It was a real-life soap opera being aired real time. In an overnight swing that shook the basketball world, Lebron James had made the bold announcement that he was transferring to join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami. After spending his entire career in his home state of Ohio playing for Cleveland, Lebron was moving on. The Cavaliers didn’t just get a flat tire. All four of its tires were hit by the Lebron “suyak.” Even the spare tire wasn’t “spared.”
Cleveland is obviously angry. Team owner Dan Gilbert was so mad that he sent out an “angry” open letter even guaranteeing that Cleveland would win an NBA championship before “the self-titled former king wins one.” Whoa! Talk about getting angry and letting it out in public. But you can’t blame them. They lost their hometown boy who was supposed to be their savior. And as the savior leaves, they get practically nothing in return.
The raging anger in Cleveland was totally the opposite in Miami where Heat fans welcomed Bosh and James in a massive welcome rally two days ago. Wearing his new Miami jersey # 6, Lebron proudly stood beside Wade with Bosh (# 1) on the other side. They all suddenly looked so much better in Miami uniforms, Heat fans would surely say in absolute glee.
Lebron’s latest transfer just confirms that certain realities will have to be accepted by all. For Cleveland as a business, they’re going to experience a serious drop in ticket sales and over-all following which will lead to a drop in revenues. Now you know why Dan Gilbert is upset, to say the least. It’s all about the money for Gilbert. After all, negosyante gud na.
Another reality that has to be accepted is that players like Lebron are also looking to win a championship ring or more to highlight their careers. And it may be necessary to team with others who could get him that ring. And at a certain cost at that. What many people don’t know is that Lebron and Bosh won’t be earning as much as they could’ve possibly received had they gone elsewhere. James was offered the moon in Cleveland while Bosh also received attractive offers from teams with salary space cap. It’s nice to know that amidst all the egos and dollars that crowd professional sports, a dream for a championship sometimes prevails over the quest to get rich. Lebron’s pay cut, though doesn’t mean he’ll go hungry. He’ll still be rich, that’s for sure.
One of the most interesting factors behind all this also had to be the deft and smooth maneuvering which the Miami management under President Pat Riley moved when plotting this coup of a recruitment. Everyone knew that the free agent batch 2010 was going to be one of the richest in history, and Riley went to work on this as early as two years ago when he plotted to have more space under the salary cap. While Wade stayed in place, Riley also worked to make the team competitive enough to make the playoffs, albeit on a simple budget. Making this sacrifice has now resulted into becoming an instant title contender overnight. Miami took a step back in order to advance three steps forward today.
The Riley magic is at work again. After leading the Lakers to be the team of the 80s and getting inches close to another title in New York, Riley brought a championship to Miami with the help of an ex-Laker in Shaquille O’Neal. Miami is so excited that they smell an NBA championship already.
But it isn’t over til it’s over. Riley still has to fill up the roster with role players who are willing to play beside the new big three of the east. Moreover, he’ll also have to remind Bosh and Lebron that this is still Wade’s team and they’ll all have to share the glory on the court.
And when they win a championship, you can truly say that Riley has weaved his magic again.
oOo
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