Did LeBron James Silence the Critics?

Ever since July 9, 2010 LeBron James has been the most condemned athlete in all of sports solely because of “The Decision”.  Millions of fans burned his jersey in the streets of Cleveland, and hundreds of writer/bloggers, etc. questioned his WILL to win. Nonetheless the city of Miami embraced “The King” with open arms, even throwing him and his new entourage a party. Nearly 14,000 people were in attendance at this rock concert like event that took place at American airlines. This was the largest free-agency signing in a very long time, not only did James join Miami, Power Forward Chris Bosh also landed in South Beach. Forming one of the most dynamic trios in NBA History if you ask me.

The Big 3 did not disappoint in their first voyage together as teammates, posting a record of 58-24 in the 2010 regular season. Early on  in the year the trio had to search for a solution that worked. Wade and James are two guys so accustomed to playing with the orange in their hands, and Chris Bosh was also a number one option with Toronto. As the season progressed this group of stars emerged quickly with LeBron James being the facilitator a majority of the time. Despite all the hatred dispensed by fans in the arenas LeBron and the Miami Heat only grew closer as a unit. Wade and James were seen everywhere together in press conferences, interviews etc. The more the public eye saw that, the more the HATE festered. It got to a point were LeBron James had been ordained as “Robin” you know…. Batman’s sidekick. After being tormented for not being able to win a championship in the 2007, and shriveling up when the pressure mounted James had his shot at another NBA Title. Only this time a 7-foot German named Dirk Nowitzki stood in King James’ path. LeBron had finished second in the league in scoring at 26.7ppg (only behind Kevin Durant) and he finally eluded the Boston Celtics in the ECF. Being the favorite to win the 2010 NBA Championship the Miami Heat were running in stride to capture the franchises second title. Until they hit a speed bump the Dallas Mavericks 2-3 matchup zone, Dallas forced Miami to take and make the perimeter jumper. But after game 1 LeBron contributed 24 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists, in a 92-84 win in Miami. It seemed as though “The King” would finally get his ring, Game 2 was a 95-93 heartbreaking loss LeBron went scoreless in the 4th quarter. Now here come the non-witnesses “He Choked”, “LeBron James can’t close”, and a cluster of different slogans and sayings. Let me be transparent for a second I was without a shadow of a doubt one of LeBron James’ biggest critics. Even before “The Decision” I was a unsure of his greatness because I held Bron to a very high standard at such a young age. With all that being said game 3 rolled around and by this time James had read, heard, and seen everything I mentioned up above. T he King still walked with swagger and kept his head held high entering a crucial game 3. The Miami Heat did indeed win but, the criticism had only just begun, as Wade carried the troops to a 88-86 victory. Flash resembled that same guy that took the wind out of Dallas’ sail back in 2006. Single handedly dismantling the Dirk lead Mavericks, on the other hand James had a night he would never forget. Afterwards LeBron stated  he planned to be more physical in-game 4. He did everything BUT be physical totalling a lousy 8 points on 3-11 shooting. Eventually the Mavericks outlasted the Heat in 6 games to capture the NBA Crown.  LeBron James was crucified by myself, fans of the NBA, analysts, writers, and  anyone with a connection to hoops. This marked his second unsatisfactory performance in an NBA Finals, rewinding back to the 2007 Finals against the Spurs. During the summer of 2011 LeBron was indeed the social event of the season, the guy was talked about everywhere and by everyone. As I think about it now he was only 26 years of age with some growing up to do. He spent ample time with Hakeem Olajuwon the former Houston Rockets HOF Center. Just molding his game mainly concentrating on post moves on the block, another great Kobe Bryant worked with Hakeem as well. Social sites such as Facebook and Twitter oozed with many LeBron James jokes during that summer, I had a couple of jokes as well. Also in the off-season LeBron stated he is just going to play ball and not worry about what people are saying. Wade stepped in to say that he will take the role as being the villain, and let James stick to playing at a high level.

Entering the 2011-2012 NBA season LeBron and the Miami Heat started off scorching also going 16-5 in the month of January. With the bitter memories still in the back of his mind James kept his foot on the gas. With only one goal in sight and that’s to win an NBA Championship. Myself and a host of other blogger/writers, radio show host labeled this season as “TITLE OR BUST” for the Miami Heat. Admittedly humble by his loss in the Finals to Dallas LeBron James played superb basketball throughout the regular season as always. But even early in the season he was getting lashed for being to passive in the pivotal moments of games. In the All-Star game Kobe Bryant challenged and encouraged LeBron to take the final shot. Also in a game at Energy Solutions against the Utah Jazz he passed up the game winner to Udonis Haslem which resulted in a loss. As a unit outside of San Antonio, the Miami Heat were still the most focused team in the NBA. They rode that high all the way into the 2012 NBA playoffs. Knocking off  a less talented New York Knicks team in 5 games, the critics were still not impressed many said he couldn’t do it in the FINALS. Yes, I was one of the people who wanted to see him perform in the Finals before i deemed him “The King”. As the 2012 NBA Playoffs advanced  I began to look at LeBron James in a different light I wasn’t completely SOLD, but he had my attention. Entering a tough and rugged series with the Indiana Pacers the teams traded blows, words, the whole nine, then Chris Bosh went down. He suffered an abdominal injury that kept him out all the way up to the ECF game 4, many said Miami couldn’t win without Bosh. Did I believe that as well? Of course that’s when LeBron James truly showed me his worth. With D-Wade struggling, James carried Miami past Indy and notched 40 points and 18 rebounds in an elimination game. Bronny rocked a mouth guard with the roman numerals XVI (16) the number of games until he is a CHAMPION. After every big play he would extend  the mouthpiece out almost saying nothing is going to stand in my way. Certainly not this aged group of Boston Celtics whom they would face yet again in the ECF. James dazzled showed off his post game and played like a 3-time MVP should in other words he BALLED!!!. He exploded on Boston Celtics posted historical numbers 45 points 15 rebounds and 5 assists on 73% shooting from the field. Oh yeah this was also an elimination game, James absolutely dominated in every aspect of the game. The Miami Heat prevailed in 7 games and again LeBron James is back in the NBA Finals, you know the saying 3rd times a charm.

After bouncing the Boston Celtics for the second consecutive season the Miami Heat and LeBron James were four games away. To me it was almost like LeBron James and company could taste it. But they would be tested by this young, high-flying, potent Oklahoma City Thunder team lead by Superstar Kevin Durant. This was the story-line NBA fans hoped for the two best in the sport going head to head for the crown. Once again the critics were tuned in ready to see James fall flat on his face and eat those words he spoke at the parade. I’m talking about “Not one”, “Not two”, “Not three” and so forth, basically saying Heat fans should expect ships on top of ships. Afer a game one loss the fourth quarter jokes rose back up, as James was outscored 17-7 by Durant. James and the Heat responded big by running off four straight games against the Western Conference Champions. In route to his first ever NBA Championship, in game 5 James was abnormal on a bum leg. Drilling a three from the top of the key over Thabo Sefalosha, one of the NBA’s premiere on-ball defenders. Everyone in the city of Miami knew he was going to take that BIG shot, after being hampered by cramps James had been in and out of the 4th quarter. Mike Miller stepped up and made 8 huge 3 pointers, in a 121-106 cremation of the Oklahoma City Thunder. LeBron James finished the series averaging 29 points per game, 10 rebounds and 7.4 assists and captured his first NBA Finals MVP trophy. In game 5 James notched a triple double totalling 26 points 11 rebounds and 13 assists.

Did LeBron James silence his critics? Yes he did proved on a consistent basis that he can be “THAT GUY”. Although his supporting cast should not go un-noticed “The King” deserved every bit of this NBA Championship.This Lebron was a completely different guy than in the years past. Very humble, and well spoken a prime example of against all odds. It was the Heat organization against the world, and they overcame all negativity. Congratulations to the 2012 NBA Champion Miami Heat and the best player in the game today LeBron Raymone James!!

“Clutch Factor” Does LeBron James possess it?

OK basketball heads and NBA guru’s, it’s time to dissect the meaning of the word ”CLUTCH”. It’s often thrown around in the world of sports to add more emphasis to a big play.

”Clutch” means performing well under extreme pressure.

Often time it refers to a high level of production in critical moments; for example the final hole of the Masters, or Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the last drive of the Super Bowl etc. Athletes are tagged with being clutch performers based on how they perform in nerve-racking situations. I believe that every “GREAT” player should have a clutch gene in their system.

Now over the years I have been a faithful NBA fan, I have watched basketball since the age of 8 and been playing since age 9. I have seen many “CLUTCH” performers in my time, from Reggie Miller, to Michael Jordan. The NBA athlete that seems to get the most critism in the clutch factor topic is  Miami Heat’s forward LeBron James. It’s been argued that he is the best player in the NBA at this point in time, but I believe he is only the best athlete.

In order for you to have the label of being “the best” you have to shine at the brightest moments. LeBron James simply just shies away from the moment more than he embraces it.

Myself and a host of friends have debated this topic, and I’m asked “What is Clutch?”, and “Who is Clutch?”. The answer is simple: clutch is not just making the last shot, its having the testicular fortitude to TAKE the deciding shot no matter the outcome. Before I go bashing Lebron for not being clutch let me clarify what I mean: James is by far the best player in the NBA through 3 periods. Where I’m having the problem is in the 4th quarter when the game is on the line. Prime example would be last years NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. DeShawn Stevenson says, “LeBron checked out.” Honestly, I can’t remember the last time the best player in the league checked out of an NBA FINALS SERIES.

Here’s the thing: its not that he is missing the shots, he just simply is not TAKING them!! Now I’m not saying he should make every shot but he should at least attempt. In that NBA Finals series Game 4 he took 11 shots in 45 minutes of action. Now what STAR do you know that takes only 11 shots in an NBA Final?

The bottom line is, LeBron James is not a finished product there are still some microscopic holes in his game. It just so happens that being a clutch performer is one of the holes I’m talking about. Even after last June, James is still not delivering the goods down the stretch. Its starting to look like LeBron James is just not built that way, at the end of games he has become passive; more of a facilitator.

What’s wrong with LeBron not taking the clutch shots, and passing to the open man?

I’m almost 100% sure that Pat Riley did not sign Lebron James for him to throw fancy bounce passes. No, he acquired LeBron James as well as Chris Bosh to WIN .  Dwayne Wade did not take a pay cut for James to come to on board and not shine when the lights are on.

Even early on in this season he is being more passive and less aggressive which is benefiting the opposing teams. The “KING” is a lousy 1-9 in situations where his team is down by three or the score is tied up, during the final 24 seconds of a game/overtime. James’ most recent relapse came last Friday night in Salt Lake City, when the Heat took on the Utah Jazz. Its been said he made the right play to pass to Udonis Haslem in his sweet spot, at the free throw line extended elbow. Yes, that is a shot Haslem makes 7 out of 10 times, but my man… when the game is on the line you take that shot!

That’s what seperates LeBron James from Kobe Bryant. Kobe has that killer instinct; when your down he is trying to step on your throat, whereas LeBron will lend a helping hand. Now, with that being said, in Salt Lake City and even the All Star Game I believe LeBron James should have taken both shots. You have to understand the RIGHT play, the good teammate play, was to pass the ball to Haslem. But the BEST play would have been to take the shot. It doesn’t make you a ballhog, it reflects leadership and lets your team know you they are in good hands. Its not like they don’t want LeBron James to shoot it, they look to him and he looks to someone else…c’mon man!

Bloggers and writers say that if Kobe misses a game winning shot we don’t crucify him, but if its LeBron we won’t hear the last of it. Unfortunately, Kobe is a PROVEN clutch performer and a champion, another thing that seperates the two athletes. Just being honest, the media will not rest until the “KING” wins a RING!

Maybe its not who he is, LeBron James is very capable of making big shots…its all a matter of TAKING it. Even if he misses, who would you rather have take the shot? Udonis Haslem? No, I want the ball in the hands of my BEST player, if he misses then he just misses! Its apart of the game, point blank period.

I’m definetly not taking anything away from LeBron James as a basketball player, he is a tremendous talent and a nice guy. As far as him being clutch remains to be seen, he has worked hard on his post game over the summer from what I can tell. Now he just needs to become “THAT GUY”, so whatever LeBron James does in the regular season is irrelevant to me. I expect him to put up stellar numbers. I want to see im do it in June when it matters.

I mean, what really defines clutch? Is LeBron James clutch? If you ask me he is to a certain extent, let’s see how he does in June.

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