Monday, October 31, 2011

A plea for perspective on LeBron's legacy

LeBron James
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For those who are quick to write off LeBron James, Michael Jordan's career offers a lesson.

LeBron James is 26 years old.

When Michael Jordan was 26 years old, he was a failure.

This might seem impossible to some. We're talking about the greatest winner of all-time. The most clutch basketball player ever to grace the Earth. A cold-blooded killer in crunch time. The trophies, the rings, the banners. It goes on and on.

But all the golden hardware and endless accolades that Jordan earned?

They came later in his career.

Yes, it's true that Michael Jordan was once considered a me-first gunner whose team always came up short. By the time Jordan finished up his age-26 season in 1989-90, he was the game's undisputed top scorer. But despite his scoring chops, Jordan had nothing in the win column to show for it.

First, a history lesson. Of Jordan's first ten playoff games, the Bulls lost nine of them. 1-9. As a rookie, his Bulls managed to win one game against the Milwaukee Bucks by two points. In Jordan's second season, the Bulls played the Boston Celtics in the first-round. Jordan averaged 43.7 points including a jaw-dropping 63-point performance in Game 2 that caused Larry Bird to profess, "It must be God disguised as Michael Jordan." The Celtics promptly swept the Bulls in three games. The next season, the Celtics pummeled the Bulls again in the playoffs, sweeping them in three games once more.

At this point, the 24-year-old Jordan boasted a 31.7 scoring average, but carried an embarrassing postseason record. It was painfully obvious that the game of basketball was more than just a one-on-five affair, and that Jordan needed help. In 1987-88, he would get it. That was the season in which Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant made their NBA debuts. That year, Chicago's youngsters finally cracked through the first-round of the playoffs before losing to the Detroit Pistons 4-1 in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The following season, Jordan led Chicago all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals. But once again, the Pistons sent Jordan packing in six games. In 1989-90, Jordan came crawling back for more and the Pistons slammed the door on him yet again, upending the Bulls in seven games in a Eastern Conference Finals rematch.

When Michael Jordan was 26-years-old, he was perceived by many as a narcissistic dud and was treated as such. Don't believe it? Here's a excerpt from "The Jordan Rules" by Sam Smith that details Jordan's treatment at that point in his career:
The Pistons got their shots at Jordan. They love to taunt Jordan during games about his selfish play, his baldness (that's a specialty of John Salley), and how he enjoys being a loser.

"There's not one guy who sets the tone on our team," Salley liked to tell reporters during the 1990 playoffs. "That's what makes us a team. If one guy did everything, we wouldn't be a team. We'd be the Chicago Bulls.

Yes, the Chicago Bulls were whipping boys of the league, criticized for their dysfunctional and selfish play. And a 26-year-old bald superstar -- who had won the MVP, but not a championship -- was at the center of it all.

Selfish? Loser? Bald?

These are the piercing adjectives attached to a young Michael Jordan, but today, it echoes for LeBron James. Keep in mind, Jordan at 26 had never won a Finals game, much less played in a Finals game. But now we look back on Jordan as the most ruthless winner of all time. Back then, his sorry record spoke for itself.

Which brings us to Magic Johnson's recent comments.

The all-time great was a guest speaker at the University of Albany over the weekend and roasted LeBron James in front of a laughing audience. The former Los Angeles Lakers star, who as a player ironically battled the perception that he recoiled in crunch time, turned LeBron James into a punching bag, scoffing at the idea that the former two-time MVP could be considered in the same breath as Jordan and Kobe Bryant -- players who have won championships.

"Everybody's always asking, 'Who is better between Kobe (Bryant) and LeBron?'" Johnson said. "I'm like, Are you kidding me? I'm like you're kidding me ... Kobe, five championships; LeBron, zero."

"Come on, man, six championships for (Michael) Jordan," Johnson added. "You know that Michael averaged over 30 points every playoff series? Don't try to touch that."

And Johnson is right; the LBJ-MJ comparisons are absurd. But they are absurd because LeBron is 26 years old and somehow the ink is already drying on LeBron's legacy. There will come a time when we can rationally compare LeBron to Kobe and Jordan, but the time is not now.

Instead, we should exhibit some perspective. Why? Because a player's legacy changes with the seasons. If you doubt that, look no further than the perception of Dirk Nowitzki, who was considered flawed for 12 years and erased that legacy in a matter of days. And Jordan's career makeover makes Nowitzki's look like a facelift by comparison. When Jordan was LeBron's age, the world looked at his astonishing scoring average and tried to reconcile his eye-popping statistics with his underwhelming team record.

How can a player so good have such bad results?

If Jordan taught us anything, it's that we must be careful connecting the dots at such an early age. After failing to even reach the NBA Finals well into his career, Jordan had become an easy punchline. That loser. All those stats and no glory, everyone was quick to point out.

Six championships later, we know now that those doubters were a bit foolish. They overlooked this most important fact:

Michael Jordan was only 26 years old.
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Sources: Heat owner pushing for deal

If it were up to Heat owner Micky Arison, his team would be preparing for its final three preseason games right now and he’d be spending the majority of his time running his cruise lines and not at labor meetings in New York.

Even as the talks suffered their latest breakdown Thursday, two league sources said that Arison has been the most active owner in trying to push through a deal even as his peers balk at the players’ demands.

In his frustration Thursday night NBA Players Association head Billy Hunter said he felt there was a divide between big market and small market owners. He said that some big-market owners were ready end the lockout.

“The likes of (Lakers owner) Jerry Buss, (Knicks owner) Jim Dolan, Micky Arison, (Mavericks owner) Mark Cuban, I think those are the folks who wanted the deal, who were open to all kinds of suggestions, anything that could move the ball,” Hunter said. “But I think there’s a group of owners, the small markets in particular, that were dug in and I think they’re carrying the day.”

Multiple ownership sources disagree with Hunter’s assumption that the divide goes down market-size lines. Dolan and Buss, sources say, have been among the most aggressive owners pushing for reform throughout the process. However, sources say Hunter is right about Arison and his desire to make a deal.

This isn’t much of a surprise. With LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the Heat are functioning well as a business with high ticket and sponsorship. Also with each of them having three years remaining before they can become free agents, the clock is ticking on Arison’s super team. He’s got plenty of incentive to represent his interests and try to get basketball re-started as soon as possible. But, as is clear, he doesn’t enjoy much support in his position.

As reported last week, Arison has taken steps to get more involved in the talks as they’ve heated up over the last month. He has been a regular attendee in talks with the union even though he is not on the 10-person labor committee.
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That is likely to continue even if expanding his influence is a significant challenge.

LeBron James uses Twitter to recruit

While the players union and NBA owners reconvened for talks on Thursday afternoon, the buzz in the basketball world was generated by something else: LeBron James' Twitter feed.

LeBron has never shied away from using the social media platform to stir up some discussion and his tweets on Thursday were no exception.




JCrossover4 is the Twitter handle of Jamal Crawford, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent once the lockout ends. Crawford, 31, just finished his 11th season in the NBA, scored 14.2 points off the bench for the Atlanta Hawks and posted a 14.2 player efficiency rating (PER).

Crawford and LeBron have spent some time together this offseason, playing in various charity exhibitions around the country. Crawford recently played with LeBron at the South Florida All-Star Classic earlier this month.

It's interesting that LeBron singled out Crawford because his value would be redundant on the Heat. Why do they need another ball-dominant wing scorer next to LeBron and Dwyane Wade? Beats me.

But LeBron wasn't finished. Within a few more minutes, he fired off another tweet, this time calling on Steve Nash's services.


Maybe @SteveNash in a Heat uni! So we can help each other get our 1st ringThu Oct 27 18:32:39 via Echofon


Here's the kicker: Nash isn't a free agent. He's under contract with the Phoenix Suns for 2011-12 at $11.7 million, which will be his final year before free agency. If the Heat were interested, they'd have to trade for him and match his contract with something similar. The only contracts on the Heat's books that are remotely close to Nash? LeBron, Wade and Chris Bosh, who will each make around $16 million next season. Player acquisitions are a complicated animal in the NBA.

The Heat may need an upgrade at point guard, but it's the longest of longshots that Nash would be that guy. Mario Chalmers, the Heat's point guard who earned a starting gig in Game 6 of the Finals, will be a restricted free agent. Then there's also Norris Cole, the Heat's first-round draft pick, who is a point guard from Cleveland State. Of course, any player in their right mind would want Nash on their team, but they usually don't vocalize it on Twitter, knowing he's not on the market.

Also, we don't know what the new CBA will bring once the lockout is settled. Perhaps the Heat will target Crawford if there's a mid-level exception in place, but the organization would be far better off pursuing a center. Zydrunas Ilgauskas announced his retirement recently and Erick Dampier will be a free agent.

Really, the tweets were mostly bizarre considering the timing of the lockout. But it did get people talking. One of them was Portland Trail Blazers big man LaMarcus Aldridge, who is hosting a charity game in Portland in early November:


@KingJames how are you going to try and steal @JCrossover from us?! I already told Portland to make him feel at home on the 6th.Thu Oct 27 19:55:55 via Twitter for iPhone


Oklahoma City Thunder guard James Harden also chimed in:

@KingJames Aye yo chill out with all this recruiting!!!!!!Thu Oct 27 18:33:58 via Echofon


In any normal offseason, Harden's sentiment would be shared by the league office. But James can talk about other teams' players and free agents without being fined or punished by the league for tampering. Why?

Because the lockout is still going on.

Look at what I found in the closet

MIAMI -- Some of us have skeletons in our closets.

In addition to those, I've got old notebooks and tablets, too.

Buried in a suitcase in my wife's closet was pure reporter's gold -- or something close to it. Digging through one of the piles in there, I found a bundle of notebooks where I had kept daily entries from Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh's first preseason as Miami Heat teammates.

I had been wondering for months where they were, and figured I had left them somewhere in a hotel on the road during the season. The timing of this discovery was perfect. Exactly a year ago this week, the Heat lost their highly-anticipated season opener at Boston and won their home opener against Orlando.

It was a humble start for one of the most gifted and galvanizing teams in the history of professional sports. We know the story ended with Miami's six-game series loss to Dallas in the NBA Finals.

Yet, there's an urge to re-live the experience anyway. What else is there to do as we wait out what we hope are the last laps of this lockout labor dispute that has delayed the start of the season? Collateral damage from this lockout is everywhere.

Before my man card is temporarily suspended, please allow me to explain why I was even hanging out in my wife's closet in the first place. I had no choice. NBA commissioner David Stern and Players' Union chief Billy Hunter haven't done me many favors over the last 120 or so days.

I lost a bet. Or, perhaps I came up on the short end of an ultimatum. The wife and kids are tired of me hanging around the house waiting out this lockout. So about a month ago, I boldly claimed that if this lockout doesn't end by the date the Heat's season started a year ago, name the house chore. I'll do it.

So as I'm separating the high-heels from the sneakers, I get to a suitcase that was borrowed from my side of the closet. And there they are. Quotes, notes and anecdotes from the weeks and days leading up to the Heat's Oct. 26, 2010 showdown with the Celtics.

Looking back, it's amazing how prophetic some of the statements were from the Heat. Yes, you remember how it ended. But it's amazing how much may have slipped your mind from the early start.

Exact dates from these notebooks are sketchy, but these preseason details easily jar the memory. So I'll take a break from my own lockout labor and share 10 soundbites from this time a year ago that essentially projected just how hot the Heat's season would get.
  • Forward Udonis Haslem (on his message from a team meeting before the opener): “This is going to be the toughest season any of us probably have ever encountered. We've got to prepare for everything.”

    Back story: Haslem couldn't have imagined it would turn out as grueling as it did. The Heat's co-captain dedicated the season in the memory of his mother, who died from cancer last year. He was also dealt another blow when he sustained a foot injury in November that cost him most of the season.
  • Coach Erik Spoelstra (on reminding the team of its 2006 championship success during that same team meeting on the eve of the opener): “I brought out the Larry O'Brien trophy. Let it sit behind me. And for the first 10 or 15 minutes, no one looked at me -- which is good.”

    Back story: Wade would pull a similar move on the eve of the NBA Finals, when he brought out his championship ring, which he rarely removes from his home safe, during a team dinner. The Heat were on the verge of a reunion with O'Brien after taking a 2-1 series lead, but lost three straight games.
  • LeBron James (on potential cohesion issues with Wade and Bosh): “I can't defer. I don't have to. I'm never in defer mentality. I'm always in attack mode.”

    Back story: Critics can feast off the juxtaposition of that quote and the position LeBron would find himself in some eight months later amid his fourth-quarter struggles in the Finals. Who could see this coming, especially with LeBron being most adamant among the Big 3 about not changing his game.
  • Wade (on fallout from season-opening loss to Boston): “Least of our worries. This is one of 82. Sorry if everyone thought we (were) going 82-0. It wasn't going to happen.”

    Back story: The Heat wouldn't go 73-9 to surpass the Bulls regular-season record, either, as some rather outlandish analysts would suggest. In fact, they wouldn't even win 60. But 58-24 was enough for third-best in the league and ended up landing the Heat homecourt advantage in the Finals. But it was a money quote at a money moment from Wade at the height of his sarcasm.
  • Heat president Pat Riley (on circus atmosphere he anticipated around the Heat from his training camp press conference): “I coached Showtime (Lakers). And I've been in New York. Frenetic was normal. Just let this team be what it can … or not.”

    Back story: That became Riley's private plea throughout the season. His embrace-the-process-and-disregard-the-madness mantra served the Heat well in controversies that ranged from Spoelstra's job security to injuries that claimed Haslem and Mike Miller to the LeBron-led shortcomings in the Finals.
  • Spoelstra (on adjusting in training camp to LeBron's impact on the team): “We want him to feel comfortable. He's a two-time MVP. We want to incorporate that greatness into what we do. It's better when you've got two guys who can do that.”

    Back story: The MVP-level talent from LeBron and Wade would lead the Heat to a lot of victories. But there were also plenty of times when their games overlapped and led to questions about roles. It's one blessing/curse that remains an unresolved dilemma entering the upcoming season. Ultimately, Wade and LeBron must more sharply define their roles in key moments of games.
  • Wade (on hamstring that set him back in preseason): “I'm not a stranger to minor setbacks. I'm a professional at that.”

    Back story: Unfortunately for the Heat, they were never a team that played at full strength during their first go-around last season. Wade's injury robbed him of the entire preseason and forced him to limp into the regular season. Miller was also lost to thumb surgery during that time, and weeks later, Haslem went down with foot surgery. From an injury standpoint, Miami certainly was no stranger to setbacks.
  • NBA commissioner David Stern (on his reaction to learning where LeBron was headed in free agency): “It was before the 'Decision.' I didn't know how much was going to be written. It wasn't like, 'Who?' It was more like, 'Hmm.'”

    Back story: Stern actually said this last July at the Las Vegas summer league, but it's as obvious now as it was then that there would be league-wide discomfort and a level of disdain throughout the season. The “Hmm,” part of the quote said it all, didn't it? This lockout shouldn't be blamed on LeBron, but rest assured that how the 'Decision' went down is an episode the league doesn't ever wish to view again.
  • Bosh (on prepping to visit Boston in opener): “They're supposed to hate you. You're the opposing team. And it's Boston. They hate people a little more than usual cities.”

    Back story: If I had a dollar for every time I'd hear or write the word 'hate' involving the Heat last season, I'd buy the New Orleans Hornets, move them to Seattle -- pending the construction of a new arena. Bosh certainly didn't hold back any punches on that quote. Don't count on him ever taking over for Kevin Garnett at power forward somewhere down the line for the Celtics.
  • LeBron (on one of his missions as a member of the Heat): “It feels right … to be in this position. We're going to make the world know, not just the league, that the Heat is back.”


Back story: Courtesy of the much-maligned press conference pep rally the day Wade, James and Bosh signed their Heat contracts. LeBron's addition made the Heat relevant, viable, formidable and an annual favorite to win a title as long as they're together. Love them or loathe them, people will invest tons of emotion in the Heat. They'll always be the lead story. But will they earn championship glory?

Of course, that can only be answered once the lockout ends -- if it ends.

For now, it's back to being locked in the closet.
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You never know what you'll find in the midst of a potential season being lost.

Heat owner Micky Arison deletes tweet

Micky Arison
Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images
Micky Arison deleted a tweet on Friday night that could have warranted a fine from the NBA.

You can say this for Miami Heat owner Micky Arison: in a time where the NBA is heavy on rhetoric and soaking in veiled dislike he’s refreshingly honest. At least on his Twitter feed.

Arison looks exactly like you’d expect a Miami billionaire to look. He’s has a perpetual tan, untamed flowing hair and a constant smile. He wears his shirts untucked, jeans and leather jackets. He’s been fantastically wealthy his entire life and it shows.

He attends nearly every Heat home game and regularly comes to practices, though he never comes off as overbearing. He hired Pat Riley away from the Knicks -- bending the rules to do so -- and ended up giving him one of the best compensation packages in the history of sports executives to run his team. And he lets him do so and has generally been rewarded for it. Even when the Heat lose, life can’t be too bad, he’s still worth $4.2 billion and has 100 cruise ships.

Over the summer, Arison joined Twitter. For those who have followed him from the start, it has been a wonderful ride. For weeks it was pictures from various ships across the Mediterranean and Italian wine and cheese plates along the Amalfi Coast as he vacationed and conducted at-sea business in Europe. This is what it is to be one of the world’s richest men and Arison shared willingly while reminding followers regularly about how much fun they can have on a Carnival Fun Ship.

When Arison returned to the states, though, is where NBA fans should have started paying attention. Mavs’ owner Mark Cuban may use Twitter to give out financial options, Cavs’ owner Dan Gilbert uses it to combat bloggers, Blazers' owner Paul Allen uses it to refute rumors and celebrate his various franchises and Warriors’ owner Peter Gruber uses it to send out articles and videos.

Arison uses it to keep it real.

After a long day of failed negotiations in New York recently, Arison said he was going out for a great steak.

After a setback that assured many of his Heat employees would have to take 25 percent pay cuts, Arison asked for restaurant recommendations in Seattle.

After Dwyane Wade back talked David Stern during a session, Arison let out a virtual laugh and branded it “a friendly chat.” Seriously, the stuff is gold because it seems to be exactly how Arison and at least some of his fellow owners feel about the NBA lockout dragging into its fourth month. These guys aren’t giving many interviews, after all.

Friday night, though, Arison hit some new heights in apparently blowing off some steam after a long week. Even billionaires do that on Friday nights.

In a series of tweets that he actually later seemed to regret a tad and might even get him fined by Stern, Arison continued to be himself while offering a valuable window into the cloudy world that’s currently obscuring the league.

When one fan asked: "How's it feel to be apart of ruining the best game in the world? NBA owners/players don't give a damn about fans ... and guess what? Fans provide all the money you're fighting over ... you greedy (expletive) pigs."

Arison’s reply might upset some people but, again, at least it seemed to come from a rare honest place: "You are barking at the wrong owner."

That one, which certainly seemed to confirm the union’s long-standing contention that there’s discord within the ownership ranks, Arison deleted a short time later. But not before plenty of people saw it as fellow owners, league executives and players zipped it around cyberspace and added their own, more private, commentary.
When another fan asked Arison what he thought about Clippers’ owner Donald Sterling, he replied with a simple “lol.”

Just refreshing truth. Everyone has always suspected Sterling’s peers laughed at him. Though as Sterling would probably point out if he owned the same type of Twitter honest Arison should be getting credit for, he’s always run his team at a profit and has done plenty of laughing back at them. But that’s another topic.

When one fan suggested that competitive balance among “all 32 teams” was an “unrealistic and stupid idea,” Arison re-tweeted it with a smiley face. Of course the only owner who currently has three All-Stars in his starting lineup plus the city of Miami on his side in future free agency would feel this way, everyone already knew that. But it was nice for Arison to verify it.
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He deleted that tweet, too, perhaps at an employee’s suggestion. Though later he clarified the smile was for the 32 teams mistake (there’s 30), not the competitive balance principle. It may have been the first bending of the truth Arison’s been guilty of on Twitter.

So if you want to get some of the best stuff going around on this lockout, by all means make sure to follow

NBA lockout not good for the shoes

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