Links to The Present: June 15, 2010
2010-06-15
“Izzo mulled the decision for more than a week and for five days after a visit to Cleveland last Thursday. All along, sources said a major hangup was Izzo’s inability to get a sense from LeBron James what his future would be. James, wanting to stay out of the process, is not believed to have discussed the job with Izzo.” [Brian Windhorst]
“Although it doesn’t rise to the level of experiencing a divorce (at least, for most people!), his potential departure does feel like losing a friend or family member for many whose closets include many No. 23 Cavs jerseys.” McConnell refers to a recent poll that rated Cleveland as the nation’s most miserable city and says James’ return would help boost our self-esteem. Writes McConnell, “In short, Cleveland (right or wrong) has endured considerable blows to its collective self-esteem over many years. Once again, psychological research has shown that when people take hits to their self-esteem, they try to find ways to restore it. Sometimes, those responses can be antisocial (e.g., the drunk who starts a bar fight following an insult), but in the case of Cleveland, Cavs fans have been able to be buoyed by a successful hometown talent in James.” [Mary Schmitt Boyer – PD]
“Gilbert knew finding Brown’s replacement would be difficult. He said it would be ideal to have a coach in place by July 1, but that may be unrealistic. The draft is next week, and although the Cavs don’t currently have a pick, they’ve been shopping around to obtain one.
They’ve also talked to several teams about possible trades, hoping to upgrade their roster and make it more appealing to James.” [AP]
Sorry, missed the “it” at the end of your question.
Not winning a championship is not necessarily always a failure. I would say the last two years for the Cavs, not winning a championship was a failure. The first 5 years? Not a failure at all. I would say winning the first round of the playoffs many of those years was a great success.
Going 10 and 72
ben tej, If not winning a championship isn’t failure then what is it?
Eric, 96.7% of all teams in the NBA in the last 7 years didn’t win championships. The Cavs came much closer than a lot of those 96.7% of teams. No championships = failure? Come on.
Why should Lebron be loyal to failure? The Cavs had seven years to put something together that’s legit. They failed. Why should Lebron sacrifice his goals for Cleveland? At the end of his career and he doesn’t have any championships I don’t very seriously he will take solace in the fact he stayed home so he could be loved by the locals. Lebron would be a complete idiot not to put himself in the best situation possible in order to win a championship. Cleveland is not that place.
Praise God. The whole idea of bringing Izzo in was down right absurd.
You don’t send a boy to do a man’s job. The cavs need a guy who has previous nba coaching experience, not college.
The type of nba coaching job for Izzo is on a team rebuilding, not a serious championship contending team.
Oh, and I’m glad to see Ferry gone.
Cleveland Cavaliers, 2010/11 NBA champions? It’s in your hands now, Lebron.
Except it’s those sports writers and media members who get to mold the image. If they paint LeBron as a traitor, you don’t think fans will start to do the same? If they paint him as someone who ran away from his home town (like they already are) you don’t think other people will do the same. I dunno where you’ve bee, but outside of Cleveland the LeBron aura has taken an even bigger hit. Read an article by Shoals, or Dwyer, or Woj, or etc. etc. They are all outside of Cleveland and are all firmly on the “Kill… Read more »
Jimmy is right ofcourse. I’m a Spurs fan and while I would “prefer” that LeBron stay with the Cavs for all those feel-good reasons like loyalty, honor, etc., if he leaves then I’m still going to think he’s a bad mofo of a ball player and would continue to buy many of the his products and the products he endorses multiple times. I believe most people will feel this way too, outside Cleveland obviously. I suppose it could be “correct” to say that he would become a polarizing sports figure should he leave, but I have a feeling all the… Read more »
I gotta go with KJ here. A-rod is a non-entity. No one outside of new york is really talking/caring about a-rod at this point. LeBron, in Cleveland, is the biggest sports icon in the country. More people than just Cleveland clearly care about LeBron and his decision. Now, I dunno if Lebron stays. My head is telling me no. I think he SHOULD stay. Not because of loyalty because that isn’t a two way street with fans. But, I do think it honestly helps his legacy if he stays in Cleveland AND I think he just flat out has a… Read more »
@jimmy, you’re wrong. and since you can’t seem to grasp what i’m saying let me say it again: sportswriters from other cites have written about this and talked about his on radio and tv shows. that is a FACT. if he leaves clevleand he takes a major hit. if you like, i’m sure i can provide some links. i also know that the last time i saw espn poll on this very question like 70%+ wanted LBJ to stay. and for you to say no one else cares about this? really? larry king doesn’t care? every sport media outlet in… Read more »
And since I had to break it out into 2 posts due to some reason I couldn’t make one long post, here is the rest… So, in the end, Lebron stays or goes, nobody except Cleveland and his new city care. He will continue to have endorsements, companies will still line up to have him promote them. And shall he win one or more rings, the happenings of the summer of Lebron will only be remembered by us Cleveland fans. People either love or hate Lebron. Same with Jordan. By the way, if Jordan didn’t win, how prominent do you… Read more »
KJ, if you took a minute off your internet nerdrage and actually read what I said about LBJ’s image and endorsment potential, you’d see it for what it is. You really think NBA fans in Oklahoma, or Florida or Iowa or wherever outside of Cleveland give a damn if he is loyal to Cleveland or not? You think they’re really thinking “if that punk leaves Cleveland, I’m not buying a single thing he endorses again. Haha, that is if that lsoer ever gets another endorsement again – what company is gonna give that guy a contract if he leaves, hahaha… Read more »
oops, meant 1-2 in his last THREE finals appearances. sorry.
@steve
maybe or maybe not but i do know that he is 1-2 in his last 2 finals appearances and he still may end up 1-3. i believe my earlier point stands. players, not coaches, still win titles, ultimately.
@jimmy
but i think you’re right about the loyalty thing. 100%.
@jimmy you’re wrong. period. your example of tiger was particularly funny. the dude is an endorsement nightmare now. and listen, it’s not just clevlanders saying this about LBJ!! you’re the one living in a “fantasyland” if you think that MOST of america doesn’t wants LBJ to stay! and guess what? “MOST of america” is who buys the products that LBJ endorses. your other examples are equally laughable. a-rod? oh yeah, he was an endorsement giant. farve. yeah, he’s got that low-priced jeans market sewed up (pun unintentional)! NONE of those guys including kobe have or had anywhere near the number… Read more »
“The idea of being loyal to a team that has been loyal to you..” Do people really think its about loyalty really??? Loyalty is so far down on the spectrum of reasons to sign here, there of wherever. The reason the Cavs are “loyal” to Lebron is because he makes them gobs and gobs of cash. He increases the franchises value and puts fans in the seat. The reason Lebron is “loyal” to the Cavs is because they can pay him the most and give him a oppurtunity to win. LOYALTY DOES NOT EXIST IN SPORTS OTHER THAN FOR THOSE… Read more »
KEVIN: LBJ is staying because to leave would be a near death blow to his image and ability to make money through endorsements based off of that image. NEVER forget that point. Are you serious? All it takes is one championship to reclaim all those endorsements and ability to make money. I personally don’t think he’s gonna lose anything if he leaves, other than the 6th year of a deal with the Cavs which in his world is negligible and worth giving up most likely. And if he forces a sign and trade, he loses NOTHING. The only loss will… Read more »
I agree completely with Tom and The Nupe. Blaming LeBron for front office failures (failing to get Izzo, failing to bring in talent for w/e reason, failing to assemble a young core, w/e you want it to be) is insane. I blame LeBron for when he fails at the job he is paid to do..play basketball. His games 4-6 against Boston were horrible, with the obvious game 5 meltdown. I blame him for that. He deserves it. However, blaming him for 2005 like Colin did in the other thread, or blaming him for Izzo, or blaming him for Stoudemire or… Read more »
As much as I want LBJ to stay (and believe he will), I’ll continue to be a cavs fan regardless. I’m no more a fan because of LBJ and I won’t be any less a Cavs fan if he leaves. However, IF he stays in Cleveland and signs a full term contract (rather than a three year type deal) I would become more of an LBJ fan. The idea of being loyal to a team that has been loyal to you, staying in the same city your entire career and committing to delivering a championship to a starved city all… Read more »
Agree with Rich. While Cavs fans have every right to be upset by game 5 (and the complete and utter lack of any explanation as to why that happened) – it doesn’t mean it’s right to assume the worst about LBJ’s character at every possible impasse. Since the series ended, he hasn’t said much, he’s kept quiet, and stayed out of the public eye with the exception of the Larry King interview. Instead of overreacting to every single tweet or “source” or whatever – like some of our dear friends do, maybe we need to just do what Colin is… Read more »
Yeah Keith, “We can just give someone the max and have some good drafts” That’s funny! It’s almost as funny as “we can get another star” which is hysterical!
Someone tell me how LeBron has been treating the fans any worse than say Chris Bosh or Dwayne Wade? How does being silent = slapping the fans in the face? Good god you guys take everything he does so personally, that somehow being silent is now an insult to you as well.
Forget LeBron. I was a Cavs fan when they had Daugherty-Price, when they had Kemp-Sura, when they had Ricky Davis , and when the had LeBron-Shaq. Guess what? None of them won the title. If LeBron leaves, he wasn’t the chosen one. Wasn’t meant to be. I’ll still be an NBA fan. And with Gilbert, we can get another star. Not every player is an ego maniac like LeBron. We can just give someone the max and have some good drafts. The way LeBron treats his fans, I want to tell him to shove it up his ass.
Kj
Phil Jackson is about to win his 11th NBA title. Get a clue!!!!
“aw man, these fans…it’s unbelievable…it’s humbling…it’s over!”
If we’re not good enough for LeBron, well, he can go to H-E double Hockey Sticks. I’m tired of his me first, all about the money attitude. The pandering to the national audience is a bit ridiculous. He’s coming off like a whore. We all should’ve called him on it earlier. The simple truth of the matter is that LeBron manufactured the biggest in season distraction of all time, and no one in the national media has called him on this. If this was a coach, it would be the top story. I’m over him. We can win without him,.… Read more »
you guys are living and dying by the daily news cycle TOO much. LBJ is staying because to leave would be a near death blow to his image and ability to make money through endorsements based off of that image. NEVER forget that point. and let’s not get too crazy about coach this or coach that either. phil jackson is about to go what 1-3 in his last 4 finals appearances? while doc rivers, a coach fired what twice is about to win his second in 3 years! get the right PLAYERS here and we’ll win. period. wait, let me… Read more »
The clouds are gathering and rather quickly… there isn’t anything to hang a hat on right now and the clock won’t stop ticking
Well, I think it’s fairly easy to say at this point he didn’t orchestrate the firing of Ferry and Brown and that was all on Gilbert. If he isn’t going to talk to Izzo, he isn’t going to purposefully get Ferry and Brown fired.
Im honestly to the point I’m just ready for the rebuilding process to begin. Let’s do the sign and trade and get on a 3 year plan. Give me SOMETHING to look forward to even if it is three years down the road.
It’s so hard to enjoy Cavs basketball when all this crap is going on.
I will say this if LeBron really orchestrated the demise of Mike Brown and Denny Ferry only to stonewall any potential new coach for the Cavs and then leave, he’s not going to win a championship for any team for the rest of his career.
I can’t believe Cleveland pro sports is going to die like this…
Still trying to see the light and I’m coming up with only darkness. I’ll always have hope until the day he officially announces he’s leaving, but the more and more I look at things from his perspective, the more and more I see myself leaving.