them any chance winning the title and he is done as a player, they dont have a decent PG and they dont have a legit centre and never have since he went there. He busted his arse all season and playoffs and got no help whatsoever. I have never seen a player play like he did and carry a side to a NBA finals without anyone else stepping up, not even Jordan.

Going fwd i wouldnt want to be there so how the hell am i going to knock a dude who wants to go home and play with a team which now has a star PG and a true centre. He can now concentrate on playing SF and not every other position.

Yep KG gave everything to Minny but LeBron didnt? lol. LeBron stuck it out for several seasons and was never delivered the help he was promised, i would have told Gilbert to suck my dick as well.

Its not a grasp at rings cause wherever he played they were gonna be a contender. He wanted to help Cleveland and thats a good thing.

I stick up for him cause apart from how he handled the decision process he hasnt done anything else wrong and the s**t he cops is ridiculous. No player has ever copt the scrutiny he has and its undeserved.

Anyways haters are gonna hate, i hope he does win in Cleveland and everyone can * off

 

[Connoisseur]

seems majority people here have my view so.....

Don't expect objectivity from Player Only Fans especially when it comes to superstars such as Lebrone which abound in this forum. lol

 

[PP34]

seems majority people here have my view so.....

Of course Cleveland have a better chance going fwd due to the age of the players but if he stayed in Miami they would still be the best in the East and have the best chance of winning. Wherever he went they were gonna be in the best position to win going fwd.

I would have left Miami as well, Wade single handedly cost them any chance winning the title and he is done as a player, they dont have a decent PG and they dont have a legit centre and never have since he went there. He busted his arse all season and playoffs and got no help whatsoever. I have never seen a player play like he did and carry a side to a NBA finals without anyone else stepping up, not even Jordan.

Going fwd i wouldnt want to be there so how the hell am i going to knock a dude who wants to go home and play with a team which now has a star PG and a true centre. He can now concentrate on playing SF and not every other position.

Yep KG gave everything to Minny but LeBron didnt? lol. LeBron stuck it out for several seasons and was never delivered the help he was promised, i would have told Gilbert to suck my dick as well.

Its not a grasp at rings cause wherever he played they were gonna be a contender. He wanted to help Cleveland and thats a good thing.

I stick up for him cause apart from how he handled the decision process he hasnt done anything else wrong and the s**t he cops is ridiculous. No player has ever copt the scrutiny he has and its undeserved.

Anyways haters are gonna hate, i hope he does win in Cleveland and everyone can **** off

Americans seem to view LeBron a lot less favourably than Australians do. He has always been pretty well liked here.

That was my point. Again he took the easier option, and hence that is why some won't view this move positively when looking at his legacy. All I said about KG was that he was willing to play there despite the state of the roster around him. It took a lot of convincing to get him out of Minnesota. LeBron on the other hand bolted as soon as he saw where Cleveland was going.

Sorry, but Miami would have probably contended in the upcoming season and fallen short once again. After that I don't see how they would improve their roster enough to win a title. Cleveland on the other hand has a center perfect for LeBron in Varejao, Kyrie a good player with room for improvement, Wiggins who could become very good (as LeBron slows a bit) and they've also got Waiters, Bennett and Thompson who all could see improvement or could be used as assets in a trade. Plus they can still fit in one other star level player. Sorry, but maybe this season Wade, LeBron and Bosh would be superior but there's no comparison going forward.

He was a massive douchebag in his first season at Miami. He also contradicts himself constantly and like I said his career moves have made him unlikeable in the eyes of many. I gave up on disliking him after the first title because he finally seemed to realise that he didn't need to be the villain or the hero, he just needed to be himself.

Why do you want him to win? Seems strange when you follow the Knicks. I can understand you being disillusioned about them. Can't understand you rooting for LeBron though.

 

[LeverPuller]

Shaq played for six teams

 

[Warsaw]

Are you sure you're not just channelling your own views about LeBron and how you perceive his legacy will be received instead of the actual wider basketball community nbaman1?

Because the overwhelming reaction has been how great him returning to Cleveland is and how good it is for basketball in general. His legacy will be cemented when/if he wins a title there because that's a sporting narrative that even MJ and co couldn't write. Everything that he's done before that will be a footnote that no one will spend too much time caring about because he's the best of his generation and in the conversation as one of the best few of all time.

 

[hamG]

Shaq played for six teams

I would say with certainty that when Lebron is too old to be the #1 at a team he could do exactly the same - jump to a few teams chasing championships. He'd be awfully good in the low and high post as a scorer and passer.

 

[Connoisseur]

Shaq played for six teams

He's not in the conversation for GOAT.

 

[go u jimmy b]

**** me i hate these threads. A quitter? Really?
Dude did everything for Cleveland and after he repeatedly asked for signings and promising they would they kept on bringing in guys whoe were either done as players or avg. Now he is leaving Miami after taking them to 4 straight finals and 2 rings to play for his hometown. If he stayed in Miami they would have been contenders so its not jumping off a sinking ship. The East is that bad Miami would have prb still made the finals.
In the end this is just another LeBron hate thread when the dude doesnt deserve it. Maybe i should have started a KG/Allen thread for jumping off again once the Celtics became s**t...
Oh and dont compare this to Jordan/Magic/Bird. The difference is they werent drafted into a s**t team and had hall of fame players around them so they didnt have to and who did LeBron have in Cleveland originally? oh Mo Williams. Please

Oh look its the LeBron fan boy Pricey

Jordan drafted into a Hall of Fame team, pleaseeee. Go check out the Bulls record back in the mids 80's, they didn't break .500 until the 1986-87 season when Pippen and Grant were 1st year rookies.