Is King James’ Exposure, Over Exposure?
One of the supreme ironies of the heavily awaited decision by LeBron James as to where he will play this basketball season is that despite his prowess during the regular season, he has been a bust when it matters most: in the play-offs.
Last year, after the Orlando Magic bounced Cleveland out of the postseason, James refused to shake hands with them. There was a brooding sense of frustration that rubbed many fans the wrong way, reminding them of the irreverence of Iverson.
This year, James had some pretty lousy performances against the Boston Celtics, who went on to challenge the Lakers in the finals. There’s also the fact that unlike Kobe Bryant, he has been unable to win any championships, which is where player-hood in the NBA really matters. After all, being a great basketball player has been done, but forging championships out of obscurity, - that’s another matter.
Everyone can understand that James would want the maximum exposure possible for his decision to resign with the Cavs, or go where the grass is greener. Right now the world is on edge with LeBron mania, which is threatening the BP Oil spill and iPad sales headlines for world domination.
LeBron is 25 years old and has grown up in a world where the sports machination has an insatiable appetite for consuming and then reproducing news, gossip, and scoop. There is an entire industry of this, and it begins to account for the attempts by superstars today to win the cameras.
But when does winning the cameras become too important? When does it become more of an object than succeeding at the sport? Better, when does it itself become the sport? With the LeBron phenomenon in full swing, these questions have come to the fore. When is exposure, overexposure?
The crazy circus that James has produced is vaguely reminiscent of Alex Rodriguez’s announcement during the 2007 World Series that he was opting out of his contract with the Yankees. Not only did Rodriguez take away from the spotlight of the Boston Red Sox’s second championship in four years, he caused an over-hyped stir despite having a poor record during the post-season.
Rodriguez eventually conquered his post-season blues last season. But will ‘King’ James do the same?
After all, the force of the James hype industry is huge. Tonight the fate of the five NBA teams, which have attempted to woo him since free agency began a week ago, will be realised on a single sentence.
A departure from the Cleveland Cavaliers would undeniably devastate that team, who would be forced to rebuild in the wake of losing the MBA’s two-time MVP. Who wants to be the team that loses the best player in the league?
At the same time, other franchises have recognized the sheer power of LeBron’s brand, and in this sense it cannot be overstated enough that teams naturally do not just want LeBron for the sake of basketball betterment. Getting LeBron on the roster is about shelling out a lot of coin, but it’s worth it in the end for teams, otherwise it wouldn’t be done. Winning James is about winning fortunes.
Sources say that one of the teams in the race, the legendary Chicago Bulls, do not anticipate winning the star.
Otherwise, most still seem in the dark about the decision and its long-term implications, save for financial gain. Officially James has no obligation to inform teams or players what he is deciding until he makes his announcement.
Expect the whole nine-yards, with ESPN pulling out all the shots to make deals with sponsors, all of whom will profit from the affair.
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