LeBron James: 2010 NBA Free Agency a Fan, Media Creation

If you’re a sports fan, you are under obligation to enjoy the LeBron James saga.  Larger and more tedious than Brett Favre’s annual flip-flopping.  More pervasive than Tiger Woods’ fall from grace.  And now, an announcement special even more anticipated than the Tiger press conference.

If you tell me you’re not the least bit interested in where James signs, you either don’t like the NBA or you’re lying.  And if you don’t like the NBA, why on Earth are you reading this post?

In the Tweets, the ticker updates and the endless speculative columns, you have to get a sense that you’re watching history unfold.  In this case, it’s the NBA’s history.

And its future.

But in the midst of this maelstrom of information, a sobering fact: we know nothing. 

While this is a universal truth in life, that there is more value in acknowledging our limits than in exceeding them (and subsequently getting out of our comfort zone), it’s virtually unbelievable in the 24-hour news cycle of the year 2010.  Yet it is undeniably the case.

We have journalists ridiculing other journalists for representing speculation as fact.  As if sources (verified or not) are ever anything more than a publicist’s word away from storytellers.  Insiders and outsiders alike are essentially walking blind. 

Interestingly enough, very few journalists are claiming to have anything more than an opinion.  And when we hear anything more than an opinion, we question the information.

Think about the last time you heard sources were reporting something and you were that quick to call B.S. on it.  The only thing I can think of that matches it is when we hear that a popular athlete (like Lawrence Taylor) is being accused of committing a crime.

The level of media control we are seeing in NBA free agency is on a level that should make us believe in conspiracy theories.  This kind of control is essentially equivalent to that which Tiger Woods used to have (and to an extent, still does).  The President of the United States of America can’t hide something like Watergate or a sex scandal, but we know virtually nothing about our stars’ personalities or behavior off the court unless it becomes a legal matter.  It’s unnerving.

To a small degree, we are learning tidbits of information about the athletes involved in free agency.  Chris Bosh, for example, can’t stay off of Twitter throughout this process but has offered absolutely not a nugget of information on his feed.  So obviously his media presence and access is being carefully controlled.

Dwayne Wade is having a documentary crew follow him around throughout the courtship process.  While a few rumors have arisen regarding his interest in other teams, Wade has been the no-brainer of the whole free agency drama.  Anything linking him to a team other than the Miami Heat has seemed more contrived than a Hollywood summer offering.

And then we come to James.  The self-appointed King.

We will hear a lot of criticism for James over the coming days.  That he, like Favre, embraces the drama of it all.  That he craves attention more than your average toddler.  And especially that he is shameless in his marketing.

And to be honest, it does appear a certain way when someone starts a Twitter account in the biggest week of his offseason career and signs on for a one-hour ESPN special.

But it’s a bit ridiculous to blame it all on LeBron’s gargantuan ego.  That ego is a creation of the media’s promotion of James back when he was still a kid.  And it’s a byproduct of the consumers of said media (yes, us) buying into the hype.

Even the most vehement Michael Jordan critics can agree that the NBA as a league felt different without him.  Kobe Bryant was beginning to emerge as the heir apparent.  But there were whispers of a high school talent so great, he’d make us forget about His Airness. 

From a jaw-dropping, physical talent standpoint, James has delivered.  He evokes memories of Jordan or Barry Sanders with his highlight-reel plays in almost every game he plays.

From a championship standpoint?  Well, that story has yet to be written.

So before you blame ESPN for completely overhyping Thursday’s announcement, LeBron coordinating with them to do so and Wade and/or Bosh for trying to squeeze their way into the conversation, take a step back. 

Because you know you’re going to be just as curious as the rest of us when it airs. 

We created this.  And, as a reminder, so did the media members who, over the coming days, will condemn LeBron for acting out on the ego we all fed.

After all, you read this far, didn’t you?

A Tale of Two Finals

Inspired by ESPN.com’s Bill Simmons, I am going to attempt to write a live diary of both the NHL and NBA finals games taking place.  I’m in at the last period of both, but thanks to my six-month-old daughter’s desire for juice, I’m in a bit late.

10:28 PM – Lakers-Celtics, Game 2

Game is tied at 83.  7:33 to go.  Paul Pierce dumps to Kevin Garnett after looking to drive.  Garnett puts up the same brick Pierce would’ve had he taken the shot.

Lakers waste a possession.  Celtics do the same.

Lamar Odom completes a weak lob to Andrew Bynum, who puts the ball in for a layup.  I’m still wondering how that pass got in there with two Celtics around.

Apparently Nate Robinson is in the game.  He makes both his foul shots.  Tied at 85.

Kobe Bryant responds with an And-One.

Timeout Lakers.

10:31 PM – Blackhawks-Flyers, Game 5

11:33 to go.  Chicago up 5-3.  Apparently I missed a Philly goal while watching the NBA.  Fantastic.

I’m not getting a sense of urgency from the Flyers so far.  Much of what I’ve seen of this game has been spent in the neutral zone.

Aside from a referee getting knocked down, nothing has happened since flipping over to the game.  I can understand why Simmons would use the NBA.

A tad more scoring in basketball.

Commercial break on the NHL.  Back to basketball.

10:34 PM – Lakers-Celtics

Kobe is on the line for his follow-up foul shot from the And-One.  He makes it.

I hate Kobe.

Nice passing from the Celtics.  Rajon Rondo takes a nice pass and solidifies his triple-double.

Kobe responds with two.  Rondo does the same.

Offensive foul on the Lakers.  Celtics ball with an opportunity to take the lead.

Ray Allen takes a three and this one doesn’t hit the rim either.  Sadly, it also doesn’t reach the net.  Chants of "Airball!  Airball!" in the Staples Center.

Interesting consecutive foul calls on the Lakers.  The referees appear to have decided that both teams are capable of committing fouls.

Rondo with an athletic rebound and layup for two.  He is amazing in the playoffs.

Foul update: Kobe Bryant 5, Ron Artest 5, Kevin Garnett 5.  Wow.

Back to hockey.

10:40 PM – Blackhawks-Flyers

I love the organ music in hockey.  Very old-timey (in a good way).

Abby wants me to hold her bottle of juice.  Decision time.

I’ve seen significantly more face-offs than I have shots on goal.  I think it’s like 3-0 on those so far.

Blackawks with a break, nice shot by Marian Hossa, but stopped.  A little extra-curricular activities after the whistle.

Flyers with another impotent, shotless stand by the Flyers at the Blackhawks’ end.

The Flyers are being out-hit, out-skated and outplayed.  I suspect that’s how the lead got to 5-3.

I love Dustin Byfuglien’s name.  I have no earthly idea how they get the pronunciation "Bufflin" out of it.  A push should be made to call him Bi-Fug-lian.

Wow, some life from the Flyers.  Three shots in less than 30 seconds.

4:23 to play.  Abby just smiled at me when I helped her out with her bottle.

When I looked up, goal Blackhawks.  Suddenly my daughter has a very serious look on her face.

I think she understands the gravity of the situation for the Flyers.

Some more pressure from the Flyers, but another push without a shot.  Blackhawks win a face-off at the other end.

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLL!  Brilliant extra pass from Billy Leino to Simon Gagne for the easy score.

For those keeping track, Blackhawks 6, Flyers 4.  Still a two-goal deficit, but signs of life for Philadelphia.

At least that’s what I thought before the empty netter by Byfuglien.  7-4 seems like a baseball score.

Interesting stat: first time seven goals were scored in a Stanley Cup Finals game since 2000 between the New Jersey Devils and Dallas Stars.

I’d like to stick a fork in the Flyers, but I’m rooting almost as hard against Hossa winning a cup as I am against another Bryant championship.

Final score: Blackhawks 7, Flyers 4.  A 3-2 series lead is hardly insurmountable.

Hopefully the Flyers can wash this one off in the showers afterward.

Final minutes of the Lakers-Celtics Game 2 ahead.

10:54 PM – Lakers-Celtics

Holy crap!  This game flew by.  26.6 seconds to play, Celtics with a seven-point lead (100-93).

Kevin Garnett, dripping sweat, at the line.  Sinks the first free throw.

And the second one.

Tough for the Lakers to come up with 9 points in 27 seconds, but who knows?

Nevermind that.  Pau Gasol absolutely bricks a three attempt.

You’ve got to have Bryant taking that shot, don’t you?

Abby is hungrily eyeing the keyboard.  The sneaker squeaks on the court sound like crickets with a dead Lakers crowd.

Game over: Boston Celtics 103, Los Angeles Lakers 93.  No mention of Phil Jackson being undefeated after a Game 1 win now.

I really like the Celtics in this series having stolen one away from home.

I don’t want a postgame interview with Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen.  Doris Burke, why haven’t you found Ron Artest?

All right, I’m signing off.  This was an interesting experiment, having only one TV.

Much is up in the air in both series.  I like Celtics in 6 and Flyers (by necessity) in 7.

Abby has no comment, perhaps because she can’t talk.

Final note: I’m really frustrated that both games finished at about the same time.  The TV networks should be coordinating with one another, rather than putting two sports’ finals against one another.

The doldrums of May

There is an incredible sense of urgency as the sporting year approaches summer.  The World Cup, an event that symbolizes world unity and friendly international competition, will take place for the first time on a continent known more for civil wars, disease and colonial racism.  We’ll see the baseball trade deadline and push toward the playoffs.  The NHL and NBA will crown champions.

And yet, something is missing.

As a fan of sports in general, I suppose it’s silly to maintain preferences.  But at the root of things, I find that the NBA playoffs without LeBron James are significantly less exciting.  An NHL bereft of recognizable stars (at least of the teams remaining) has to rely on compelling stories over compelling individuals.  And let’s be realistic, the baseball played in May is a small sample size in the overall scheme of a 162-game season.  To top all, almost everything of significance in an intense, eventful NFL offseason has been brought to a grinding halt. 

Our sports leagues are nothing without star power.  Sure, Kobe Bryant is still present in the NBA playoffs, but he is both a polarizing player and clearly second fiddle to LeBron on the news wire and court.  From a personal standpoint, I find Kobe to be absolutely vanilla in terms of personality.  And from a basketball standpoint, I find that he thinks too much of his own abilities (similar to Allen Iverson, but with more talent). 

Dwight Howard is a more interesting character than Bryant, but unimpressive as a player.  I say this as someone who was a talented defender in J.V. basketball in high school: playing defense is the easiest part of the game with basketball, especially when you’re taller than everyone else.  Howard will impress me defensively when he goes out and defends Rajon Rondo.  And keeps up. 

Patrick Kane, Simon Gagné and Jaroslav Halak are names that a casual NHL fan might recognize, but the big guns, especially draws like Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are out of the picture for almost a week now.  Of the remaining NHL teams, 3 have significant local fan bases and history in the league, but the San Jose Sharks are lacking as a potential finals team in star power, history and recent success.  Additionally, the majority of the NHL playoffs have been played in relative obscurity on the Versus network, well out of the limelight of the network stations or a more accessible cable channel like ESPN. 

You might say that if I’m not interested in the NBA and NHL playoffs, I should be able to find something of substance elsewhere in the sports world.  I was sick of the LeBron James free agency talk when it picked up again after his Game 5 stink bomb.  The kind of hype that is surrounding his free agency reminds me of that which surrounds the NFL Draft, Brett Favre’s annual decision or the latest athlete caught doing steroids.  Let me know when he signs a contract and I’ll weigh in on the end result.  Beyond that, the endless speculation is tedious and unproductive. 

In fact, my wife (who is largely not what you would call a sports fan), turned me on to quite possibly the best athletic achievement of the past week when she recorded Amir Khan’s light welterweight bout against Paulie Malignaggi this past weekend. 

I had never heard of Khan before and am only a casual boxing fan.  When I got home from work and my wife started playing back her recording of the match, I was in for an unexpected treat.  Khan put on an absolute boxing clinic.  Malignaggi’s face fell victim to a pummeling similar to what must’ve required all of that surgery on Joan Rivers’ part.  Khan had such hand speed that it looked like he was throwing five-punch combos (and may well have been, given Malignaggi’s apparent disdain for defense).  Khan put on a dominating performance and, by my judgment, didn’t lose a single round during the fight en route to his TKO victory.

Now, you wouldn’t think that boxing’s equivalent of a 11-0 blowout would fall under compelling or exceed “LeBron Watch 2010” in terms of headlines, but allow me to explain.  Khan dismantled Malignaggi early, and pressed his attack throughout the fight.  But, to my inexperienced eye, it seemed that he was holding back, basically toying with his prey.  When one side of Malignaggi’s face looked like raw hamburger, Khan switched his attention to the other.  In the 10th round of the fight, his trainer Freddie Roach essentially told him that it was time to finish things.  One round later, things were finished.

Watching Khan dominate his opponent to this degree in his first fight in the United States inspired both interest and the beginnings of a fan following in my wife and I.  I would imagine the experience was similar for those who watched the fight as well.  It isn’t often that a sports fan gets an opportunity to see the beginnings of potential greatness.  I’ve been fortunate to see LeBron James, LaDanian Tomlinson and Sidney Crosby from the beginning.  But at times it can be overwhelming to look at the history of sports and know only the names.

So in a contemporary sense, I’ve never seen Ali win a fight.  I’ve never seen Hank Aaron hit a home run or watched Jim Brown score a touchdown.  I’ve never seen Wilt Chamberlain score 40 points or Bobby Hull score a goal.  As I understand it, these things happened plenty of times.  The wonderful thing is that I live right now and, at least in the contemporary sense, I will get to discover greatness for myself. 

As a sports fan, I am allowed to determine what is compelling or interesting for myself.  So you can have your LeBron saga and starless playoff dramas.  I’ll be watching for the next big thing to happen.

Give Philly fans a break…or else!

It’s a terrible thing, a passionate, entitled fan base. At the beginning of every season as sports fans, we talk ourselves into our teams. We analyze offseason acquisitions, trades, draft picks, the other teams in our division. The truth is, the number of teams that start the season virtually out of contention is about the same as the number of teams that start the season as legitimate championship contenders. For those of us who don’t follow the Lakers, Red Wings or Yankees, we have to wait our turns.

Yet inexplicably, fans of Philadelphia sports have taken an abnormally bad rap for being passionate. I’m not trying to excuse thrown batteries, ice balls, booing Santa or, more recently, chanting, “Tase him, tase him,” regarding one of their own who had strayed onto the field during a Phillies game.

Not nearly the same amount of attention is paid to the stereotypes about fans in other cities. Boston fans are racist. New York fans are so entitled, Europeans can tell the difference between them and other Americans. Los Angeles fans are more concerned with themselves than the sporting events that have the nerve to interrupt their networking. Chicago fans are literally all like the guys in the “Superfans” skit from Saturday Night Live. The list goes on.

But not one of those fans lets their team get blacked out due to ticket sales. And almost all, even after the 10th brew, are infinitely more restrained than your average South American soccer fan.

And let’s be honest, some of the stuff Philly fans come up with is more hilarious than it is offensive. They police their own by encouraging stadium security to nail somebody with a stun gun. Who else would’ve thought to boo Donovan McNabb before he vomited during a Super Bowl or returned to town in a division rival’s jersey?

At the end of the day, Philadelphia is not a significant outlier in terms of fan passion. Philly fans want to win. They want their athletes to be tough and edgy. They want to have elite times like the bigger cities, but be known as the kind of blue collar, respectable fans like Cleveland or Pittsburgh. And most of all, they want everyone to have a clear understanding of who they’re rooting for. What we see on TV only helps establish who they’re rooting against, and that’s only half the story.

So the next time you’re out on the town with a Philadelphia sports fan, buy him a cheesesteak or a hoagie. Even if it’s just to shut him up and keep him occupied.