Are They Really that Naive in Cleveland?

Recently, Nike and LeBron James unveiled the infamous 'Rise' commercial.  From the moment I saw it, I had two thoughts:  very clever on Nike's part and here comes more bad publicity for LeBron.

So I wasn't too surprised when I came across the above video a little while ago.  The backlash (from the burning of jerseys to the adoption of the term 'Quitness') in Cleveland has been unmistakable, but I must admit that I can't help thinking "Are the sports fans of Cleveland really this insane?" 

So I thought about it.... 

And I thought about it..... 

And when thinking some more didn't help me to possibly understand where they were coming from, I just simply had to shake my head in disgust.  I've been a LeBron James fan since he entered the league.  In my opinion, he is the second most skilled player to ever lace up sneakers.  Before I receive any irate messages, I'm not trying to get in a debate with Jordan haters or Kobe lovers, but MJ is the basketball truth and Kobe lacks some of LeBron's skills....I can admit that Bryant is a better basketball player right now because of his amazing basketball mentality and work ethic, but only because LeBron is still stuck in that unpolished zone where the Lakers venerated guard spent the first four years of his career.  In terms of pure skill alone, my list (which makes it merely an opinion) is Jordan, James, and then Bryant.  But that's not the problem at hand.

The problem is this arrogant video, and while I can admit that LeBron's Nike commercial was equally as arrogant, I'm struggling to figure out, for the life of me, why the Cleveland fans feel like they have any grounds.  So, now I'll break the points brought up by this video down, mainly for the fans of the Cavaliers, hoping they gain some clarity.

Number One:  No, it is not really a question, and if it is, it's strictly a rhetorical one from any standpoint.  When LeBron asked "What should I do?", he wasn't really talking to you.  That's like Peyton Manning calling up some Colts fans during halftime and asking "Should we go for two?".  The truth of the matter is that fan input doesn't matter outside of marketing.  You are appreciated, but only in the same limited manner as you appreciate what athlete's do.  I doubt you're going to call LeBron up and ask him for advice on your next promotion.  Kobe Bryant isn't deciding what college you should go to (and yes, the irony was intended).  My point is, Cleveland get over it.  You had only slightly more say-so in the "Decision" than Chicago, New Jersey, New York, L.A., and even Miami....which was all little to none.  LeBron knew what he was going to do.

Number Two:  I am so instantly amused by the talkers in the background of this video.  "You're a quitter..." "You would leave us?!...."  "Selfish...."  And I'm thinking, "Damn, did he trade teams or get a divorce?"  Kobe Bryant traded teams practically before he was drafted, and I don't recall Charlotte Hornets fans throwing it in his face....okay, granted nobody realized just how impressive his career would be at the time.  I mean, the Hornets were happy to get Vlade Divac in that trade.  And remember Kevin Garnett?  Years with Minnesota.  Leaves to go to Boston.  Wins a ring.  I don't think the Timberwolves fans got the memo about hating the one guy who carried the team for years.  But I digress...LeBron walking out on the Cleveland Cavaliers truly matters to you why?  Because it's no longer cool to be a Cavs fan?  Because you wasted all that money on those Witness T-shirts?  Because you didn't get to use him quite enough, I mean the least he could have done was won YOU a championship, right?  Fans, including myself, kill me with that biased bullshit.  The players don't owe me anything on any of the teams that I choose to be a fan of, and that's true in Cleveland as well.  You would leave us?!....um, maybe somebody should remind him again, about exactly who you are.....Riiiiiigght.

Number Three:  Did she actually have the nerve to say family?  I'm simply going to leave that alone, because I'm pretty sure that woman and none of the other Cavs fans ever seriously wanted Delonte West hanging out at the weekend barbecue's.  I mean it might sound cool to say, but then you think about it.  Family?...all I can do is shake my head.

Number Four:  Boston, Game 5, we watched, you quit....words that make me wonder what game they were watching.  Are you talking about the game where the Celtics seemed to be winning by 30 from the very start?  The game where nobody wanted to play defense?  Where even though his shot was off, LeBron still led the team in rebounds and assists?  That game?  I'd say every Cavalier player except Shaquille O'Neal quit in that game.  Embarrassing performances tend to make you do that.  But since we're mentioning Game 5s....I dug up one that the Cleveland unfaithful might not remember.  Check THIS out.




Do I need to say more?

Number Five:  Traitors don't leave legacies.  This may be one of the most asinine statements ever made, and obviously by a guy who never paid much attention in history class.  Brutus.  Benedict Arnold.  The Rosenbergs.  Judas Iscariot.  History has often given traitors a much greater legacy than they otherwise would have had in the first place.  So, apparently we must add LeBron James.  (Although I'm curious as to how he's a traitor.  For leaving a team that couldn't win a championship?  Damn, the NBA is full of traitors who deserve no legacy.)

Number Six:  When things get difficult, you run....I'm not even going to argue the validity of this statement.  I'm just curious how strangers (yes, Cleveland fans...you're strangers to LeBron) can make such a huge character judgment, based on a career move.  How many people would have thought about staying at the Seven-Eleven if they knew their fortitude as a person would be questioned because of it?  (And yes, Cavaliers, I'd consider playing for your team like working at a convenience store.  Putting in tons of hours and efforts, fearing being robbed, and all for the Employee of the Year trophy that sits so neatly on the wall).

Number Seven:  If you have to ask LeBron, or any other sports figure what you should do, then you have a few more problems than the participation in this minute long tirade that somebody assumed would seem clever.  (Perhaps, some Dan Gilbert brilliance once again?)

Number Eight:  And at the end, it shows LeBron lied.  Hmmm....how many people have ever lied?  I'm lying to myself right now, by thinking that this excessively long blog post will matter to any of the Clevelanders who feel jilted.  LeBron's lying to himself right now, by thinking that his Nike commercial somehow makes the situation better.  And the fans of the Cavaliers are lying to themselves, if they feel like they ever mattered as much as they thought they did.  People lie.  Get over it.

I guess the bottom line is this.  Basketball is a sport.  An organized game in which talented athletes are celebrated for their ability to participate.  As fans, we admire these talents, cheering for them in times of triumph and consoling them in times of defeat.  But somehow along the way, fans lost sight of this.  It became win one for the team, then win one for the city, then hell, win one for me.  I think the overly consumed fan lacks something in life that rooting for a team fills.  Otherwise, how could you explain Jack Nicholson and Spike Lee?  Two men who seem to have it all, but when reduced to the mere spectating fan, they are insane as the rest of us.  There's a void immediately removed in knowing that your chosen team defeated the opposition and rose to the level of champions.  Because then you get to believe that they did it for you.  In one split second, you are up there and you're a giant.  Nothing in the world matters and everything is good.

Maybe Cleveland is really mad at LeBron James because for the longest time, even without winning, he made their city feel giant.  Nothing outside of Cleveland mattered because King James made it good.  Now, for the first time in forever, all of that is gone. 

the Rare Poet