THE KING’S CROWN IS TARNISHED

James and Bosh both became free agents on July 1st, making them eligible to play on the team of their choosing.  After weeks of wooing by countless NBA teams, both men decided to join existing Heat player Wade on his team in Miami, in what some are already calling a super “Dream Team” (and where Wade already won a championship).  But that’s where the trouble began.

You see, NBA owners are restricted from having ANY contact with ANY free agent prior to July 1st, unless that player is already a member of that team.  They may not even speak the name of the player without risking a huge penalty fine at best, or the loss of draft picks or even the ability to sign that player at worse.  So, owners play by the rules.

But the rules are oddly different for players. Players can and do talk to each other about joining teams or creating dynasties, sometimes even as a surrogate for the owner (“Hey, LeBron… my owner can’t speak to you, so I’ll speak to you FOR him”).  And this is where the problem lies.  Dwayne Wade announced months in advance of the official start of free agency that he, James and Bosh were all planning to hold a player’s “summit” to collectively decide amongst themselves where each would play. He even let it slip once again during a team “pep-rally” last Friday of how they had been planning this for months, before realizing the consequences of his words and quickly correcting his story to say they had been planning for “days.”  Oops!  Now some are calling this collusion, which is blatantly illegal.

For several weeks, teams interested in securing the services of one of the 3 All-Star players, depleted their rosters for the cap (financial) space to afford to pay said player to join them.  Teams hired professional consulting and marketing firms to help them with their pitch, and spent an exorbitant amount of money and time in preparation for trying to land one of the big fish.  But if these players had already conspired to join forces prior to the July 1st date, the loss of draft picks, cash and other assets by teams which had no chance to land players they “thought” were available to them was an unnecessary sham.  So owners are crying foul, saying the deck was stacked against them.  And LeBron James in particular is taking the most “Heat” (pun intended) for his poor handling of the outcome.

James held the basketball world at hostage, claiming he was contemplating a very difficult decision (which was likely already made months or perhaps years ahead of the official start of free agency). James met with team owners, instructing them through back channels to secure this player, or trade that player in order to gain his interest.  He then allowed his young and inexperienced former high school buddies (who, surprisingly, handle his business matters), to talk him into a nationally televised special to announce his “decision” to the world.  When James announced on live TV that he was leaving Cleveland, the team owner was unaware since he had received no advance courtesy call of James’ decision. Many fans saw this as the equivalent to a husband telling his wife on live TV that he was divorcing her, much to her surprise and embarrassment.   Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert wrote a scathing public letter to his former star, calling James’ methods a “several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his “decision” unlike anything ever “witnessed” in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment.”  Ouch! And other team owners and fans were just as shocked once they began to learn that perhaps this was a ruse planned all along and they had been set-up.

Sports analysts mostly panned “King James” and his methods for the colossal mishandling of his departure.  Most believed James could have been “Batman” on any team in need of a “Robin.”  But now, they say he has taken the easy route to a championship by acquiescing as a mere “Robin” to Dwayne Wade’s “Batman.”  Said one high-level NBA official last Thursday, “His brand is [bleep] now.  He’s destroyed everything.”

Owners are peeved that they were used.  Fans are peeved that their hopes to elevate their team with the presence of James was all just a predetermined sham.  And while Cleveland fans were busy burning LeBron James jerseys in the streets, the NBA was hiring extra security to protect James from personal harm, while he hired his own security detail to protect his Ohio home.

So, here’s a question to LeBron James:  Was your hyped up public sham worth the risk to your personal safety and now likely tarnished brand?  Or in hindsight, could you have possibly taken the risks of your actions into better consideration and maybe handled things (and people) a bit differently?  Hmmm…