NBA FINALS 2011

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281

[quote]scj119 wrote:

[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:

[quote]gregron wrote:
with all that being said…

I think James gets way too much criticism. Thats just the way people are… they like to hate on people and James seems to be the guy who’s getting all the hate right now (not that he doesnt bring some of it on himself)

No matter what James does it’ll never be enough IMO. He could win 3 or 4 titles in the next few years and people will still nitpick his game.

I’m just glad that Dirk finally got a ring. I was never a big J Kidd fan so I dont really care about that but I’ve always liked Dirk so I’m really happy to see them win.[/quote]

The thing is, to me the criticism is completely justified. The guy is such an unrelenting jerkoff that it’s good that he bombs. Everything I’ve talked about in these threads for the past couple years in James case is still true. He’s a spoiled brat who’s been handed everything his entire life, he’s never had or felt the need to work for anything and when hard work is required he folds and refuses to take personal responsibility. He was still smiling like a goddamn clown yesterday after his team lost in no small part because of his shitty series, and he’s just sitting there completely oblivious to why he’s in that position. It’s like he expects that at some point he’ll win just 'cause he’s LeBron James, and he’s been given everything else in life so why not this? I personally hope that he never wins a ring 'cause he doesn’t understand the value of hard work. [/quote]

That won’t teach him though - it will still be someone else’s fault he didn’t win.

I was always of the belief we didn’t have QUITE enough data points to know LBJ’s heart in the clutch. We had contradicting examples of him taking over close games and of him shrinking from the spotlight. You can view this series as (at best) more proof he is unpredictable, or (at worst) that he will just never have the mental willpower to gut out tough victories when his team is down. Neither of those options are good ones for a great player.[/quote]

Oh, there’s no way this will teach him. Hoenstly, I think he’s been to coddled his entire life and lacks the self awareness to ever really learn that lesson. Realizing that you personally need to work on yourslef takes a certain amount of maturity and introspection, two things James clearly lacks. He seems to honestly be ok with this.

282

did you guys hear the real reason why LBJ never went to college? No schools recruited him because they knew he would never show up for the Finals.

283

I’ve never understood the “everything handed to him” argument. What exactly was handed to him?

284

Dirk sucks at celebrating.

285

[quote]therajraj wrote:
I’ve never understood the “everything handed to him” argument. What exactly was handed to him?[/quote]

Is that a serious question? How about the largest endorsement contract ever [at the time, may have changed] before ever having even played a pro game, unprecedented media hype and adoration, titles both self appointed and given by others that he hasn’t earned… I could go on.

286

did you guys see Mark Cubans comment about championship rings?

“I might not get rings,” the Mavs’ billionaire owner told NBATV. “Rings are old school. You’ve seen it before: There’s guys who pick up the sweats and towels and they have these big, blingy rings. I’m like, ‘Rings are done. It’s time to take it to the next level.’”

I dont think there is any chance that they DONT get championship rings IMO. He might get something else too but they’ll all get rings.

287

[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:

[quote]therajraj wrote:
I’ve never understood the “everything handed to him” argument. What exactly was handed to him?[/quote]

Is that a serious question? How about the largest endorsement contract ever [at the time, may have changed] before ever having even played a pro game, unprecedented media hype and adoration, titles both self appointed and given by others that he hasn’t earned… I could go on.[/quote]

I don’t agree with this at all.

They don’t hand out endorsement deals to nobodies. The guys achievements at the amateur level were what landed him the contract.

The title King James was given to him in high school because of the multiple titles he won and the fact he went to a religious school. It just carried over into the NBA.

Lebron James deserves most of media hype he’s been given. Sure he hasn’t won a title, but he’s basically done everything else.

You’re telling me after doing all of the following, he hasn’t earned the most of media hype? Sure the Jordan and Magic comparisons are over the top but not the rest…

2Ã? NBA Most Valuable Player (2009â??2010)
NBA Rookie of the Year (2004)
7Ã? NBA All-Star (2005â??2011)
NBA Scoring Champion (2008)
5Ã? All-NBA First Team (2006, 2008â??2011)
2Ã? All-NBA Second Team (2005, 2007)
3Ã? All-Defensive First Team (2009â??2011)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (2004)
2Ã? NBA All-Star Game MVP (2006, 2008)
Naismith Prep Player of the Year (200

288

[quote]gregron wrote:
did you guys see Mark Cubans comment about championship rings?

“I might not get rings,” the Mavs’ billionaire owner told NBATV. “Rings are old school. You’ve seen it before: There’s guys who pick up the sweats and towels and they have these big, blingy rings. I’m like, ‘Rings are done. It’s time to take it to the next level.’”

I dont think there is any chance that they DONT get championship rings IMO. He might get something else too but they’ll all get rings. [/quote]

Think the league has control over that, but Cuban might throw something on top of it.

289

[quote]therajraj wrote:

[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:

[quote]therajraj wrote:
I’ve never understood the “everything handed to him” argument. What exactly was handed to him?[/quote]

Is that a serious question? How about the largest endorsement contract ever [at the time, may have changed] before ever having even played a pro game, unprecedented media hype and adoration, titles both self appointed and given by others that he hasn’t earned… I could go on.[/quote]

I don’t agree with this at all.

They don’t hand out endorsement deals to nobodies. The guys achievements at the amateur level were what landed him the contract.

The title King James was given to him in high school because of the multiple titles he won and the fact he went to a religious school. It just carried over into the NBA.

Lebron James deserves most of media hype he’s been given. Sure he hasn’t won a title, but he’s basically done everything else.

You’re telling me after doing all of the following, he hasn’t earned the most of media hype? Sure the Jordan and Magic comparisons are over the top but not the rest…

2�? NBA Most Valuable Player (2009â??2010)
NBA Rookie of the Year (2004)
7�? NBA All-Star (2005â??2011)
NBA Scoring Champion (2008)
5�? All-NBA First Team (2006, 2008â??2011)
2Ã?? All-NBA Second Team (2005, 2007)
3�? All-Defensive First Team (2009â??2011)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (2004)
2Ã?? NBA All-Star Game MVP (2006, 2008)
Naismith Prep Player of the Year (200

[/quote]

His amateur level was high school, and most of that hype started well before he achieved most of those accolades at the pro level. Anything this guy does is automatically trumpeted as the best thing ever, and that’s not too much of an exaggeration. We can disagree on this, but I am not the only one who thinks this way, and this is even before “the decision”.

290

[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:

[quote]therajraj wrote:

[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:

[quote]therajraj wrote:
I’ve never understood the “everything handed to him” argument. What exactly was handed to him?[/quote]

Is that a serious question? How about the largest endorsement contract ever [at the time, may have changed] before ever having even played a pro game, unprecedented media hype and adoration, titles both self appointed and given by others that he hasn’t earned… I could go on.[/quote]

I don’t agree with this at all.

They don’t hand out endorsement deals to nobodies. The guys achievements at the amateur level were what landed him the contract.

The title King James was given to him in high school because of the multiple titles he won and the fact he went to a religious school. It just carried over into the NBA.

Lebron James deserves most of media hype he’s been given. Sure he hasn’t won a title, but he’s basically done everything else.

You’re telling me after doing all of the following, he hasn’t earned the most of media hype? Sure the Jordan and Magic comparisons are over the top but not the rest…

2�?? NBA Most Valuable Player (2009�¢??2010)
NBA Rookie of the Year (2004)
7�?? NBA All-Star (2005�¢??2011)
NBA Scoring Champion (2008)
5�?? All-NBA First Team (2006, 2008�¢??2011)
2Ã??? All-NBA Second Team (2005, 2007)
3�?? All-Defensive First Team (2009�¢??2011)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (2004)
2Ã??? NBA All-Star Game MVP (2006, 2008)
Naismith Prep Player of the Year (200

[/quote]

His amateur level was high school, and most of that hype started well before he achieved most of those accolades at the pro level. Anything this guy does is automatically trumpeted as the best thing ever, and that’s not too much of an exaggeration. We can disagree on this, but I am not the only one who thinks this way, and this is even before “the decision”.[/quote]

How about the fact he has been surrounding by yes-men his whole life who do nothing but praise him? If he had even one TRUE friend they would have told him the Decision was a fucking awful idea - everyone but LeBron knew it at the time. Or maybe someone did tell him and LBJ kicked him out of his entourage, I dunno.

I hold out SOME hope that maybe he does know its his fault but he is just defiant in front of the camera and desperately trying to project the image that he is invincible/untouchable, while secretly he knows it’s time to get back to work. That’s not what I would do but that’s better than a complete lack of self awareness.

291

^^^ I honestly don’t know if he really believes that he needs work. I said this on these forums either last year or the one before, but James is basiclly the exact same player he was coming in, just bigger, stronger, faster and a little more polished. He hasn’t really added anything to his game, he’s just become a bit better at the things he’s always done. This goes back to the introspection I was talking about. He seems to be overly full of himself [even for a pro athlete] and when something doesn’t work in his favor, he changes what’s around him instead of working on himself.

292

Buddy who’s a Mavs fan says Bosh will get traded and he’d bet on it; I don’t think so, but I also think Bosh is the least assertive/weakest “big man” relative to his hype/stats.

Did you see how often he got the ball and, instead of being decisive, looked to give the ball to someone? Ridiculous. No strength on him, either, whether that’s basketball strength or physical strength.

293

^^^ who the hell is going to take on his contract after that season?

294

Yeah, I just don’t see Bron with the work ethic of some of the greats. I don’t know if that’s the media’s portrayal or if it’s a combination of:

a) lack of actual evidence of work ethic, like Dirk shooting for hours on end or something
b) lack of vibe given by Bron that he’s willing to work on his game

or both plus a host of other stuff. you guys heard DeShawn Stevens talking shit to Bron about Bron’s girl? Did I read that in this thread?

295

[quote]therajraj wrote:
^^^ who the hell is going to take on his contract after that season?[/quote]

You mean Bosh?

I think he’s so overrated, man…my Heat lovin friend (MIA native) keeps saying, “Bro, he just dropped 26 pts last game…” and I say, “So what? doesn’t address the criticisms I bring up…”

Points don’t tell the whole story. He’s a worthless big man.

296

^^^ That’s a little harsh.

He’s just not a max salary guy.

297

LOL check this out

Man DeShawn Stevenson really doesn’t like LeBron James…All that trash talk since his Washington days and now this.

298

DeShawn is a classless twat. He’s just a role player

299

On one hand, I want to believe that you just can’t get to LeBron’s level.

On the other hand, most superstars with crazy work ethics will take each offseason to address a different weak point in their game (Kobe is a great example). LeBron’s game never changes. He remains an average 3-point shooter with no post game.

300

[quote]scj119 wrote:
On one hand, I want to believe that you just can’t get to LeBron’s level.

On the other hand, most superstars with crazy work ethics will take each offseason to address a different weak point in their game (Kobe is a great example). LeBron’s game never changes. He remains an average 3-point shooter with no post game.[/quote]

This is what I was talking about when I wrote my post. He hasn’t added anything new to his game, just gotten better at what he was already good at. His defiant attitude at the press conference didn’t make it seem like he thought there was a problem with his game. He was acting like none of this was his fault and he and his game were fine.