LeBron, Put Up or Shut Up

On the cover of this week's Sports Illustrated is LeBron James, who sat down for an exclusive interview with SI writer Lee Jenkins. Ordinarily, I would not comment on interviews done in magazines, but I feel that this needed to be addressed. If you know me through my Twitter account, you know I am not exactly a big LeBron fan, to put it mildly. Statistically, LeBron has had a great season, there is no questioning that. Even his biggest critics, myself included, will acknowledge that. However, as I, and many other people will tell you, those numbers are irrelevant and that LeBron's story will truly will be written in May and June, in the playoffs. Last year, LeBron famously melted down in the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. He added fuel to the fires of his detractors by wilting in the 4th quarter during the Finals. In the article, LeBron describes the aftermath:


"On the night last June when the Mavericks beat the Heat in Miami for the NBA championship, James drove to his house in Coconut Grove and did not come out for two weeks. "I couldn't watch TV because every channel -- doesn't matter if it was the Cartoon Channel -- was talking about me and the Heat," James says. "On the Cooking Channel it was like, 'So we're going to make a turkey burger gourmet today, and LeBron James failed!'"

Not to sound like an asshole, but, tough shit, buddy. 


Many superstars have lost in the Finals or early in the playoffs, but what made them great is that they found ways to bounce back the following year or within a couple of years. Magic Johnson is an example of this. The Lakers blew a 2-1 series lead in 1984 and lost to the Boston Celtics. Magic, in particular, was scrutinized for his late game mistakes in Games 2 and 4, which the Lakers would both lose in overtime, and which turned the series in the Celtics' favor. He endured an entire summer of being called "Tragic Johnson" from the media and fans. The following year, however, Magic was more determined than ever, and helped break the Celtic curse and bring a title back to L.A. 


Another example was Michael Jordan. In 1990, the Bulls lost to the Pistons convincingly in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Many people questioned whether the Bulls would ever beat the Pistons, and amazingly the following year, they not only conquered the demons by beating the Pistons but would also win the NBA Finals that year and the following two years. In 1995, he came out of retirement at mid-season, only for the Bulls to fall in the Eastern Conference semifinals to a young Orlando Magic team led by Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway. The following year, a more determined MJ helped lead the Bulls to the highest single-season win total in NBA history, and followed that up with an NBA title that year and the following two years. 


One of the more remarkable examples is Kobe Bryant. The Lakers lost the 2004 Finals to the Detroit Pistons, and a lot of blame was placed on him for losing that series, mostly due to his performance. The departures of Shaquille O'Neal and Phil Jackson were also blamed on him, and he faced a ton of criticism for that too. After a couple of down years that included a trade demand, Kobe won MVP in 2008 and the Lakers went back to the NBA Finals, only to lose to the Boston Celtics. He was blamed for that loss too, and took major criticism for it. However, the following year, Kobe found himself again, and won the NBA title not only that year, but would also get revenge on the Celtics the following year. 


So, my point is, LeBron, you can either learn from Magic, Michael, and Kobe, and do something about it through your actions, or you can just say that you're gonna change things this year. LeBron, you say there are no more excuses. It's one thing to say it, but another to actually do it. It's time to put up or shut up.